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The Portuguese midfielder came to the rescue for Portugal with a dramatic decisive strike in their World Cup clash against the Republic of Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had denied a penalty from the veteran forward.

Match Summary

The Wolves midfielder headed home during added time to snatch a narrow win, four years after Ronaldo had scored twice 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 in the end suffered defeat, despite restoring a good deal of pride with a gritty display that erased some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the loss puts them in a difficult position, with their initial trio of Group F matches having yielded only a single point. They need to beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any chance of claiming a qualifying place.

Key Incidents

• The Liverpool keeper looked to have earned Ireland a draw when he superbly kept out Ronaldo’s penalty with his trailing leg after a Portuguese player’s shot had hit Dara O’Shea’s hand.
• Neves saved Portugal in the opening moments of added time when he headed a delivery from the wing past the Irish goalkeeper.

Other Group Outcomes

Portugal’s Group

Hungary enhanced their hopes of qualifying by picking up their initial victory with a 2-0 triumph over Armenia, climbing above their opponents into second place behind the group leaders in Group F. A Hungarian forward gave his team the lead in the first half and Zsombor Gruber secured the victory in late added time.

England’s Group

The Serbian national team slipped to a narrow defeat at home to Albania, with the result meaning the Three Lions can now seal their passage from their qualifying group by beating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj scored the decisive strike for Albania with a neat shot in late stoppage time.

Latvia difficulties in Group K persisted as they were held to a two-all tie at home by the Andorran team. Ian Olivera found the net for the visitors late on from time to claim them their first point of the qualifying campaign and extend Latvia’s winless run to several matches.

Group E

Spain continued their impressive Group E campaign with a comfortable victory over the Georgian side after strikes from a Spanish attacker and his teammate in Elche. The result extended the European champions’ perfect run in the qualifiers, having scored eleven strikes in three games without conceding.

In spite of the absence of key figures such as Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, and the midfield anchor due to injuries, Luis de la Fuente’s side showcased their superiority against a Georgia team that spent most of the match sitting back. The home side dominated the match with over eighty percent of the ball, and Georgia did not have one shot on target or generate a scoring opportunity, with only goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili averting a rout.

The scorer opened the scoring in the 24th minute from a expertly taken set-piece move, and Oyarzabal wrapped up the victory in the 64th minute with a stunning free kick after the Georgian keeper had denied Ferran Torres’s penalty.

Other Results

• Turkey bounced back with a comprehensive victory over the Bulgarian side to keep the pressure on Spain in their section. Real Madrid’s a young talent was one of the goal-getters.
• Italy boosted their prospects of at least making the qualifying playoffs with a comfortable win away to the Estonian team, thanks to goals from Moise Kean, Mateo Retegui, and a third scorer.

The Italian coach commented: “We’re not thinking about Norway or our next opponents. We are aware of our responsibilities.”

The Azzurri missed out for the last two global tournaments, on two occasions missing out in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded playoff path now looks their most likely chance after Norway’s 5-0 hammering over the Israeli side in Group I. The Norwegians are leading on eighteen points from six matches. The Italians have twelve points with a match less played on their rivals and are three points clear of Israel. The Estonian squad remain in fourth place on three points. The group winners qualify directly for the tournament, with the second-placed sides going into the playoffs.

Italy face Israel on Tuesday, where a win would cement second spot and, while they can still theoretically catch the group leaders on the table, the Norwegians’ much better goal difference means a qualifying place likely awaits for the Italian squad.