🔗 Share this article

Rúben Neves was the hero for the Portuguese side with a injury-time winning goal in their World Cup qualifying match against Ireland, following the Irish goalkeeper had saved a spot-kick from the veteran forward.

Match Overview

The Wolves midfielder headed home during stoppage time to secure a narrow triumph, several seasons after Ronaldo had bagged a brace late on to overcome a resilient Ireland team.

The Irish squad looked set to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought point, but in the end left empty-handed, despite regaining a significant amount of honor with a gritty display that overshadowed some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing loss in Armenia.

However, the defeat puts them in a difficult position, with their first three Group F matches having produced only a single point. They must beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any chance of securing a qualifying spot.

Major Moments

• Kelleher looked to have earned Ireland a point when he brilliantly kept out Ronaldo’s penalty with his trailing leg after a Portuguese player’s effort had hit Dara O’Shea’s hand.
• The match-winner came to his side’s rescue in the first minute of stoppage time when he directed Trincão’s cross past the Irish goalkeeper.

Other Group Results

Portugal’s Group

Hungary boosted their hopes of qualifying by picking up their first win with a 2-0 victory over the Armenian side, climbing above their rivals into second place behind the group leaders in Group F. A Hungarian forward provided Hungary the advantage in the first half and a teammate secured the points in second-half stoppage time.

England’s Group

The Serbian national team suffered a narrow defeat at home to Albania, with the outcome meaning the Three Lions can now seal their passage from their qualifying group by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker netted the only goal for Albania with a neat volley in first-half stoppage time.

Latvia struggles in Group K persisted as they were held to a 2-2 tie at home by Andorra. An Andorran player scored for the away side late on from time to earn them their initial draw of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s poor form to five games.

Group E

The Spanish national team continued their dominant Group E campaign with a comfortable victory over the Georgian side after goals from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in Elche. The win extended the title holders’ flawless run in the qualifiers, having scored 11 goals in three matches without conceding.

In spite of the absence of players such as a talented winger, Nico Williams, and Rodri due to injuries, Luis de la Fuente’s side demonstrated their superiority against a Georgian team that spent most of the match defending deep. Spain dominated the match with more than 80% possession, and the visitors did not have a single attempt on target or create a scoring opportunity, with only goalkeeper their keeper preventing a rout.

Pino broke the deadlock in the 24th minute from a well-executed set-piece move, and his compatriot secured the win in the second period with a spectacular set-piece after the Georgian keeper had denied Ferran Torres’s spot-kick.

Additional Results

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a comprehensive thrashing over the Bulgarian side to stay close to Spain in Group E. Real Madrid’s a young talent was one of the scorers.
• The Italian squad boosted their hopes of at least making the knockout stage with a 3-1 win away to Estonia, thanks to goals from a forward, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

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

Italy failed to qualify for the last two global tournaments, twice missing out in the qualifying rounds, and the feared backdoor route now looks their most likely chance after Norway’s comprehensive hammering over Israel in Group I. The Norwegians are top on eighteen points from six games. The Italians have twelve points with a match less played on their competitors and are three points clear of their next opponents. The Estonian squad stay fourth on three points. The group winners advance automatically for the World Cup, with the runners-up entering the playoffs.

Italy host Israel on Tuesday, where a win would cement second spot and, while they can still theoretically overtake the group leaders on the table, the leaders’ much better goal ratio means a playoff spot probably awaits for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.