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Rúben Neves came to the rescue for the Portuguese side with a injury-time winner in their World Cup encounter against Ireland, following Caoimhín Kelleher had denied a spot-kick from the veteran forward.

Game Summary

The Wolves midfielder nodded in during injury time to claim a narrow triumph, several seasons after the star striker had bagged a brace late on to defeat a stubborn Irish side.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought point, but in the end left empty-handed, despite regaining a significant amount of pride with a battling display that overshadowed some of the memories of last month’s disappointing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the loss leaves them in a difficult position, with their first three Group F games having yielded only a solitary draw. They must beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any hope of claiming a qualifying spot.

Key Moments

• The Liverpool keeper seemed to have secured Ireland a point when he brilliantly saved Ronaldo’s penalty with his outstretched foot after Francisco Trincão’s effort had struck Dara O’Shea’s arm.
• Neves saved Portugal in the first minute of added time when he headed Trincão’s cross past Kelleher.

Other Group Results

Portugal’s Group

Hungary boosted their chances of advancing by securing their first win with a two-goal victory over the Armenian side, moving above their opponents into the runner-up spot behind Portugal in the standings. A Hungarian forward provided his team the advantage in the opening period and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the victory in late stoppage time.

Group K

The Serbian national team slipped to a 1-0 defeat at home to the Albanian squad, with the result meaning England can now secure their qualification from Group K by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj netted the decisive strike for his team with a neat shot in late added time.

The Latvian side difficulties in Group K continued as they were forced to a 2-2 draw at home by Andorra. Ian Olivera found the net for the visitors 12 minutes from time to earn them their first point of the qualifying campaign and extend Latvia’s poor form to five games.

Spain’s Group

The Spanish national team maintained their impressive Group E campaign with a comfortable victory over Georgia after strikes from Jéremy Pino and his teammate in the match venue. The win continued the European champions’ perfect record in qualifying, having scored 11 goals in three matches without letting in a goal.

In spite of the absence of players such as Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, and Rodri due to injuries, the Spanish squad showcased their dominance against a Georgian team that passed most of the match defending deep. The home side controlled the encounter with over eighty percent possession, and Georgia did not have a single attempt on target or generate a scoring opportunity, with only goalkeeper their keeper averting a rout.

Pino opened the scoring in the first half from a well-executed dead-ball move, and Oyarzabal secured the win in the 64th minute with a spectacular set-piece after Mamardashvili had denied a Spanish player’s penalty.

Other Results

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a comprehensive victory over the Bulgarian side to stay close to the group leaders in their section. The Spanish club’s a young talent was among the goal-getters.
• Italy boosted their prospects of at least reaching the qualifying playoffs with a comfortable victory away to Estonia, thanks to goals from Moise Kean, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “Our focus isn’t on Norway or Israel. We know our responsibilities.”

Italy failed to qualify for the last two global tournaments, twice missing out in the playoffs, and the dreaded backdoor route now looks their most likely opportunity after the Norwegian team’s comprehensive win over Israel in Group I. Norway are leading on 18 points from six matches. Italy have 12 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 Israel on Tuesday, where a victory would secure second spot and, while they can still theoretically catch the group leaders on points, the Norwegians’ far superior goal ratio means a playoff spot probably awaits for the Italian squad.