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Rúben Neves saved the day for the Portuguese side with a injury-time decisive strike in their World Cup clash against the Republic of Ireland, following Caoimhín Kelleher had kept out a penalty from the veteran forward.

Game Overview

The Wolves midfielder nodded in during added time to secure a narrow victory, several seasons after Ronaldo had bagged a brace at the death to overcome a resilient Irish side.

The Irish squad appeared poised to leave Lisbon with a hard-fought draw, but in the end left empty-handed, despite regaining a significant amount of pride with a gritty display that erased some of the memories of last month’s disappointing defeat in Armenia.

However, the defeat leaves them staring down the barrel, with their initial trio of Group F games having produced only a solitary draw. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any chance of claiming a playoff spot.

Major Incidents

• The Liverpool keeper 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 struck Dara O’Shea’s arm.
• The match-winner saved Portugal in the first minute of added time when he directed Trincão’s cross past the Irish goalkeeper.

Additional Qualifying Results

Group F

Hungary boosted their chances of qualifying by securing their initial victory with a two-goal victory over Armenia, moving above their rivals into the runner-up spot behind Portugal in Group F. A Hungarian forward gave his team the advantage in the opening period and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the victory in second-half added time.

Group K

The Serbian national team suffered a 1-0 defeat at home to the Albanian squad, with the result meaning the Three Lions can now secure their passage from Group K by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker netted the decisive strike for his team with a neat volley in late stoppage time.

The Latvian side struggles in their group 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 claim them their first point of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s winless run to five games.

Spain’s Group

The Spanish national team maintained their dominant qualifying group run with a comfortable win over Georgia after strikes from a Spanish attacker and his teammate in Elche. The result extended the title holders’ flawless run in the qualifiers, having notched 11 goals in three matches without letting in a goal.

Despite the absence of players such as Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, and Rodri due to fitness issues, the Spanish squad demonstrated their dominance against a Georgia team that spent most of the match sitting back. Spain dominated the match with more than 80% of the ball, and the visitors did not have one shot on target or generate a scoring opportunity, with only goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili averting a rout.

Pino opened the scoring in the first half from a well-executed set-piece routine, and Oyarzabal secured the victory in the 64th minute with a stunning set-piece after the Georgian keeper had denied Ferran Torres’s spot-kick.

Additional Scores

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a comprehensive thrashing over the Bulgarian side to keep the pressure on Spain in their section. The Spanish club’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 Estonia, thanks to goals from a forward, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

The Italian coach commented: “We’re not thinking about Norway or Israel. We know what we have to do.”

The Azzurri missed out for the previous two World Cups, on two occasions falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the feared playoff path now looks their primary chance after Norway’s 5-0 win over the Israeli side in Group I. The Norwegians are leading on eighteen points from six games. The Italians have twelve points with a game in hand on their rivals and are a trio of points ahead of their next opponents. The Estonian squad stay in fourth place on three points. The top teams qualify directly for the tournament, with the second-placed sides entering the playoffs.

The Italian national team face Israel on Tuesday, where a win would secure second spot and, while they can still theoretically catch Norway on points, the leaders’ far superior goal difference means a qualifying place likely awaits for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.