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Rúben Neves came to the rescue for the Portuguese side with a last-gasp winning goal in their World Cup match against Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had kept out a spot-kick from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Match Overview

The Wolves midfielder headed home during stoppage time to claim a narrow triumph, four years after the star striker had scored twice at the death to defeat a stubborn Irish side.

The Irish squad appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought draw, but in the end left empty-handed, despite restoring a good deal of honor with a battling display that erased some of the recollections of last month’s disappointing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the defeat leaves them staring down the barrel, with their first three qualifying group games having yielded only a solitary draw. They must beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any chance of claiming a qualifying spot.

Major Moments

• Kelleher seemed to have earned Ireland a draw when he brilliantly kept out Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his outstretched foot after Francisco Trincão’s shot had hit Dara O’Shea’s hand.
• The match-winner came to his side’s rescue in the first minute of stoppage time when he headed Trincão’s cross past the Irish goalkeeper.

Other Group Outcomes

Portugal’s Group

Hungary enhanced their chances of qualifying by securing their first win with a 2-0 triumph over the Armenian side, moving above their rivals into second place behind Portugal in Group F. Daniel Lukacs provided Hungary the lead in the first half and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the victory in second-half stoppage time.

England’s Group

The Serbian national team slipped to a narrow defeat at home to Albania, with the outcome meaning England can now secure their qualification from Group K by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj netted the decisive strike for Albania with a well-taken shot in first-half stoppage time.

Latvia difficulties in their group persisted as they were forced to a 2-2 tie at home by Andorra. Ian Olivera scored for the visitors 12 minutes from time to claim them their initial draw of the qualifiers and prolong Latvia’s poor form to five games.

Group E

Spain maintained their impressive qualifying group run with a 2-0 win over the Georgian side after goals from a Spanish attacker and his teammate in Elche. The win continued the title holders’ perfect run in the qualifiers, having notched 11 goals in three games without letting in a goal.

Despite the absence of players such as Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, and the midfield anchor due to injuries, the Spanish squad demonstrated their dominance against a Georgia team that spent the majority of the game sitting back. Spain dominated the match with more than 80% possession, and the visitors did not have a single attempt on target or create a scoring opportunity, with only shot-stopper Giorgi Mamardashvili preventing a heavy defeat.

Pino opened the scoring in the 24th minute from a expertly taken dead-ball routine, and Oyarzabal wrapped up the win in the second period with a spectacular free kick after the Georgian keeper had saved a Spanish player’s spot-kick.

Additional Results

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a comprehensive thrashing over the Bulgarian side to stay close to Spain in Group E. The Spanish club’s Arda Güler was among the goal-getters.
• Italy improved their hopes of at least reaching the qualifying playoffs with a comfortable victory away to Estonia, thanks to goals from a forward, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “We’re not thinking about the group leaders or Israel. We know what we have to do.”

The Azzurri missed out for the last two global tournaments, twice missing out in the playoffs, and the feared playoff path now appears their most likely chance after the Norwegian team’s 5-0 hammering over the Israeli side in their qualifying group. The Norwegians are top on 18 points from six games. The Italians have 12 points with a match less played on their rivals and are a trio of points clear of Israel. The Estonian squad stay in fourth place on three points. The top teams qualify directly for the tournament, with the runners-up entering the qualifying stage.

Italy face their rivals on Tuesday, where a win would cement second spot and, while they can still theoretically overtake Norway on points, the Norwegians’ much better goal difference means a playoff spot likely awaits for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.