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Rúben Neves saved the day for Portugal with a dramatic winning goal in their World Cup match against Ireland, following Caoimhín Kelleher had kept out a spot-kick from the veteran forward.

Game Overview

Neves found the net during injury time to secure a 1-0 win, several seasons after the star striker had scored twice late on to overcome a stubborn Irish side.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men looked set to leave Lisbon with a hard-fought point, but ultimately left empty-handed, despite regaining a good deal of honor with a gritty performance that erased some of the recollections of last month’s disappointing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the loss puts them staring down the barrel, with their first three qualifying group matches having yielded only a solitary point. They need to beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any chance of claiming a qualifying place.

Key Moments

• Kelleher seemed to have earned Ireland a draw when he brilliantly saved Ronaldo’s penalty with his trailing leg after Francisco Trincão’s shot had hit Dara O’Shea’s arm.
• Neves saved Portugal in the opening moments of stoppage time when he headed Trincão’s cross past Kelleher.

Other Qualifying Outcomes

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team boosted their chances of qualifying by securing their first win with a two-goal victory over the Armenian side, moving above their rivals into second place behind Portugal in the standings. Daniel Lukacs gave his team the lead in the opening period and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the points in late stoppage time.

Group K

The Serbian national team suffered a 1-0 loss at home to the Albanian squad, with the result meaning England can now seal their passage from Group K by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker netted the only goal for Albania with a neat volley in first-half 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. An Andorran player scored for the away side 12 minutes from time to claim them their initial draw of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s poor form to five games.

Spain’s Group

Spain maintained their impressive Group E campaign with a comfortable victory over Georgia after goals from a Spanish attacker and his teammate in Elche. The result continued the European champions’ flawless run in qualifying, having scored eleven strikes in three games without conceding.

Despite the unavailability of key figures such as Lamine Yamal, another forward, and the midfield anchor due to injuries, the Spanish squad showcased their dominance against a Georgian team that passed most of the match sitting back. Spain controlled the encounter with over eighty percent of the ball, and the visitors did not have a single attempt on target or generate a clear chance, with only goalkeeper their keeper averting a rout.

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

Additional Scores

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a 6-1 thrashing over the Bulgarian side to stay close to the group leaders in their section. Real Madrid’s Arda Güler was among the goal-getters.
• The Italian squad improved their prospects of at least making the qualifying playoffs with a comfortable win away to the Estonian team, thanks to strikes from Moise Kean, Mateo Retegui, and a third scorer.

The Italian coach said: “Our focus isn’t on Norway or Israel. We know our responsibilities.”

The Azzurri failed to qualify for the previous two global tournaments, twice missing out in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded playoff path now looks their most likely opportunity after Norway’s 5-0 win over the Israeli side in Group I. Norway are leading on 18 points from six games. The Italians have 12 points with a game in hand on their competitors and are a trio of points ahead of Israel. Estonia stay fourth on three points. The top teams advance automatically for the tournament, with the second-placed sides entering the qualifying stage.

Italy host their rivals on Tuesday, where a victory would secure the runner-up position and, while they can still mathematically overtake the group leaders on the table, the Norwegians’ much better goal ratio means a qualifying place probably awaits for the Italian squad.