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Rúben Neves came to the rescue for the Portuguese side with a injury-time winner in their World Cup qualifying clash against the Republic of Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had denied a spot-kick from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Game Overview

The Wolves midfielder headed home during stoppage time to secure a 1-0 victory, several seasons after Ronaldo had scored twice late on to overcome a resilient Ireland team.

The Irish squad appeared poised to leave Lisbon with a well-earned draw, but ultimately left empty-handed, despite restoring a significant amount of honor with a battling display that erased some of the recollections of last month’s disappointing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the defeat puts them in a difficult position, with their first three qualifying group matches having yielded only a solitary point. They need to beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any hope of securing a playoff place.

Key Incidents

• The Liverpool keeper seemed to have secured Ireland a draw when he brilliantly saved Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his outstretched foot after Francisco Trincão’s effort had hit an Irish defender’s hand.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the first minute of added time when he directed a delivery from the wing past the Irish goalkeeper.

Additional Group Results

Group F

Hungary boosted their hopes of qualifying by securing their initial victory with a two-goal triumph over the Armenian side, moving above their opponents into second place behind Portugal in the standings. A Hungarian forward gave his team the lead in the opening period and Zsombor Gruber secured the points in late stoppage time.

Group K

Serbia suffered a narrow defeat at home to the Albanian squad, with the outcome meaning the Three Lions can now secure their qualification from Group K by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj netted the decisive strike for Albania with a well-taken shot in first-half stoppage time.

The Latvian side difficulties in their group persisted as they were forced to a two-all draw at home by Andorra. An Andorran player scored for the visitors late on from time to earn them their initial draw of the qualifying campaign and extend Latvia’s winless run to several matches.

Group E

Spain continued their impressive qualifying group run with a comfortable win over Georgia after goals from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in the match venue. The win continued the European champions’ flawless 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 Rodri due to fitness issues, the Spanish squad showcased their superiority against a Georgia team that spent most of the match sitting back. Spain dominated the match with more than 80% possession, and Georgia did not have a single attempt on target or create a scoring opportunity, with only goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili preventing a rout.

The scorer broke the deadlock in the first half from a expertly taken set-piece move, and Oyarzabal secured the victory in the 64th minute with a spectacular free kick after the Georgian keeper had saved Ferran Torres’s penalty.

Additional Results

• Turkey bounced back with a 6-1 victory over Bulgaria to stay close to the group leaders in Group E. The Spanish club’s a young talent was among the scorers.
• The Italian squad improved their prospects of at least reaching the qualifying playoffs with a 3-1 win away to Estonia, thanks to goals from a forward, Mateo Retegui, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

The Italian coach said: “We’re not thinking about Norway or our next opponents. We know what we have to do.”

The Azzurri failed to qualify for the last two global tournaments, on two occasions missing out in the playoffs, and the feared backdoor route now appears their primary opportunity after the Norwegian team’s 5-0 hammering over the Israeli side in their qualifying group. Norway are top on eighteen points from six matches. The Italians have twelve points with a match less played on their rivals and are three points clear of Israel. The Estonian squad stay fourth on three points. The group winners qualify directly for the tournament, with the second-placed sides entering the qualifying stage.

Italy face their rivals on Tuesday, where a win would secure second spot and, while they can still theoretically overtake the group leaders on the table, the Norwegians’ much better goal ratio means a playoff spot likely awaits for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.