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Rúben Neves came to the rescue for the Portuguese side with a last-gasp winner in their World Cup qualifying clash against the Republic of Ireland, following the Irish goalkeeper had denied a spot-kick from the veteran forward.

Game Summary

The Wolves midfielder nodded in during added time to claim a narrow victory, several seasons after the star striker had bagged a brace late on to overcome a resilient Ireland team.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men looked set to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought point, but in the end suffered defeat, despite regaining a good deal of pride with a battling display that erased some of the recollections of last month’s disappointing loss in Armenia.

However, the defeat leaves them staring down the barrel, with their first three Group F matches having produced only a single 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 superbly kept out Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg after Francisco Trincão’s effort had hit Dara O’Shea’s arm.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the first minute of stoppage time when he directed Trincão’s cross past the Irish goalkeeper.

Other Group Results

Group F

Hungary enhanced their hopes of qualifying by securing their initial victory with a two-goal triumph over the Armenian side, climbing above their rivals into the runner-up spot behind the group leaders in the standings. Daniel Lukacs provided his team the advantage in the first half and Zsombor Gruber secured the points in late stoppage time.

Group K

The Serbian national team suffered a 1-0 defeat at home to Albania, with the outcome meaning England can now seal their qualification from Group K by beating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker netted the only goal for Albania with a well-taken shot in late added time.

The Latvian side struggles in their group persisted as they were held to a two-all tie at home by the Andorran team. Ian Olivera found the net for the away side 12 minutes from time to claim them their initial draw of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s winless run to several matches.

Group E

Spain continued their dominant qualifying group campaign with a comfortable win over the Georgian side after strikes from a Spanish attacker and Mikel Oyarzabal in the match venue. The win continued the title holders’ perfect run in qualifying, having notched 11 goals in three games without conceding.

In spite of the absence of key figures such as a talented winger, Nico Williams, and the midfield anchor due to fitness issues, the Spanish squad demonstrated their dominance against a Georgian team that spent the majority of the game sitting back. The home side controlled the encounter with more than 80% of the ball, and Georgia did not have one shot on target or generate a clear chance, with only shot-stopper their keeper preventing a rout.

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

Other Scores

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a comprehensive victory over Bulgaria to stay close to the group leaders in their section. Real Madrid’s Arda Güler was among the scorers.
• The Italian squad boosted their prospects of at least making the qualifying playoffs with a comfortable victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to strikes from Moise Kean, Mateo Retegui, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “We’re not thinking about the group leaders or Israel. We are aware of our responsibilities.”

Italy missed out for the last two global tournaments, twice missing out in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded backdoor route now appears their primary chance after Norway’s comprehensive win over the Israeli side in their qualifying group. Norway are top on 18 points from six matches. Italy have twelve points with a game in hand on their competitors and are three points ahead of Israel. Estonia stay in fourth place on three points. The group winners advance automatically for the World Cup, with the runners-up going into the qualifying stage.

Italy host Israel on Tuesday, where a victory would cement the runner-up position and, while they can still mathematically overtake Norway on points, the Norwegians’ far superior goal difference means a playoff spot probably awaits for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.