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Rúben Neves saved the day for Portugal with a dramatic winner in their World Cup qualifying clash against Ireland, following the Irish goalkeeper had saved a penalty from the veteran forward.

Game Summary

Neves headed home during injury time to claim a slender triumph, four years after the star striker had bagged a brace late on to defeat a stubborn Ireland team.

The Irish squad appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a well-earned draw, but in the end left empty-handed, despite restoring a good deal of pride with a battling display that erased some of the recollections of last month’s disappointing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the loss leaves them in a difficult position, with their first three qualifying group matches having yielded only a single draw. They must 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 point when he superbly kept out Ronaldo’s penalty with his trailing leg after a Portuguese player’s effort had hit an Irish defender’s arm.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of added time when he directed Trincão’s cross past the Irish goalkeeper.

Other Group Results

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team enhanced their chances of advancing by securing their initial victory with a two-goal triumph over the Armenian side, climbing above their rivals into the runner-up spot behind the group leaders in the standings. Daniel Lukacs provided his team the advantage in the first half and a teammate secured the victory in late added time.

Group K

Serbia 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 beating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker netted the decisive strike for Albania with a well-taken shot in first-half added time.

The Latvian side difficulties in Group K continued as they were held to a two-all tie at home by the Andorran team. An Andorran player scored for the visitors 12 minutes from time to earn them their first point of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s winless run to several matches.

Spain’s Group

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

Despite the absence of key figures such as Lamine Yamal, another forward, and the midfield anchor due to injuries, Luis de la Fuente’s side demonstrated their dominance against a Georgian team that spent most of the match sitting back. The home side controlled the encounter with over eighty percent of the ball, and Georgia did not have a single attempt on target or generate a clear chance, with only shot-stopper their keeper preventing a rout.

The scorer broke the deadlock in the first half from a well-executed dead-ball move, and his compatriot secured the win in the 64th minute with a stunning set-piece after the Georgian keeper had denied a Spanish player’s spot-kick.

Other Results

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a 6-1 thrashing over Bulgaria to stay close to the group leaders in their section. The Spanish club’s Arda Güler was one of the goal-getters.
• Italy improved their hopes of at least reaching the qualifying playoffs with a comfortable victory away to Estonia, thanks to goals from a forward, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

The Italian coach said: “Our focus isn’t on Norway or our next opponents. We are aware of what we have to do.”

Italy missed out for the last two World Cups, on two occasions missing out in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded playoff path now looks their most likely opportunity after Norway’s comprehensive hammering over Israel in Group I. Norway are leading on 18 points from six games. The Italians have twelve points with a match less played on their rivals and are a trio of points clear of Israel. The Estonian squad remain in fourth place on three points. The group winners qualify directly for the World Cup, with the runners-up going into the qualifying stage.

The Italian national team face Israel on Tuesday, where a win would secure the runner-up position and, while they can still theoretically overtake Norway on the table, the Norwegians’ far superior goal ratio means a qualifying place likely beckons for the Italian squad.