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Rúben Neves came to the rescue for Portugal with a dramatic decisive strike in their World Cup encounter against Ireland, following Caoimhín Kelleher had kept out a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Game Overview

The Wolves midfielder found the net during injury time to secure a 1-0 triumph, several seasons after the star striker had bagged a brace at the death to defeat a resilient Ireland team.

The Irish squad appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought draw, but ultimately suffered defeat, despite regaining a good deal of honor with a battling performance that overshadowed some of the recollections of last month’s embarrassing loss in Armenia.

However, the defeat puts them in a difficult position, with their initial trio of qualifying group games having produced only a solitary draw. They must beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any chance of securing a playoff place.

Major Incidents

• Kelleher seemed to have earned Ireland a draw when he brilliantly kept out Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg after a Portuguese player’s effort had hit an Irish defender’s hand.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of added time when he directed a delivery from the wing past Kelleher.

Other Group Results

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team enhanced their chances of qualifying by securing their initial victory with a 2-0 victory over the Armenian side, climbing above their rivals into the runner-up spot behind the group leaders in the standings. Daniel Lukacs provided Hungary the advantage in the opening period and Zsombor Gruber secured the victory in second-half stoppage time.

Group K

Serbia slipped to a narrow loss at home to the Albanian squad, with the outcome meaning England can now seal their qualification from Group K by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker netted the decisive strike for Albania with a neat shot in first-half stoppage time.

The Latvian side struggles in their group continued as they were held to a two-all draw at home by the Andorran team. Ian Olivera scored for the away side 12 minutes from time to claim them their first point of the qualifying campaign and extend Latvia’s winless run to several matches.

Spain’s Group

Spain continued their dominant qualifying group run with a 2-0 victory over Georgia after strikes from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in the match venue. The win continued the European champions’ perfect record in qualifying, having scored 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 superiority against a Georgia team that passed the majority of the game sitting back. Spain controlled the encounter with over eighty percent possession, and the visitors did not have one shot on target or generate a scoring opportunity, with only goalkeeper their keeper preventing a heavy defeat.

The scorer opened the scoring in the 24th minute from a well-executed set-piece move, and Oyarzabal wrapped up the win in the second period with a stunning set-piece after the Georgian keeper had saved a Spanish player’s penalty.

Other Results

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a 6-1 thrashing over the Bulgarian side to keep the pressure on the group leaders in Group E. The Spanish club’s a young talent was one of the scorers.
• The Italian squad boosted their hopes of at least reaching the qualifying playoffs with a comfortable victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to strikes from a forward, Mateo Retegui, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

The Italian coach said: “Our focus isn’t on Norway or our next opponents. We know our responsibilities.”

Italy failed to qualify for the previous two World Cups, twice falling short in the playoffs, and the feared backdoor route now appears their primary chance after the Norwegian team’s 5-0 hammering over the Israeli side in their qualifying group. Norway are leading on 18 points from six matches. Italy have 12 points with a match less played on their rivals and are a trio of points clear of Israel. Estonia stay fourth on three points. The group winners qualify directly for the tournament, with the runners-up entering the qualifying stage.

Italy face their rivals on Tuesday, where a win would cement the runner-up position and, while they can still theoretically overtake the group leaders on the table, the leaders’ far superior goal difference means a qualifying place probably beckons for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.