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Rúben Neves came to the rescue for the Portuguese side with a last-gasp decisive strike in their World Cup qualifying encounter against the Republic of Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had kept out a spot-kick from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Match Summary

Neves headed home during injury time to snatch a narrow triumph, several seasons after Ronaldo had bagged a brace late on to defeat a resilient Irish side.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men looked set to leave Lisbon with a well-earned point, but in the end left empty-handed, despite restoring a significant amount of pride with a gritty display that overshadowed some of the memories of last month’s disappointing defeat in Armenia.

However, the defeat leaves them facing elimination, with their first three qualifying group games having produced only a single draw. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any hope of securing a playoff place.

Major Incidents

• The Liverpool keeper looked to have secured Ireland a point when he superbly saved Ronaldo’s penalty with his outstretched foot after a Portuguese player’s effort had struck an Irish defender’s arm.
• Neves saved Portugal in the opening moments of added time when he headed a delivery from the wing past the Irish goalkeeper.

Additional Qualifying Results

Group F

Hungary boosted their hopes of advancing by securing their first win with a two-goal triumph over Armenia, moving above their rivals into second place behind Portugal in Group F. A Hungarian forward provided his team the lead in the first half and a teammate secured the victory in late added time.

England’s Group

Serbia slipped to a 1-0 defeat at home to the Albanian squad, with the outcome meaning the Three Lions can now seal their qualification from their qualifying group by beating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj scored the decisive strike for Albania with a neat volley in first-half added time.

The Latvian side difficulties in their group persisted as they were forced to a two-all draw at home by Andorra. Ian Olivera found the net for the away side 12 minutes from time to claim them their initial draw of the qualifying campaign and prolong Latvia’s winless run to several matches.

Group E

Spain continued their impressive qualifying group campaign with a 2-0 victory over the Georgian side after strikes from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in Elche. The result continued the European champions’ perfect run in qualifying, having scored 11 goals in three games without conceding.

Despite the absence of key figures such as Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, and the midfield anchor due to injuries, the Spanish squad demonstrated their superiority against a Georgia team that passed the majority of the game defending deep. Spain dominated the encounter with more than 80% of the ball, and Georgia did not have one shot on target or create a clear chance, with only shot-stopper Giorgi Mamardashvili preventing a rout.

The scorer broke the deadlock in the first half from a well-executed set-piece routine, and his compatriot wrapped up the victory in the 64th minute with a stunning set-piece after Mamardashvili had denied a Spanish player’s penalty.

Other Results

• The Turkish national team 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 one of the goal-getters.
• The Italian squad improved their hopes of at least reaching the qualifying playoffs with a 3-1 victory away to Estonia, thanks to strikes from a forward, Mateo Retegui, and a third scorer.

Gennaro Gattuso said: “We’re not thinking about the group leaders or our next opponents. We know our responsibilities.”

Italy missed out for the previous two global tournaments, twice falling short in the playoffs, and the feared playoff path now appears their primary chance after the Norwegian team’s comprehensive hammering over the Israeli side in their qualifying group. Norway are leading on 18 points from six games. The Italians have twelve points with a game in hand on their competitors and are a trio of points ahead of their next opponents. The Estonian squad remain fourth on three points. The top teams advance automatically for the World Cup, with the runners-up going into the playoffs.

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