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Rúben Neves came to the rescue for the Portuguese side with a last-gasp decisive strike in their World Cup qualifying encounter against Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had kept out a spot-kick from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Match Summary

The Wolves midfielder found the net during stoppage time to snatch a slender triumph, several seasons after the star striker had scored twice at the death to overcome a resilient Irish side.

The Irish squad looked set to leave Lisbon with a hard-fought point, but ultimately suffered defeat, despite regaining a significant amount of pride with a gritty display that overshadowed some of the memories of last month’s disappointing loss in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the loss leaves them facing elimination, with their first three Group F games having yielded only a solitary draw. They must beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any hope of securing a qualifying place.

Key Incidents

• Kelleher seemed to have secured Ireland a draw when he brilliantly saved Ronaldo’s penalty with his outstretched foot after a Portuguese player’s effort had struck Dara O’Shea’s arm.
• Neves saved Portugal in the opening moments of added time when he headed Trincão’s cross past Kelleher.

Additional Qualifying Results

Group F

The Hungarian team enhanced their chances of advancing by securing their initial victory with a 2-0 victory over Armenia, climbing above their rivals into the runner-up spot behind Portugal in the standings. Daniel Lukacs provided Hungary the advantage in the first half and Zsombor Gruber secured the points in late added time.

England’s Group

The Serbian national team slipped to a narrow defeat at home to the Albanian squad, with the result meaning the Three Lions can now seal their passage from Group K by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker netted the only goal for Albania with a well-taken volley in first-half stoppage time.

Latvia difficulties in their group persisted as they were held to a 2-2 draw at home by the Andorran team. An Andorran player found the net for the away side late on from time to claim them their initial draw of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s winless run to five games.

Group E

Spain maintained their impressive Group E campaign with a 2-0 victory over the Georgian side after goals from a Spanish attacker and Mikel Oyarzabal in Elche. The result continued the European champions’ perfect run in the qualifiers, having notched 11 goals in three games without conceding.

Despite the absence of players such as a talented winger, another forward, and Rodri due to fitness issues, the Spanish squad demonstrated their superiority against a Georgia team that passed the majority of the game defending deep. Spain controlled the encounter with more than 80% of the ball, and the visitors 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 24th minute from a well-executed set-piece move, and Oyarzabal secured the victory in the 64th minute with a spectacular free kick after Mamardashvili had denied Ferran Torres’s penalty.

Additional Results

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a 6-1 thrashing over the Bulgarian side to keep the pressure on Spain in Group E. The Spanish club’s Arda Güler was one of the scorers.
• The Italian squad improved their hopes of at least reaching the qualifying playoffs with a comfortable win away to Estonia, thanks to strikes from Moise Kean, Mateo Retegui, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

The Italian coach said: “We’re not thinking about Norway or Israel. We are aware of our responsibilities.”

Italy failed to qualify for the previous two World Cups, twice falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded backdoor route now appears their primary opportunity after the Norwegian team’s comprehensive hammering over the Israeli side in their qualifying group. The Norwegians are top on 18 points from six games. Italy have 12 points with a game in hand on their competitors and are a trio of points clear of Israel. The Estonian squad stay fourth on three points. The group winners advance automatically for the tournament, with the runners-up going into the playoffs.

The Italian national team face their rivals on Tuesday, where a victory would secure second spot and, while they can still mathematically catch Norway on points, the Norwegians’ far superior goal difference means a qualifying place probably awaits for the Italian squad.