Injury-Time Strike from Neves Sinks Ireland After Kelleher Saves Cristiano Ronaldo Penalty

The Portuguese midfielder was the hero for Portugal with a injury-time winner in their World Cup qualifying match against the Republic of Ireland, following Caoimhín Kelleher had kept out a penalty from the veteran forward.

Game Overview

Neves nodded in during stoppage time to claim a slender triumph, four years after Ronaldo had scored twice late on to overcome a resilient Irish side.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought draw, 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 disappointing defeat in Armenia.

However, the defeat puts them facing elimination, with their initial trio of qualifying group matches having yielded only a solitary draw. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any hope of securing a playoff place.

Key Moments

• Kelleher seemed to have earned Ireland a draw when he brilliantly kept out Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg after Francisco Trincão’s shot had hit Dara O’Shea’s arm.
• The match-winner came to his side’s rescue in the first minute of added time when he directed Trincão’s cross past Kelleher.

Additional Group Results

Portugal’s Group

Hungary boosted their hopes of advancing by picking up 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. A Hungarian forward gave Hungary the lead in the first half and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the points in late stoppage time.

Group K

Serbia suffered a narrow defeat at home to Albania, with the outcome meaning the Three Lions can now seal their passage from their qualifying group by beating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj netted the decisive strike for his team with a neat volley in late added time.

Latvia struggles in their group persisted as they were held to a two-all tie at home by Andorra. Ian Olivera scored for the visitors 12 minutes from time to earn them their initial draw of the qualifiers and prolong Latvia’s winless run to several matches.

Group E

The Spanish national team maintained their dominant qualifying group run with a comfortable victory over Georgia after strikes from a Spanish attacker and Mikel Oyarzabal in the match venue. The win extended the European champions’ perfect run in qualifying, having scored 11 goals in three matches without letting in a goal.

In spite of the unavailability of players such as a talented winger, Nico Williams, and Rodri due to injuries, the Spanish squad demonstrated their dominance against a Georgia team that spent the majority of the game sitting back. Spain dominated the match with over eighty percent possession, and the visitors did not have a single attempt on target or generate a clear chance, with only shot-stopper Giorgi Mamardashvili preventing a rout.

Pino opened the scoring in the first half from a expertly taken set-piece routine, and his compatriot wrapped up the win in the 64th minute with a stunning free kick after Mamardashvili had saved Ferran Torres’s spot-kick.

Additional Results

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a comprehensive victory over the Bulgarian side to stay close to Spain in their section. 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 victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to strikes from a forward, Mateo Retegui, and a third scorer.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “We’re not thinking about Norway or Israel. We are aware of our responsibilities.”

Italy missed out for the last two World Cups, on two occasions missing out in the playoffs, and the feared playoff path now appears their primary opportunity after Norway’s comprehensive win over the Israeli side in their qualifying group. Norway are top on eighteen points from six games. Italy have twelve points with a game in hand on their competitors and are a trio of points clear of Israel. The Estonian squad stay in fourth place on three points. The group winners qualify directly for the World Cup, with the second-placed sides going into the playoffs.

The Italian national team face Israel on Tuesday, where a victory would secure second spot and, while they can still mathematically catch the group leaders on points, the leaders’ much better goal ratio means a playoff spot probably beckons for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.