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Rúben Neves came to the rescue for Portugal with a dramatic winner in their World Cup qualifying encounter against Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had kept out a spot-kick from the veteran forward.

Game Overview

Neves headed home during injury time to secure a slender win, four years after the star striker had bagged a brace late on to defeat a resilient Irish side.

The Irish squad looked set to leave Lisbon with a hard-fought draw, but ultimately left empty-handed, despite regaining a significant amount of pride with a gritty performance that overshadowed some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing defeat in Armenia.

However, the defeat leaves them facing elimination, with their first three Group F games having produced only a single draw. They must beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any chance of securing a playoff spot.

Major Incidents

• The Liverpool keeper seemed to have secured Ireland a point when he superbly saved Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his outstretched foot after a Portuguese player’s effort had struck Dara O’Shea’s hand.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of stoppage time when he headed a delivery from the wing past Kelleher.

Additional Group Results

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team enhanced their chances of advancing by picking up their first win with a 2-0 triumph over Armenia, moving above their opponents into second place behind the group leaders in the standings. Daniel Lukacs gave his team the advantage in the opening period and Zsombor Gruber secured the points in late stoppage time.

Group K

Serbia suffered a narrow loss at home to Albania, with the result meaning the Three Lions can now seal their qualification from their qualifying group by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj netted the decisive strike for Albania with a well-taken volley in first-half stoppage time.

Latvia difficulties in their group persisted as they were held to a two-all draw at home by Andorra. An Andorran player scored 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.

Spain’s Group

Spain maintained their impressive qualifying group run with a 2-0 victory over the Georgian side after strikes from a Spanish attacker and Mikel Oyarzabal in the match venue. The win continued the European champions’ perfect record in the qualifiers, having notched 11 goals in three games without conceding.

Despite the unavailability of key figures such as Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, and the midfield anchor due to injuries, Luis de la Fuente’s side showcased their superiority against a Georgia team that spent most of the match defending deep. Spain controlled the encounter with more than 80% of the ball, and Georgia did not have one shot on target or create a scoring opportunity, with only shot-stopper Giorgi Mamardashvili averting a heavy defeat.

The scorer broke the deadlock in the first half from a well-executed dead-ball routine, and Oyarzabal wrapped up the victory in the second period with a stunning free kick after the Georgian keeper had denied Ferran Torres’s spot-kick.

Additional Scores

• Turkey bounced back with a 6-1 victory over Bulgaria to keep the pressure on the group leaders in their section. The Spanish club’s Arda Güler was one of the goal-getters.
• The Italian squad improved their hopes of at least making the qualifying playoffs with a comfortable win away to Estonia, thanks to strikes from Moise Kean, another attacker, and a third scorer.

Gennaro Gattuso said: “Our focus isn’t on the group leaders or Israel. We are aware of what we have to do.”

The Azzurri failed to qualify for the last two global tournaments, twice falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded playoff path now looks their most likely chance after the Norwegian team’s 5-0 win over Israel in their qualifying group. Norway are leading on eighteen points from six games. Italy have twelve 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 top teams qualify directly for the tournament, with the runners-up going into the playoffs.

Italy face Israel on Tuesday, where a win 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 beckons for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.