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Rúben Neves came to the rescue for the Portuguese side with a last-gasp winning goal in their World Cup qualifying clash against Ireland, following Caoimhín Kelleher had saved a spot-kick from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Match Overview

The Wolves midfielder headed home during stoppage time to claim a narrow win, several seasons after the star striker had bagged a brace at the death to defeat a resilient Irish side.

The Irish squad looked set to depart the Portuguese capital with a well-earned point, but ultimately left empty-handed, despite regaining a significant amount of honor with a battling performance that erased some of the memories of last month’s disappointing loss in Armenia.

However, the defeat puts them in a difficult position, with their initial trio of qualifying group matches having yielded only a solitary point. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any chance of claiming a playoff place.

Major Incidents

• The Liverpool keeper seemed to have secured Ireland a draw when he brilliantly saved Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg after a Portuguese player’s effort had struck Dara O’Shea’s hand.
• The match-winner saved Portugal in the opening moments of stoppage time when he directed Trincão’s cross past Kelleher.

Other Qualifying Results

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team enhanced their hopes of qualifying by picking up their initial victory with a two-goal triumph over Armenia, moving above their opponents into second place behind the group leaders in the standings. Daniel Lukacs provided Hungary the lead in the opening period and a teammate secured the points in late stoppage time.

England’s Group

The Serbian national team slipped to a narrow defeat at home to Albania, with the result meaning England can now secure their qualification from their qualifying group by beating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker scored the decisive strike for Albania with a well-taken volley in first-half added time.

The Latvian side struggles in their group persisted as they were forced to a two-all draw at home by the Andorran team. An Andorran player found the net for the visitors 12 minutes from time to claim them their first point of the qualifiers and prolong Latvia’s winless run to five games.

Group E

Spain continued their dominant Group E campaign with a 2-0 win over Georgia after strikes from a Spanish attacker and his teammate in Elche. The win continued the title holders’ perfect run in the qualifiers, having scored eleven strikes in three games without letting in a goal.

In spite of the absence of players such as a talented winger, another forward, and the midfield anchor due to fitness issues, the Spanish squad demonstrated their superiority against a Georgia team that spent most of the match sitting back. Spain controlled the match with more than 80% of the ball, and Georgia did not have a single attempt on target or create a clear chance, with only shot-stopper their keeper preventing a rout.

Pino broke the deadlock in the 24th minute from a well-executed set-piece move, and Oyarzabal wrapped up the win in the 64th minute with a spectacular set-piece after Mamardashvili had saved Ferran Torres’s penalty.

Additional Results

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a comprehensive thrashing over Bulgaria to stay close to Spain in Group E. Real Madrid’s a young talent was one of the scorers.
• The Italian squad boosted their prospects of at least making the knockout stage with a comfortable victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to strikes from Moise Kean, Mateo Retegui, and a third scorer.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “We’re not thinking about the group leaders or our next opponents. We know our responsibilities.”

Italy failed to qualify for the last two global tournaments, twice falling short in the playoffs, and the dreaded playoff path now looks their primary chance after the Norwegian team’s 5-0 win over the Israeli side in their qualifying group. The Norwegians are top on eighteen points from six games. The Italians have 12 points with a match less played on their competitors and are three points clear of their next opponents. Estonia remain fourth on three points. The top teams advance automatically for the tournament, with the runners-up entering the playoffs.

The Italian national team host Israel on Tuesday, where a win would secure the runner-up position and, while they can still theoretically catch Norway on points, the Norwegians’ much better goal ratio means a qualifying place probably awaits for the Italian squad.