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Rúben Neves was the hero for Portugal with a injury-time decisive strike in their World Cup encounter against Ireland, following Caoimhín Kelleher had saved a penalty from the veteran forward.

Match Summary

Neves found the net during stoppage time to secure a 1-0 victory, four years after the star striker had bagged a brace late on to defeat a resilient Ireland team.

The Irish squad appeared poised to leave Lisbon with a hard-fought draw, but in the end left empty-handed, despite restoring a good deal of pride with a gritty display that erased some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing loss in Armenia.

However, the loss leaves them facing elimination, with their initial trio of Group F matches having yielded only a single draw. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any hope of claiming a qualifying spot.

Major Moments

• Kelleher seemed to have earned Ireland a point when he brilliantly saved Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg after a Portuguese player’s shot had hit an Irish defender’s hand.
• The match-winner came to his side’s rescue in the first minute of stoppage time when he directed a delivery from the wing past the Irish goalkeeper.

Other Group Results

Group F

The Hungarian team boosted their hopes of advancing by securing their first win with a 2-0 victory over Armenia, moving above their opponents into the runner-up spot behind Portugal in Group F. Daniel Lukacs gave Hungary the advantage in the opening period and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the points in late added time.

Group K

Serbia suffered a narrow loss at home to Albania, with the outcome meaning England can now seal their qualification from Group K by beating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj scored the only goal for his team with a neat shot in late stoppage time.

The Latvian side struggles in their group persisted as they were forced to a two-all draw at home by the Andorran team. Ian Olivera scored for the away side 12 minutes from time to claim them their initial draw of the qualifying campaign and prolong Latvia’s poor form to five games.

Group E

Spain maintained their impressive Group E campaign with a 2-0 win over Georgia after strikes from a Spanish attacker and Mikel Oyarzabal in Elche. The result extended the title holders’ perfect record in the qualifiers, having notched eleven strikes in three matches without letting in a goal.

In spite of the absence of key figures such as Lamine Yamal, another forward, and the midfield anchor due to fitness issues, Luis de la Fuente’s side demonstrated their dominance against a Georgian team that spent most of the match defending deep. The home side controlled the match with over eighty percent of the ball, and the visitors did not have a single attempt on target or create a clear chance, with only goalkeeper their keeper preventing a rout.

Pino broke the deadlock in the 24th minute from a well-executed dead-ball routine, and Oyarzabal secured the win in the 64th minute with a stunning free kick after Mamardashvili had denied Ferran Torres’s penalty.

Additional Results

• Turkey bounced back with a comprehensive victory over the Bulgarian side to keep the pressure on the group leaders in their section. The Spanish club’s a young talent was among the scorers.
• Italy improved their prospects of at least reaching the knockout stage with a comfortable victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to goals from a forward, Mateo Retegui, and a third scorer.

The Italian coach commented: “Our focus isn’t on the group leaders or our next opponents. We are aware of our responsibilities.”

Italy missed out for the previous two World Cups, on two occasions falling short in the playoffs, and the dreaded backdoor route now appears their most likely chance after Norway’s comprehensive win over Israel in their qualifying group. The Norwegians are leading on 18 points from six games. Italy have twelve points with a match less played on their competitors and are a trio of points ahead of Israel. The Estonian squad stay fourth on three points. The top teams qualify directly for the World Cup, with the second-placed sides entering the playoffs.

Italy 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 the table, the Norwegians’ far superior goal difference means a playoff spot probably beckons for the Italian squad.