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Rúben Neves was the hero for Portugal with a injury-time winning goal in their World Cup qualifying match against the Republic of Ireland, following the Irish goalkeeper had denied a penalty from the veteran forward.

Game Summary

Neves headed home during stoppage time to secure a narrow victory, several seasons after Ronaldo had bagged a brace at the death to defeat a resilient Ireland team.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men appeared poised to leave Lisbon with a hard-fought point, but ultimately suffered defeat, despite restoring a significant amount of honor with a battling performance that erased some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the loss puts them in a difficult position, with their first three qualifying group matches having yielded only a single point. They need to defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any chance of claiming a qualifying spot.

Major Incidents

• Kelleher looked to have secured Ireland a draw when he brilliantly kept out Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg after Francisco Trincão’s shot had struck Dara O’Shea’s arm.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of added time when he headed Trincão’s cross past Kelleher.

Other Qualifying Outcomes

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team enhanced their hopes of qualifying by securing their first win with a two-goal victory over the Armenian side, moving above their rivals into the runner-up spot behind the group leaders in the standings. A Hungarian forward gave Hungary the lead in the first half and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the points in second-half stoppage time.

England’s Group

Serbia slipped to a narrow defeat at home to Albania, with the outcome meaning England can now secure their qualification from their qualifying group by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker scored the decisive strike for Albania with a neat volley in late added time.

The Latvian side struggles in their group persisted as they were forced to a two-all tie at home by Andorra. An Andorran player found the net for the away side 12 minutes from time to earn them their initial draw of the qualifying campaign and extend Latvia’s winless run to several matches.

Group E

The Spanish national team continued their impressive qualifying group campaign with a 2-0 victory over the Georgian side after goals from a Spanish attacker and Mikel Oyarzabal in Elche. The win extended the title holders’ flawless record in the qualifiers, having notched eleven strikes in three matches without conceding.

In spite of the unavailability of players such as Lamine Yamal, another forward, and the midfield anchor due to injuries, Luis de la Fuente’s side demonstrated their dominance against a Georgia team that passed most of the match sitting back. The home side dominated the encounter with over eighty percent of the ball, and the visitors did not have one shot on target or generate a clear chance, with only shot-stopper their keeper averting a rout.

Pino broke the deadlock in the 24th minute from a well-executed dead-ball routine, and Oyarzabal wrapped up the victory in the 64th minute with a spectacular set-piece after Mamardashvili had denied a Spanish player’s penalty.

Additional Results

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a 6-1 victory over Bulgaria to keep the pressure on Spain in their section. Real Madrid’s a young talent was one of the goal-getters.
• Italy boosted their prospects of at least reaching the knockout stage with a 3-1 victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to goals from Moise Kean, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

The Italian coach commented: “Our focus isn’t on the group leaders or Israel. We know our responsibilities.”

The Azzurri failed to qualify for the last two global tournaments, on two occasions falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded backdoor route now looks their primary opportunity after the Norwegian team’s 5-0 win over the Israeli side in Group I. The Norwegians are leading on 18 points from six matches. The Italians have twelve points with a match less played on their rivals and are a trio of points ahead of Israel. The Estonian squad remain fourth on three points. The group winners advance automatically for the tournament, with the second-placed sides entering the qualifying stage.

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