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Rúben Neves came to the rescue for Portugal with a injury-time winner in their World Cup qualifying encounter against Ireland, following Caoimhín Kelleher had kept out a spot-kick from the veteran forward.

Match Overview

Neves headed home during injury time to claim a narrow victory, four years after the star striker had bagged a brace late on to defeat a resilient Ireland team.

The Irish squad appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought draw, but in the end left empty-handed, despite restoring a good deal of pride with a battling display that overshadowed some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing loss in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the loss leaves them in a difficult position, with their initial trio of 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 playoff place.

Key Moments

• Kelleher looked to have secured Ireland a point when he brilliantly kept out Ronaldo’s penalty with his trailing leg after Francisco Trincão’s shot had hit an Irish defender’s hand.
• 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

Group F

The Hungarian team enhanced their hopes of advancing by securing their first win with a two-goal victory over the Armenian side, moving above their rivals into the runner-up spot behind Portugal in Group F. Daniel Lukacs gave Hungary the lead in the opening period and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the points in second-half added time.

Group K

The Serbian national team slipped to a 1-0 loss at home to Albania, with the outcome meaning England can now seal their passage from their qualifying group by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker scored the only goal for Albania with a neat shot in first-half added time.

The Latvian side difficulties in their group persisted as they were forced to a 2-2 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 qualifiers and extend Latvia’s winless run to five games.

Group E

The Spanish national team continued their dominant qualifying group run with a comfortable victory over the Georgian side after goals from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in the match venue. The win continued the title holders’ flawless run in qualifying, having notched 11 goals in three games without conceding.

In spite of the absence of players such as Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, and Rodri due to injuries, Luis de la Fuente’s side showcased their dominance against a Georgian team that spent the majority of the game sitting back. Spain controlled the match with more than 80% of the ball, and Georgia did not have a single attempt on target or generate a scoring opportunity, with only goalkeeper their keeper averting a heavy defeat.

The scorer opened the scoring in the first half from a well-executed set-piece move, and his compatriot wrapped up the victory in the second period with a stunning set-piece after Mamardashvili had denied a Spanish player’s spot-kick.

Additional Scores

• The Turkish national team returned to winning ways with a 6-1 thrashing over the Bulgarian side to stay close to Spain in Group E. The Spanish club’s Arda Güler was among the scorers.
• The Italian squad boosted their prospects of at least making the knockout stage with a 3-1 victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to goals from a forward, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “Our focus isn’t on the group leaders or our next opponents. We are aware of our responsibilities.”

The Azzurri failed to qualify for the previous two World Cups, twice missing out in the playoffs, and the dreaded playoff path now looks their primary opportunity after Norway’s comprehensive hammering over Israel in their qualifying group. Norway are leading on 18 points from six matches. The Italians have twelve points with a game in hand on their competitors and are a trio of points ahead of Israel. Estonia stay fourth on three points. The group winners qualify directly for the World Cup, with the runners-up entering the playoffs.

Italy face Israel on Tuesday, where a victory would secure second spot and, while they can still theoretically overtake the group leaders on the table, the Norwegians’ far superior goal difference means a qualifying place probably awaits for the Italian squad.