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Rúben Neves was the hero for the Portuguese side with a injury-time winner in their World Cup match against the Republic of Ireland, after Caoimhín Kelleher had kept out a penalty from the veteran forward.

Game Overview

Neves found the net during injury time to claim a slender win, four years after the star striker had bagged a brace at the death to defeat a stubborn Ireland team.

The Irish squad looked set to depart the Portuguese capital with a well-earned draw, but ultimately left empty-handed, despite regaining a good deal of pride with a gritty performance that erased some of the recollections of last month’s embarrassing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the defeat leaves them staring down the barrel, with their initial trio of Group F matches having yielded only a single draw. They need to beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any hope of claiming a playoff place.

Major Incidents

• Kelleher looked to have secured Ireland a point when he brilliantly kept out Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his outstretched foot after Francisco Trincão’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 headed Trincão’s cross past Kelleher.

Other Group Results

Group F

Hungary boosted their chances of advancing by picking up their initial victory with a two-goal triumph over the Armenian side, climbing above their rivals into second place behind the group leaders in Group F. Daniel Lukacs gave Hungary the lead in the first half and a teammate made sure of the victory in second-half added time.

Group K

Serbia suffered a narrow defeat at home to Albania, with the result meaning England can now secure their passage from Group K by beating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker scored the decisive strike for his team with a neat shot in first-half added time.

Latvia struggles in their group continued as they were forced to a two-all tie at home by Andorra. Ian Olivera scored for the visitors 12 minutes from time to claim them their first point of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s winless run to five games.

Group E

The Spanish national team maintained their dominant qualifying group campaign with a 2-0 victory over Georgia after strikes from Jéremy Pino and his teammate in the match venue. The result extended the European champions’ flawless run in qualifying, having notched eleven strikes in three games without conceding.

In spite of the unavailability of players such as Lamine Yamal, another forward, 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. The home side controlled the match with over eighty percent of the ball, and Georgia 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 first half from a well-executed dead-ball move, and Oyarzabal secured the win in the second period with a stunning free kick after the Georgian keeper had denied a Spanish player’s penalty.

Additional Results

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a 6-1 victory over the Bulgarian side to stay close to Spain in Group E. The Spanish club’s Arda Güler was among the goal-getters.
• The Italian squad boosted 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 a third scorer.

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

The Azzurri failed to qualify for the previous two World Cups, twice falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the feared backdoor route now appears their most likely opportunity after the Norwegian team’s comprehensive hammering over Israel in their qualifying group. Norway are top on 18 points from six games. Italy have twelve points with a game in hand on their competitors and are a trio of points ahead of Israel. The Estonian squad remain in fourth place on three points. The top teams qualify directly for the World Cup, with the runners-up entering the qualifying stage.

Italy face their rivals on Tuesday, where a win would secure second spot and, while they can still mathematically overtake the group leaders on points, the leaders’ far superior goal ratio means a playoff spot likely awaits for the Italian squad.