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Rúben Neves came to the rescue for Portugal with a injury-time winning goal in their World Cup qualifying match against Ireland, following Caoimhín Kelleher had saved a penalty from the veteran forward.

Match Summary

Neves nodded in during stoppage time to secure a narrow victory, four years after the star striker had scored twice late on to overcome a resilient Ireland team.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men appeared poised to leave Lisbon with a well-earned draw, but in the end suffered defeat, despite regaining a good deal of pride with a battling display that overshadowed some of the recollections of last month’s disappointing loss in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the loss puts them staring down the barrel, with their initial trio of qualifying group matches having produced only a single point. They need to beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any chance of securing a qualifying place.

Key Moments

• Kelleher seemed to have secured Ireland a draw when he brilliantly saved Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his outstretched foot after a Portuguese player’s effort had hit an Irish defender’s arm.
• The match-winner came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of added time when he headed a delivery from the wing past the Irish goalkeeper.

Other Group Outcomes

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team enhanced their hopes of qualifying by picking up their initial victory with a 2-0 victory over Armenia, moving above their opponents into the runner-up spot behind Portugal in Group F. A Hungarian forward provided his team the advantage in the first half and a teammate made sure of the points in late stoppage time.

England’s Group

Serbia suffered a narrow defeat at home to Albania, with the outcome meaning England can now secure their qualification from Group K by beating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker netted the decisive strike for his team with a well-taken volley in first-half added time.

The Latvian side struggles in Group K continued as they were forced to a two-all draw at home by Andorra. Ian Olivera scored for the visitors late on from time to claim them their first point of the qualifying campaign and prolong Latvia’s poor form to several matches.

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 his teammate in the match venue. The result extended the European champions’ flawless record in qualifying, having notched 11 goals in three games without letting in a goal.

Despite the absence of key figures such as a talented winger, Nico Williams, and Rodri due to injuries, Luis de la Fuente’s side demonstrated their dominance against a Georgia team that passed the majority of the game sitting back. The home side controlled the match with more than 80% of the ball, and the visitors did not have one shot on target or create a scoring opportunity, with only shot-stopper their keeper preventing a heavy defeat.

Pino opened the scoring in the first half from a expertly taken set-piece move, and his compatriot secured the victory in the 64th minute with a spectacular free kick after the Georgian keeper had saved Ferran Torres’s spot-kick.

Other Scores

• Turkey bounced back with a comprehensive thrashing over the Bulgarian side to keep the pressure on Spain in their section. The Spanish club’s Arda Güler was among the scorers.
• Italy boosted their hopes of at least making the qualifying playoffs with a 3-1 win away to Estonia, thanks to strikes from a forward, Mateo Retegui, and a third scorer.

Gennaro Gattuso said: “We’re not thinking about the group leaders or our next opponents. We know our responsibilities.”

The Azzurri missed out for the last two World Cups, on two occasions falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded backdoor route now looks their primary opportunity after Norway’s 5-0 win over Israel in Group I. The Norwegians are leading on 18 points from six matches. Italy have twelve points with a game in hand on their competitors and are a trio of points clear of their next opponents. The Estonian squad stay fourth on three points. The group winners qualify directly for the World Cup, with the runners-up going into the playoffs.

The Italian national team 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 points, the leaders’ much better goal difference means a qualifying place probably beckons for the Italian squad.