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Rúben Neves came to the rescue for Portugal with a injury-time winner in their World Cup clash against Ireland, following the Irish goalkeeper had saved a spot-kick from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Game Overview

Neves headed home during added time to secure a 1-0 victory, several seasons after the star striker had scored twice late on to overcome a resilient Ireland team.

The Irish squad looked set to leave Lisbon with a hard-fought point, but in the end suffered defeat, despite restoring a significant amount of honor with a battling performance that erased some of the recollections of last month’s embarrassing loss in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the defeat leaves them facing elimination, with their initial trio of qualifying group matches having yielded only a single draw. They need to beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any chance of securing a playoff spot.

Key Incidents

• The Liverpool keeper seemed to have earned Ireland a point when he superbly saved Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg after Francisco Trincão’s effort had hit Dara O’Shea’s hand.
• The match-winner came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of stoppage time when he headed Trincão’s cross past Kelleher.

Additional Group Results

Portugal’s Group

Hungary boosted their hopes of qualifying by picking up their first win with a 2-0 victory over the Armenian side, climbing above their opponents into second place behind the group leaders in Group F. A Hungarian forward provided Hungary the lead in the opening period and a teammate made sure of the points in second-half stoppage time.

Group K

Serbia suffered a narrow defeat at home to the Albanian squad, with the result meaning England can now seal their qualification from their qualifying group by beating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj scored the only goal for Albania with a well-taken volley in late added time.

The Latvian side struggles in Group K persisted as they were forced to a 2-2 draw at home by Andorra. Ian Olivera scored for the away side 12 minutes from time to claim them their initial draw of the qualifiers and prolong Latvia’s winless run to several matches.

Spain’s Group

Spain maintained their dominant qualifying group campaign with a comfortable win over Georgia after strikes from Jéremy Pino and his teammate in Elche. The result continued the title holders’ perfect run in qualifying, having scored eleven strikes in three matches without conceding.

Despite the unavailability of key figures such as a talented winger, Nico Williams, and the midfield anchor due to injuries, the Spanish squad showcased their dominance against a Georgian team that passed most of the match sitting back. Spain dominated 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 goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili averting a rout.

The scorer opened the scoring in the first half from a well-executed dead-ball move, and his compatriot secured the victory in the second period with a stunning set-piece after Mamardashvili had saved Ferran Torres’s spot-kick.

Additional Scores

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a 6-1 victory over Bulgaria to stay close to Spain in Group E. The Spanish club’s a young talent was among the scorers.
• Italy improved their prospects of at least reaching the qualifying playoffs with a 3-1 victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to strikes from a forward, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

The Italian coach commented: “We’re not thinking about the group leaders or our next opponents. We know our responsibilities.”

Italy missed out for the last two World Cups, twice missing out in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded playoff path now looks their primary opportunity after the Norwegian team’s 5-0 win over Israel in their qualifying group. Norway are top on 18 points from six matches. The Italians have twelve points with a match less played on their rivals and are three points clear of Israel. Estonia stay in fourth place on three points. The group winners advance automatically for the tournament, with the second-placed sides going into the qualifying stage.

The Italian national team host their rivals on Tuesday, where a win would secure the runner-up position and, while they can still mathematically overtake the group leaders on points, the leaders’ far superior goal difference means a qualifying place probably beckons for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.