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Rúben Neves saved the day for Portugal with a last-gasp winner in their World Cup qualifying match against Ireland, following Caoimhín Kelleher had kept out a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Match Overview

The Wolves midfielder found the net during added time to snatch a slender victory, several seasons after Ronaldo had bagged a brace late on to overcome a resilient Ireland team.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men looked set to leave Lisbon with a hard-fought point, but ultimately left empty-handed, despite restoring a significant amount of honor with a gritty performance that erased some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the loss puts them staring down the barrel, with their first three Group F matches having produced only a single draw. They must beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any hope of securing a qualifying spot.

Key Incidents

• Kelleher seemed to have secured Ireland a point when he superbly kept out Ronaldo’s penalty with his trailing leg after a Portuguese player’s shot had struck an Irish defender’s hand.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of added time when he headed a delivery from the wing past Kelleher.

Other Group Results

Portugal’s Group

Hungary enhanced their hopes of advancing by securing their initial victory with a two-goal victory over the Armenian side, climbing above their opponents into the runner-up spot behind Portugal in Group F. Daniel Lukacs provided his team the lead in the first half and Zsombor Gruber secured the points in late stoppage time.

England’s Group

Serbia slipped to a 1-0 loss at home to Albania, with the outcome meaning the Three Lions can now seal their qualification from their qualifying group by beating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj netted the decisive strike for his team with a well-taken volley in first-half stoppage time.

Latvia struggles in Group K persisted as they were held to a 2-2 draw at home by the Andorran team. An Andorran player scored for the visitors 12 minutes from time to earn them their initial draw of the qualifying campaign and extend Latvia’s poor form to several matches.

Group E

The Spanish national team maintained their impressive qualifying group campaign with a 2-0 victory over Georgia after strikes from a Spanish attacker and his teammate in Elche. The result extended the title holders’ perfect record in the qualifiers, having notched eleven strikes in three matches without conceding.

In spite of the absence of players such as Lamine Yamal, another forward, and the midfield anchor due to injuries, the Spanish squad demonstrated their dominance against a Georgia team that spent most of the match sitting back. The home side dominated the match with over eighty percent of the ball, and Georgia did not have a single attempt on target or create a clear chance, with only goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili preventing a heavy defeat.

The scorer broke the deadlock in the first half from a well-executed dead-ball routine, and Oyarzabal secured the win in the 64th minute with a spectacular free kick after Mamardashvili had saved a Spanish player’s penalty.

Additional Results

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a 6-1 thrashing over the Bulgarian side to stay close to the group leaders in Group E. Real Madrid’s Arda Güler was among the goal-getters.
• Italy boosted their prospects of at least making the qualifying playoffs with a comfortable win away to the Estonian team, thanks to strikes from a forward, another attacker, and a third scorer.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “We’re not thinking about the group leaders or Israel. We are aware of our responsibilities.”

Italy failed to qualify for the last two World Cups, on two occasions falling short in the playoffs, and the feared backdoor route now appears their most likely chance after the Norwegian team’s comprehensive hammering over the Israeli side in Group I. Norway are leading on eighteen points from six games. The Italians have twelve points with a game in hand on their competitors and are a trio of points ahead of Israel. The Estonian squad stay in fourth place on three points. The top teams advance automatically for the World Cup, with the runners-up entering the playoffs.

Italy face Israel on Tuesday, where a victory would secure the runner-up position and, while they can still mathematically overtake Norway on the table, the Norwegians’ far superior goal difference means a playoff spot probably awaits for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.