Injury-Time Strike from Neves Stuns Ireland Following Kelleher Stops Ronaldo Spot-Kick

The Portuguese midfielder was the hero for the Portuguese side with a injury-time decisive strike in their World Cup qualifying match against Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had denied a spot-kick from the veteran forward.

Match Overview

The Wolves midfielder found the net during stoppage time to secure a narrow triumph, several seasons after the star striker had bagged a brace late on to defeat a resilient Irish side.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men looked set to leave Lisbon with a well-earned point, but in the end left empty-handed, despite regaining a significant amount of pride with a battling performance that overshadowed some of the memories of last month’s disappointing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the loss leaves them staring down the barrel, with their initial trio of qualifying group games having yielded only a single draw. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any chance of securing a qualifying place.

Major Incidents

• The Liverpool keeper seemed to have secured Ireland a point when he superbly saved Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg after Francisco Trincão’s effort had struck an Irish defender’s hand.
• Neves saved Portugal in the first minute of added time when he headed Trincão’s cross past Kelleher.

Other Group Results

Group F

The Hungarian team enhanced their hopes of advancing by securing their initial victory with a 2-0 victory over the Armenian side, climbing above their opponents into second place behind the group leaders in Group F. Daniel Lukacs gave his team the advantage in the opening period and a teammate secured the points in late added time.

England’s Group

Serbia suffered a narrow defeat at home to the Albanian squad, with the outcome meaning England can now secure their passage from Group K by beating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj scored the decisive strike for his team with a neat shot in first-half added time.

The Latvian side struggles in their group continued as they were held to a 2-2 tie at home by Andorra. Ian Olivera scored for the away side late on from time to earn them their initial draw of the qualifying campaign and prolong Latvia’s poor form to several matches.

Group E

Spain maintained their dominant qualifying group campaign with a comfortable victory over Georgia after strikes from Jéremy Pino and his teammate in the match venue. The win extended the title holders’ flawless run in the qualifiers, having scored eleven strikes in three matches without letting in a goal.

In spite of the absence of key figures such as a talented winger, another forward, and the midfield anchor due to fitness issues, the Spanish squad showcased their dominance against a Georgia team that passed 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 generate a scoring opportunity, with only goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili preventing a rout.

Pino broke the deadlock in the 24th minute from a expertly taken dead-ball move, and Oyarzabal wrapped up the win in the 64th minute with a spectacular free kick after the Georgian keeper had saved Ferran Torres’s spot-kick.

Other Scores

• Turkey bounced back with a comprehensive victory over the Bulgarian side to stay close to the group leaders in their section. The Spanish club’s a young talent was one of the scorers.
• Italy boosted their hopes of at least making the knockout stage with a comfortable victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to goals from Moise Kean, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

Gennaro Gattuso said: “Our focus isn’t on Norway or our next opponents. We know our responsibilities.”

The Azzurri missed out for the previous two World Cups, on two occasions falling short in the playoffs, and the feared backdoor route now appears their most likely chance after Norway’s 5-0 win over the Israeli side in Group I. The Norwegians are top on 18 points from six games. Italy have twelve points with a match less played on their competitors and are three points ahead of Israel. Estonia remain in fourth place on three points. The top teams advance automatically for the tournament, with the runners-up entering the playoffs.

Italy host Israel on Tuesday, where a win would secure second spot and, while they can still theoretically overtake Norway on the table, the leaders’ far superior goal difference means a playoff spot likely beckons for the Italian squad.