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Rúben Neves saved the day for Portugal with a last-gasp winning goal in their World Cup qualifying match against Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had denied a spot-kick from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Match Overview

Neves found the net during injury time to claim a narrow triumph, several seasons after the star striker had scored twice late on to defeat a resilient Irish side.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men looked set to leave Lisbon with a hard-fought point, but in the end left empty-handed, despite restoring a significant amount of honor with a gritty performance that overshadowed some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing loss in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the loss puts them staring down the barrel, with their first three qualifying group matches having produced only a single point. They need to defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any chance of securing a playoff spot.

Major Moments

• The Liverpool keeper looked to have earned Ireland a draw when he brilliantly kept out Ronaldo’s penalty with his trailing leg after a Portuguese player’s effort had hit 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.

Other Qualifying Results

Group F

Hungary enhanced their chances of advancing by securing their first win with a 2-0 victory over Armenia, climbing above their rivals into second place behind Portugal in Group F. A Hungarian forward gave Hungary the lead in the first half and Zsombor Gruber secured the victory 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. An Albanian striker scored the decisive strike for Albania with a neat volley in first-half stoppage time.

Latvia struggles in Group K continued as they were held to a two-all tie at home by the Andorran team. An Andorran player found the net for the visitors late on from time to earn them their initial draw of the qualifiers and prolong Latvia’s winless run to several matches.

Group E

The Spanish national team continued their dominant Group E run with a 2-0 win over Georgia after strikes from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in the match venue. The result continued the European champions’ perfect record in the qualifiers, having notched 11 goals in three matches without conceding.

In spite of the unavailability of players such as a talented winger, Nico Williams, and Rodri due to fitness issues, Luis de la Fuente’s side showcased their superiority against a Georgia team that spent the majority of the game sitting back. The home side controlled the encounter with more than 80% possession, and the visitors 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 dead-ball move, and his compatriot secured the victory in the 64th minute with a spectacular set-piece after the Georgian keeper had denied a Spanish player’s penalty.

Additional Results

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a 6-1 thrashing over the Bulgarian side to keep the pressure on the group leaders in Group E. Real Madrid’s Arda Güler was among the goal-getters.
• Italy improved their hopes of at least reaching the knockout stage with a comfortable victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to strikes from Moise Kean, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

Gennaro Gattuso said: “Our focus isn’t on Norway or Israel. We know our responsibilities.”

Italy failed to qualify for the last two global tournaments, on two occasions missing out in the qualifying rounds, and the feared playoff path now appears their most likely opportunity after Norway’s 5-0 hammering over Israel in their qualifying group. The Norwegians are top on 18 points from six matches. Italy have 12 points with a match less played on their competitors and are three points clear of Israel. The Estonian squad stay in fourth place on three points. The top teams qualify directly for the World Cup, 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 Norway on the table, the leaders’ much better goal difference means a qualifying place likely beckons for the Italian squad.