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Rúben Neves came to the rescue for the Portuguese side with a dramatic decisive strike in their World Cup encounter against the Republic of Ireland, following Caoimhín Kelleher had denied a spot-kick from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Game Overview

The Wolves midfielder headed home during stoppage time to secure a 1-0 win, several seasons after Ronaldo had scored twice at the death to overcome a stubborn Irish side.

The Irish squad looked set to leave Lisbon with a well-earned draw, but ultimately suffered defeat, despite restoring a good deal of honor with a gritty display that overshadowed some of the recollections of last month’s disappointing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the defeat leaves them facing elimination, with their first three Group F games having produced only a single point. They need to beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any hope of securing a qualifying spot.

Major Incidents

• The Liverpool keeper looked to have earned Ireland a draw when he superbly kept out Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg after a Portuguese player’s effort had hit an Irish defender’s arm.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the first minute of added time when he headed a delivery from the wing past the Irish goalkeeper.

Additional Qualifying Results

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team boosted their chances of advancing by securing their first win with a two-goal triumph over Armenia, moving above their rivals into the runner-up spot behind Portugal in Group F. Daniel Lukacs gave Hungary the advantage in the first half and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the points in second-half stoppage time.

England’s Group

The Serbian national team suffered a narrow defeat at home to Albania, with the result meaning England can now secure their qualification from Group K by beating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj netted the only goal for his team with a well-taken shot in late added time.

Latvia struggles in Group K continued as they were held to a 2-2 draw at home by the Andorran team. An Andorran player found the net for the visitors 12 minutes from time to claim them their initial draw of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s poor form to five games.

Spain’s Group

Spain maintained their impressive qualifying group run with a 2-0 victory over Georgia after goals from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in the match venue. The win continued the European champions’ perfect run in the qualifiers, having notched eleven strikes in three games without letting in a goal.

In spite of the absence of players such as a talented winger, another forward, and Rodri due to injuries, the Spanish squad demonstrated their superiority against a Georgia team that passed most of the match defending deep. Spain dominated the encounter with more than 80% of the ball, and Georgia did not have one shot on target or create a clear chance, with only goalkeeper their keeper averting a rout.

Pino broke the deadlock in the 24th minute from a expertly taken dead-ball move, and his compatriot wrapped up the victory in the 64th minute with a stunning free kick after Mamardashvili had saved Ferran Torres’s spot-kick.

Additional Scores

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a comprehensive thrashing over Bulgaria to keep the pressure on the group leaders in their section. Real Madrid’s a young talent was among the scorers.
• The Italian squad boosted their hopes of at least making the qualifying playoffs with a comfortable victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to goals from Moise Kean, Mateo Retegui, and a third scorer.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “We’re not thinking about Norway or our next opponents. We are aware of what we have to do.”

The Azzurri missed out for the previous two global tournaments, on two occasions falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded playoff path now looks their most likely opportunity after the Norwegian team’s comprehensive win over the Israeli side in Group I. Norway are leading on 18 points from six games. The Italians have twelve points with a match less played on their rivals and are a trio of points ahead of Israel. Estonia remain in fourth place on three points. The group winners qualify directly for the tournament, with the second-placed sides entering the qualifying stage.

Italy host Israel on Tuesday, where a win would cement second spot and, while they can still mathematically catch the group leaders on the table, the Norwegians’ much better goal ratio means a playoff spot probably beckons for the Italian squad.