Stoppage-Time Header from Rúben Neves Shocks the Irish Following Caoimhín Kelleher Saves Ronaldo Spot-Kick

Rúben Neves saved the day for Portugal with a injury-time decisive strike in their World Cup qualifying clash against Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had saved a penalty from the veteran forward.

Match Summary

Neves headed home during stoppage time to snatch a slender triumph, four years after Ronaldo had bagged a brace at the death to defeat a resilient Irish side.

The Irish squad looked set to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought point, but ultimately suffered defeat, despite regaining a good deal of pride with a gritty display that overshadowed some of the recollections of last month’s disappointing defeat in Armenia.

However, the defeat leaves them in a difficult position, with their first three qualifying group games having produced only a solitary point. They must beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any hope of claiming a qualifying place.

Major Incidents

• The Liverpool keeper looked to have earned Ireland a draw when he brilliantly saved Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg after Francisco Trincão’s effort had hit an Irish defender’s hand.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of added time when he headed Trincão’s cross past Kelleher.

Other Qualifying Outcomes

Group F

The Hungarian team enhanced their chances of qualifying by picking up their initial victory with a 2-0 victory over Armenia, climbing above their opponents into the runner-up spot behind the group leaders in the standings. Daniel Lukacs gave Hungary the advantage in the opening period and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the points in late stoppage time.

England’s Group

Serbia slipped to a 1-0 loss at home to the Albanian squad, with the outcome meaning England can now seal their qualification from their qualifying group by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker scored the decisive strike for Albania with a neat volley in first-half stoppage time.

Latvia difficulties in Group K persisted as they were held to a 2-2 draw at home by Andorra. An Andorran player scored for the visitors late on from time to claim them their first point of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s poor form to five games.

Group E

The Spanish national team maintained their impressive Group E run with a comfortable win over the Georgian side after strikes from Jéremy Pino and his teammate in Elche. The win continued the European champions’ flawless run in qualifying, having notched eleven strikes in three games without letting in a goal.

In spite of the unavailability of players such as Lamine Yamal, another forward, and Rodri due to fitness issues, the Spanish squad demonstrated their dominance against a Georgia team that spent the majority of the game sitting back. The home side dominated the match with more than 80% of the ball, and the visitors did not have one shot on target or create a scoring opportunity, with only goalkeeper their keeper preventing a heavy defeat.

The scorer broke the deadlock in the first half from a expertly taken set-piece move, and his compatriot secured the victory in the second period with a stunning set-piece after the Georgian keeper had saved a Spanish player’s penalty.

Additional Results

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a 6-1 victory over Bulgaria to stay close to Spain in Group E. The Spanish club’s a young talent was among the scorers.
• Italy improved their prospects of at least making the knockout stage with a comfortable win away to Estonia, thanks to strikes from a forward, Mateo Retegui, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

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

The Azzurri failed to qualify for the last two global tournaments, on two occasions missing out in the playoffs, and the dreaded backdoor route now appears their most likely opportunity after Norway’s 5-0 hammering over the Israeli side in their qualifying group. The Norwegians are top on eighteen points from six matches. Italy have 12 points with a game in hand on their rivals and are a trio of points ahead of their next opponents. The Estonian squad remain in fourth place on three points. The top teams advance automatically for the World Cup, with the runners-up going into the qualifying stage.

The Italian national team face Israel on Tuesday, where a victory would cement the runner-up position and, while they can still theoretically overtake Norway on the table, the Norwegians’ much better goal ratio means a qualifying place likely awaits for the Italian squad.