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Over 1,000 police officers and army personnel were deployed while helicopters and drones flew overhead to keep a watch on a demonstration which was kept several kilometres away from the Bluenergy Stadium hosting the Group I fixture, won 3-0 by Italy.

Elsewhere, pro-Palestinian demonstrations prefaced Italy's vital win over Israel and Spain took another step towards qualification with a big victory against Bulgaria.

It will be the fifth appearance by the Black Stars in the global showpiece.

Norway, who have not played at a major tournament since Euro 2000, now lead Group I with nine points more than second-placed Italy, who have two games in hand and play in Estonia later Saturday.

"I was surprised because I didn't know I was the first, so it's a blessing," London-born Spence said.

Rubin added that Maradona’s love for the game was impossible to miss.

Carlo Ancelotti got off to a disappointing start as Brazil coach in Thursday's South American World Cup qualifiers, drawing 0-0 against runners-up Ecuador, putting the Italian manager under considerable pressure.

Carlo Ancelotti had long been seen as the ideal candidate, but the Italian legend reaffirmed his commitment to Real Madrid until 2026. That opens the door to a new round of speculation. Al Hilal’s Jorge Jesus leads the shortlist, while Palmeiras’ Abel Ferreira, another Portuguese tactician with Brazilian experience, is also in contention.

“We have to rethink everything we’ve been doing, because the demands will come; the people want us to win,” he said.

All eyes were on Brazil's Raphinha ahead of the game after his explosive comments on Romario TV, where he boldly promised Argentina would be “beaten up” both on and off the pitch.

Five-times World Cup winners Brazil have won just once in their last four games and Marquinhos urged his team mates to turn things around as quickly as possible.

Argentina punched their ticket to the 2026 World Cup with flair, delivering a stunning 4-1 demolition of arch-rivals Brazil in Buenos Aires on Wednesday morning (Bangladesh time)

Argentina’s dominance, both in spirit and in skill, now sees them march into the 2026 World Cup with confidence, while Brazil must return to the drawing board to salvage their qualifying campaign.

The result in the match held in the Bolivian city of El Alto guaranteed the 2022 World Cup winners a top-six finish and direct qualification for the tournament in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Brazil have not beaten the reigning world champions in six years, a run that extends to 16 years for matches hosted in Argentina.

"We'll beat them up... Absolutely! Beat them up! On the pitch and off the pitch if we have to," Raphinha said in an interview on "Romario TV" with the Brazilian great.

Monday's 3-0 victory over Latvia at Wembley, like Friday's 2-0 defeat of Albania, was far from perfect. But Tuchel already has credit in the bank for some wise decisions.

It was a huge boost for Tony Popovic's men in the race to come second in Asian Group C behind runaway leaders Japan and automatically qualify for the 48-team tournament in North America next year.

Messi scored a stunning goal in Inter Miami's 2-1 win at Atlanta United in Major League Soccer (MLS) on Sunday but felt a muscle discomfort, local media reported.