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The Portuguese midfielder saved the day for Portugal with a injury-time decisive strike in their World Cup match against Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had kept out a spot-kick from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Match Summary

The Wolves midfielder headed home during added time to secure a narrow victory, several seasons after the star striker had bagged a brace late on to defeat a resilient Ireland team.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men looked set to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought point, but in the end suffered defeat, despite restoring a significant amount of honor with a battling performance that overshadowed some of the recollections of last month’s disappointing loss in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the defeat puts them facing elimination, with their first three Group F games having produced only a single draw. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any hope of claiming a playoff place.

Key Moments

• Kelleher seemed to have secured Ireland a draw when he superbly kept out Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg after a Portuguese player’s shot had struck Dara O’Shea’s arm.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the first minute of added time when he directed Trincão’s cross past Kelleher.

Additional Qualifying Outcomes

Group F

Hungary boosted their chances of advancing by picking up their initial victory with a two-goal victory over the Armenian side, moving above their rivals into the runner-up spot behind Portugal in the standings. Daniel Lukacs provided Hungary the advantage in the opening period and Zsombor Gruber secured the victory in late added time.

Group K

The Serbian national team suffered a narrow defeat at home to the Albanian squad, with the result meaning the Three Lions can now secure their passage from Group K by beating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj netted the only goal for Albania with a well-taken volley in first-half stoppage time.

The Latvian side difficulties in Group K persisted as they were forced to a 2-2 tie at home by Andorra. Ian Olivera scored for the away side late on from time to claim them their first point of the qualifying campaign and extend Latvia’s winless run to five games.

Spain’s Group

The Spanish national team maintained their impressive Group E campaign with a comfortable victory over Georgia after strikes from Jéremy Pino and his teammate in the match venue. The win extended the European champions’ perfect record in the qualifiers, having notched eleven strikes in three games without conceding.

In spite of the unavailability of key figures such as Lamine Yamal, another forward, and Rodri due to fitness issues, Luis de la Fuente’s side showcased their superiority against a Georgian team that spent most of the match sitting back. The home side controlled the match with more than 80% of the ball, and the visitors did not have a single attempt on target or generate a scoring opportunity, with only goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili averting a heavy defeat.

Pino broke the deadlock in the first half from a expertly taken set-piece routine, and Oyarzabal secured the victory in the 64th minute with a stunning set-piece after Mamardashvili had denied a Spanish player’s penalty.

Other Results

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a 6-1 victory over the Bulgarian side to keep the pressure on the group leaders in Group E. Real Madrid’s a young talent was among the scorers.
• Italy improved their hopes of at least reaching the qualifying playoffs with a comfortable victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to strikes from a forward, Mateo Retegui, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

The Italian coach said: “We’re not thinking about the group leaders or our next opponents. We are aware of what we have to do.”

The Azzurri missed out for the previous two World Cups, twice falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the feared backdoor route now looks their most likely chance after the Norwegian team’s comprehensive hammering over Israel in Group I. Norway are leading on 18 points from six matches. Italy have 12 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 advance automatically for the tournament, with the second-placed sides going into the playoffs.

Italy host their rivals on Tuesday, where a victory would secure second spot and, while they can still mathematically overtake Norway on points, the leaders’ much better goal ratio means a qualifying place probably awaits for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.