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Rúben Neves was the hero for the Portuguese side with a injury-time winning goal in their World Cup qualifying clash against the Republic of Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had saved a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Match Summary

The Wolves midfielder found the net during added time to secure a 1-0 triumph, several seasons after Ronaldo had bagged a brace at the death to defeat a stubborn Ireland team.

The Irish squad looked set to leave Lisbon with a well-earned draw, 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 defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the defeat leaves them staring down the barrel, with their initial trio of qualifying group matches having produced only a single draw. They need to beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any chance of claiming a playoff place.

Major Moments

• Kelleher looked to have secured Ireland a draw when he superbly kept out Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his outstretched foot after a Portuguese player’s effort had hit Dara O’Shea’s arm.
• The match-winner saved Portugal in the opening moments of added time when he headed Trincão’s cross past Kelleher.

Additional Group Results

Group F

Hungary boosted their chances of qualifying by securing their first win with a two-goal victory over Armenia, moving above their opponents into the runner-up spot behind Portugal in the standings. A Hungarian forward provided his team the advantage in the first half and Zsombor Gruber secured the points in late added time.

Group K

Serbia suffered a narrow defeat at home to Albania, with the outcome meaning the Three Lions can now secure their passage from their qualifying group by beating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker scored the only goal for Albania with a well-taken shot in late stoppage time.

The Latvian side difficulties in Group K continued as they were held to a two-all tie at home by Andorra. Ian Olivera found the net for the away side 12 minutes from time to claim them their first point of the qualifiers and prolong Latvia’s poor form to five games.

Spain’s Group

The Spanish national team continued their impressive qualifying group campaign with a 2-0 victory over the Georgian side after strikes from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in the match venue. The result continued the title holders’ perfect record in qualifying, having scored eleven strikes in three matches without letting in a goal.

In spite of the unavailability of players such as a talented winger, another forward, and Rodri due to fitness issues, the Spanish squad demonstrated their dominance against a Georgian team that passed the majority of the game defending deep. Spain dominated the encounter with more than 80% of the ball, and the visitors did not have one shot on target or generate a clear chance, with only shot-stopper Giorgi Mamardashvili preventing a rout.

Pino opened the scoring in the first half from a expertly taken set-piece routine, and Oyarzabal secured the victory in the second period with a spectacular set-piece after Mamardashvili had saved a Spanish player’s spot-kick.

Other Scores

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a 6-1 thrashing over the Bulgarian side to keep the pressure on Spain in Group E. The Spanish club’s Arda Güler was among the goal-getters.
• Italy improved their prospects of at least making the qualifying playoffs with a 3-1 victory away to Estonia, thanks to goals from Moise Kean, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

The Italian coach said: “Our focus isn’t on the group leaders or our next opponents. We know what we have to do.”

Italy failed to qualify for the previous two World Cups, twice falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded backdoor route now appears their most likely chance after Norway’s 5-0 hammering over Israel in their qualifying group. The Norwegians are top on 18 points from six games. Italy have 12 points with a game in hand on their competitors and are three points clear of Israel. The Estonian squad stay fourth on three points. The group winners advance automatically for the World Cup, with the second-placed sides going into the qualifying stage.

The Italian national team host their rivals on Tuesday, where a win would cement second spot and, while they can still mathematically catch the group leaders on points, the Norwegians’ far superior goal ratio means a playoff spot probably awaits for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.