Late Header from Rúben Neves Shocks Ireland After Kelleher Stops Cristiano Ronaldo Penalty

Rúben Neves was the hero for Portugal with a last-gasp decisive strike in their World Cup qualifying match against Ireland, after Caoimhín Kelleher had kept out a spot-kick from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Game Overview

The Wolves midfielder headed home during injury time to claim a slender triumph, several seasons after the star striker had bagged a brace at the death to defeat a resilient Ireland team.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men looked set to leave Lisbon with a hard-fought point, but ultimately suffered defeat, despite restoring a good deal of pride with a gritty performance that overshadowed some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing loss in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the defeat puts them staring down the barrel, with their first three qualifying group matches having yielded only a single draw. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any hope of securing a playoff spot.

Major Incidents

• Kelleher seemed to have secured Ireland a draw when he superbly saved Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his outstretched foot after Francisco Trincão’s effort had hit Dara O’Shea’s arm.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the first minute of added time when he directed a delivery from the wing past the Irish goalkeeper.

Additional Qualifying Results

Portugal’s Group

Hungary boosted their chances of qualifying by securing their first win with a 2-0 victory over Armenia, moving above their opponents into second place behind the group leaders in the standings. Daniel Lukacs provided Hungary the lead in the opening period and a teammate made sure of the victory in late added time.

Group K

The Serbian national team slipped to a narrow defeat at home to the Albanian squad, with the result meaning England can now seal their qualification from their qualifying group by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker netted the decisive strike for his team with a neat shot in late stoppage time.

The Latvian side difficulties in Group K continued as they were held to a 2-2 draw at home by the Andorran team. Ian Olivera found the net for the away side late on from time to earn them their first point of the qualifiers and prolong Latvia’s poor form to several matches.

Group E

Spain continued their dominant qualifying group run with a comfortable victory over the Georgian side after goals from a Spanish attacker and Mikel Oyarzabal in Elche. The win continued the title holders’ flawless run in the qualifiers, having notched eleven strikes in three matches without letting in a goal.

Despite the absence of key figures such as a talented winger, Nico Williams, and Rodri due to fitness issues, Luis de la Fuente’s side showcased their dominance against a Georgian team that passed the majority of the game defending deep. Spain dominated the match with over eighty percent of the ball, and the visitors did not have one shot on target or generate a clear chance, with only goalkeeper their keeper preventing a rout.

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

Other Results

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a comprehensive victory over Bulgaria to stay close to Spain in Group E. Real Madrid’s Arda Güler was one of the scorers.
• Italy improved their hopes 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 Francesco Pio Esposito.

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

The Azzurri missed out for the previous two global tournaments, twice missing out in the playoffs, and the dreaded playoff path now appears their primary chance after Norway’s comprehensive hammering over the Israeli side in Group I. Norway are leading on 18 points from six games. The Italians have twelve points with a game in hand on their rivals and are three points ahead of their next opponents. The Estonian squad remain fourth on three points. The top teams advance automatically for the tournament, with the second-placed sides going into the qualifying stage.

The Italian national team face their rivals on Tuesday, where a win would cement second spot and, while they can still mathematically overtake the group leaders on the table, the leaders’ much better goal ratio means a qualifying place probably awaits for the Italian squad.