"most definitely" coming home, Prince Harry predicts

Croatia face France in Moscow on Sunday attempting to win their first World Cup while Didier Deschamps' side are aiming to land their second title two decades on from their triumph on home soil.

France, who are clear favourites to triumph in the Luzhniki Stadium, will also be spurred on by the bitter disappointment of losing the Euro 2016 final to Portugal in Paris.

It is a final few people anticipated when football's global showpiece kicked off four weeks ago.

Croatia have brought joy to their Balkan nation of just four million people by defying the odds to progress to the final while reigning champions Germany, then Argentina and Brazil all fell by the wayside in Russia.

They have been inspired by mercurial midfielder Luka Modric while coach Zlatko Dalic, who only took over last year with the squad in chaos, has coaxed remarkable performances from his team.

Deschamps would become only the third man to win the World Cup as both a player and a manager -- he was captain when France lifted the World Cup in 1998.

His France side, spearheaded by 19-year-old forward Kylian Mbappe and the more seasoned Antoine Griezmann, are the favourites.

Paul Pogba has finally become a leader in midfield for France and N'Golo Kante has excelled in doing the tireless work that allows his teammates to shine, while Samuel Umtiti and Raphael Varane are the nucleus of a solid defence.

Les Bleus laboured through their group, beating Australia and Peru by the odd goal and drawing with Denmark in the only goalless game of the tournament.

Then they hit form, sweeping aside Argentina in a match which announced to the world that Mbappe is set to be an international superstar as he scored twice and outshone Lionel Messi.

But apart from that 4-3 win, France have played like a Deschamps side, with the emphasis on defence.

James Anderson was thrust straight into the action in his final Test as England captain Ben Stokes won the toss and elected to field against the West Indies at Lord's on Wednesday.

Stokes's decision was greeted by huge cheers from the crowd at the 'Home of Cricket', with spectators eager to see Anderson do what he does best in the paceman's 188th and final Test of a record-breaking career spanning two decades.

No fast bowler has taken more than the 41-year-old Anderson's 700 Test wickets and only India batting hero Sachin Tendulkar has played more matches (200) in the format.

Overcast skies promised to assist swing bowler Anderson, who made his Test debut against Zimbabwe at Lord's back in 2003.

But looking ahead to the 2025/26 Ashes, England believe now is the right time to end his international career.

"We can expect from Jimmy complete heart, desire to win games for England," said Stokes at the toss. "He's a consummate professional. That first ball that's bowled today, the crowd will be right up."

Both teams had already named their sides for this first of a three-match series, with England handing debuts to the Surrey duo of wicketkeeper Jamie Smith and fast bowler Gus Atkinson.

"Gus and Jamie coming for debuts is always an exciting thing," he added. "They've got a very high ceiling, very talented."

West Indies gave a debut to Mikyle Louis as the 23-year-old batsman became the first cricketer from his home island of St Kitts to represent the West Indies in their 96 years in Test cricket.

"We would have bowled too but we've got a job to do with the bat now, we'll focus on that," said West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite.

He added: "Batting first at Lord's, what an occasion. We've got to enjoy it, that's what I'm telling the boys, and we've got to believe to achieve."

Lee Carsley admitted he was relieved to end his reign as England interim boss with the stylish 5-0 rout of Ireland that sealed Nations League promotion ahead of Thomas Tuchel's arrival.

Shrugging off a lacklustre first half performance, England ran riot after the break at Wembley on Sunday to secure the victory they needed to return to League A.

Three goals in the space of five minutes and 36 seconds did the damage in Carsley's last game before Tuchel takes over on an 18-month contract from January 1.

Harry Kane opened the floodgates with a penalty conceded by Ireland defender Liam Scales, who was sent off for a second booking.

Anthony Gordon, Conor Gallagher, Jarrod Bowen and Taylor Harwood-Bellis all netted for the first time in an England shirt to ensure first place in Group B2 after five wins from six matches under Carsley.

"It'd be fair to say there's a bit of relief," Carsley said. "If we'd have spoken at the start of the campaign we'd probably have said you're expected to get promotion but it's difficult.

"No team has rolled over for us and let us just carry on. I've found it personally challenging and I know the staff have. It's good that we've finished the campaign with such a strong performance.

"We spoke about not only gaining promotion from the Nations League but to potentially increase the pool of players Thomas has got to choose from.

"The challenge now for the players that have been involved for the last three camps is to be in and around the next squad."

A giant 'thank you' to Carsley was displayed on the Wembley screens at full-time, when Football Association chief executive Mark Bullingham praised his work since replacing Gareth Southgate following the Euro 2024 final loss to Spain.

"He has selected some exciting new players and will be providing Thomas Tuchel and Anthony Barry with a very detailed handover," Bullingham said.

"The players have really enjoyed working with Lee and his team. They have made a real impact in their interim roles."

- 'Exciting times' -

Carsley plans to meet former Bayern Munich and Chelsea boss Tuchel to present him with information about the squad ahead of next year's World Cup qualifiers.

"I'm trying to put together, with the rest of the staff, a debrief on all three camps," he said.

"I will put together a document, then hopefully meet him and present what we think and what we've found. I'm looking forward to meeting him now in the next few weeks."

Carsley hands over the reins with England in good shape after he gave debuts to eight emerging youngsters to showcase the strength in depth available to Tuchel.

"It's a job that deserves an elite coach with a track record of winning and Thomas has got that. Exciting times ahead," he said.

After the disappointment of losing a second successive European Championship final under Southgate, England will begin the Tuchel era focused on winning the World Cup for the first time since 1966.

Tuchel has enjoyed success throughout a managerial career that includes Champions League glory with Chelsea and Harry Kane, who played under the German at Bayern, is looking forward to renewing their relationship.

"Thomas has a lot of players to choose from. A lot of young players that have come in and done well and some more experienced players that are injured and will be looking to come back so there's a good balance," he said.

Meanwhile, Ireland boss Heimir Hallgrimsson was furious with his team's capitulation.

"It was six minutes of madness. I just felt we lost our heads at that moment. After that, there was no way back," said Hallgrimsson, whose side face a Nations League relegation play-off.

"We kind of just gave up. Easy to stand outside and criticise the players but it was a crazy moment that killed everything. I'm kind of lost for words."

- Haaland fires Norway into League A -

Haaland was at his destructive best as Norway brushed aside Kazakhstan 5-0 to finish top of Group B3 ahead of Austria who were held to a 1-1 draw by Slovenia.

The Manchester City star broke the deadlock, pouncing on a rebound in the 23rd minute.

Haaland nodded in his 37th international goal 14 minutes later, before Antonio Nusa added a Norwegian third of a dominant first half.

Haaland completed his fourth treble for Norway with 19 minutes remaining, turning away from his marker on the edge of the area and finishing low into the bottom corner with his right foot.

Nusa scored again as Norway snatched automatic promotion from Austria, who conceded a late equaliser to Slovenia in Vienna.

Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic gave Russian President Vladimir Putin a Croatian soccer shirt with the name "Putin" printed on the back on Sunday, hours before Croatia play France in the World Cup final in Moscow.

Croatia has been caught up in soccer fever after the Balkan nation of 4.2 million people swept aside more fancied opponents to reach its first ever World Cup final, which Russia is hosting this year.

Grabar-Kitarovic has, herself, entered into the spirit of the occasion, travelling to Russia to watch matches and dressing in the colours of the national flag. Croatia knocked Russia's team out of the competition in the quarter-finals.

At a Kremlin meeting, Putin congratulated the Croatian president on the Croatian team's performance.

"I'm sure we will see a beautiful game today," he said. Grabar-Kitarovic thanked Putin for what she said was the successful organisation of the competition.

Putin presented her with a bouquet of flowers, while she gave the Russian leader the Croatian national shirt.

France have shut out all the euphoria back home over their run to the World Cup final in order to play a perfect match against Croatia on Sunday, France captain Hugo Lloris said.

The goalkeeper said the team were not being swept up by the wave of celebrations back home and were keeping their focus firmly on their shot of earning a second World Cup title after 1998 when they take on the Croatians in Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium.

"To be honest we are in our little bubble and we don't know what is happening in France," Lloris told reporters on Saturday.

"We are far from thinking that we have reached our goal. We will face a high-quality opponent and they deserve as much credit as we do.

"They have displayed their physical and mental strengths and tomorrow we will need a great French team to win."

France have never needed to go beyond 90 minutes in their run to the final after beating Argentina in the round of 16, Uruguay in the last eight and Belgium in the semi-finals.

But Croatia had to battle from a goal down in all three of their knockout matches to beat Denmark, Russia and England.

They played extra time in all of them and needed penalties against the Danes and hosts Russia.

"Croatia have shown their mental strength which is quite incredible. They have managed to qualify after extra time three times in a row. There is something special in this team," Lloris warned.

"They also have an incredible collective strength. We have a lot of respect for them. We need to perform at a high level and deliver a perfect match to win," said the keeper.

France are in their third World Cup final after winning in 1998 and losing to Italy in 2006. They also reached the Euro final on home soil two years ago only to lose to Portugal.

Lloris said that defeat was not on their minds any longer, with many current players not part of the 2016 team.

"I think that our team is quite calm. I do not really know if we realise how far we have come but it is better that way," Lloris said. "We have this inner strength from the beginning of the tournament with which we can overcome any challenge."

"Tomorrow will be the most important match of our career. It will be a special match because it is a World Cup final and we have to stay in our bubble to focus on the ultimate goal."