🔗 Share this article

Rúben Neves was the hero for Portugal with a injury-time winning goal in their World Cup match against Ireland, after Caoimhín Kelleher had saved a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Game Summary

The Wolves midfielder found the net during stoppage time to snatch a narrow victory, four years after Ronaldo had bagged a brace late on to overcome a resilient Irish side.

The Irish squad looked set to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought point, but ultimately suffered defeat, despite regaining a good deal of honor with a battling performance that erased some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the defeat puts them staring down the barrel, with their initial trio of Group F games having yielded only a solitary draw. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any hope of claiming a playoff place.

Key Moments

• Kelleher looked to have earned Ireland a draw when he brilliantly kept out Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his outstretched foot after Francisco Trincão’s effort had struck an Irish defender’s arm.
• The match-winner came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of stoppage time when he directed a delivery from the wing past Kelleher.

Additional Group Results

Group F

The Hungarian team boosted their chances of qualifying by picking up their first win with a two-goal victory over Armenia, climbing above their rivals into second place behind the group leaders in Group F. A Hungarian forward provided his team the lead in the opening period and a teammate secured the victory in second-half added time.

England’s Group

Serbia slipped to a 1-0 loss at home to the Albanian squad, with the result meaning the Three Lions can now secure their passage from their qualifying group by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj netted the decisive strike for Albania with a well-taken shot in first-half stoppage time.

The Latvian side difficulties in Group K continued as they were forced to a two-all tie at home by the Andorran team. Ian Olivera scored for the away side late on from time to claim them their first point of the qualifiers and prolong Latvia’s poor form to several matches.

Spain’s Group

Spain continued their dominant Group E campaign with a comfortable victory over the Georgian side after strikes from a Spanish attacker and his teammate in the match venue. The result extended the title holders’ perfect record in the qualifiers, having scored eleven strikes in three matches without letting in a goal.

In spite of the absence of players such as a talented winger, Nico Williams, and the midfield anchor due to fitness issues, Luis de la Fuente’s side demonstrated their dominance against a Georgia team that spent most of the match defending deep. The home side dominated the match with over eighty percent of the ball, and Georgia did not have a single attempt on target or create a clear chance, with only shot-stopper their keeper preventing a rout.

The scorer opened the scoring in the first half from a well-executed set-piece move, and Oyarzabal wrapped up the victory in the second period with a spectacular set-piece after Mamardashvili had saved Ferran Torres’s spot-kick.

Additional Results

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a 6-1 victory over the Bulgarian side to keep the pressure on the group leaders in their section. Real Madrid’s a young talent was among the goal-getters.
• Italy improved their hopes of at least reaching the knockout stage with a 3-1 win away to Estonia, thanks to strikes from a forward, another attacker, and a third scorer.

Gennaro Gattuso said: “Our focus isn’t on Norway or our next opponents. We are aware of what we have to do.”

Italy failed to qualify for the last two World Cups, twice falling short in the playoffs, and the feared playoff path now appears their primary opportunity after Norway’s comprehensive hammering over Israel in their qualifying group. Norway are top on eighteen points from six games. Italy have 12 points with a match less played on their competitors and are three points ahead of their next opponents. Estonia remain in fourth place on three points. The group winners qualify directly for the tournament, with the runners-up entering the playoffs.

The Italian national team face their rivals on Tuesday, where a victory would secure the runner-up position and, while they can still theoretically catch the group leaders on points, the leaders’ much better goal ratio means a qualifying place likely beckons for the Italian squad.