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Rúben Neves came to the rescue for the Portuguese side with a injury-time decisive strike in their World Cup qualifying encounter against the Republic of Ireland, after Caoimhín Kelleher had denied a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Match Overview

Neves found the net during added time to snatch a 1-0 win, four years after Ronaldo had bagged a brace at the death to overcome a resilient Ireland team.

The Irish squad appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought point, but in the end left empty-handed, despite restoring a significant amount of pride with a battling performance that overshadowed some of the recollections of last month’s embarrassing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the defeat leaves them facing elimination, with their first three qualifying group matches having produced only a solitary draw. They need to defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any chance of claiming a playoff place.

Key Moments

• The Liverpool keeper seemed to have secured Ireland a point when he brilliantly saved Ronaldo’s penalty with his trailing leg after Francisco Trincão’s shot had hit an Irish defender’s arm.
• The match-winner saved Portugal in the opening moments of stoppage time when he headed a delivery from the wing past Kelleher.

Other Group Outcomes

Group F

Hungary boosted their chances of advancing by picking up their initial victory with a two-goal triumph over Armenia, moving above their opponents into second place behind Portugal in the standings. Daniel Lukacs gave Hungary the advantage in the opening period and a teammate secured the victory in second-half added time.

Group K

Serbia suffered a 1-0 loss at home to Albania, with the result meaning England can now seal their passage from Group K by beating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj scored the decisive strike for Albania with a well-taken volley in late added time.

Latvia difficulties in their group persisted as they were held to a 2-2 draw at home by Andorra. Ian Olivera scored for the away side late on from time to earn them their initial draw of the qualifying campaign and extend Latvia’s winless run to several matches.

Spain’s Group

Spain continued their impressive qualifying group campaign with a 2-0 win over Georgia after goals from a Spanish attacker and his teammate in Elche. The win continued the title holders’ flawless run in qualifying, having scored eleven strikes in three games without letting in a goal.

In spite of the absence of key figures such as Lamine Yamal, another forward, and Rodri due to fitness issues, Luis de la Fuente’s side demonstrated their dominance against a Georgian team that spent most of the match defending deep. The home side controlled the encounter with over eighty percent possession, and the visitors did not have one shot on target or create a clear chance, with only goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili preventing a heavy defeat.

The scorer opened the scoring in the 24th minute from a well-executed dead-ball move, and Oyarzabal wrapped up the win in the 64th minute with a stunning set-piece after Mamardashvili had saved Ferran Torres’s spot-kick.

Other Results

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a 6-1 victory over the Bulgarian side to stay close to the group leaders in their section. The Spanish club’s Arda Güler was among the scorers.
• Italy improved their prospects of at least reaching the qualifying playoffs with a 3-1 win away to Estonia, thanks to strikes from Moise Kean, another attacker, and a third scorer.

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

Italy failed to qualify for the previous two World Cups, on two occasions falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the feared playoff path now looks their most likely chance after Norway’s 5-0 hammering over Israel in Group I. The Norwegians are top on eighteen points from six matches. Italy have 12 points with a match less played on their rivals and are a trio of points clear of their next opponents. Estonia stay fourth on three points. The group winners qualify directly for the tournament, with the second-placed sides entering the qualifying stage.

The Italian national team face their rivals on Tuesday, where a victory would secure second spot and, while they can still theoretically catch the group leaders on the table, the leaders’ much better goal difference means a playoff spot likely beckons for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.