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The Portuguese midfielder came to the rescue for the Portuguese side with a last-gasp winning goal in their World Cup qualifying match against the Republic of Ireland, following the Irish goalkeeper had denied a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Game Summary

The Wolves midfielder headed home during stoppage time to secure a slender triumph, 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 leave Lisbon with a hard-fought draw, but ultimately suffered defeat, despite restoring a good deal of honor with a battling performance that erased some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing loss in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the defeat leaves them staring down the barrel, with their initial trio of Group F matches having yielded only a single draw. They must beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any chance of securing a playoff spot.

Major Incidents

• Kelleher seemed to have earned Ireland a draw when he brilliantly kept out Ronaldo’s penalty with his trailing leg after Francisco Trincão’s effort had struck an Irish defender’s hand.
• Neves saved Portugal in the opening moments of stoppage time when he headed Trincão’s cross past Kelleher.

Other Group Results

Group F

Hungary boosted their chances of advancing by securing their initial victory with a 2-0 triumph over the Armenian side, moving above their rivals into the runner-up spot behind Portugal in Group F. A Hungarian forward gave Hungary the lead in the first half and a teammate secured the points in second-half added time.

Group K

The Serbian national team slipped to a narrow defeat at home to the Albanian squad, with the outcome meaning England can now seal their passage from their qualifying group by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker scored the decisive strike for his team with a well-taken volley in late stoppage time.

Latvia struggles in their group persisted as they were forced to a two-all draw at home by the Andorran team. An Andorran player scored for the visitors 12 minutes from time to earn them their initial draw of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s poor form to several matches.

Spain’s Group

Spain continued their dominant qualifying group campaign with a 2-0 victory over Georgia after goals from a Spanish attacker and his teammate in Elche. The result continued the title holders’ flawless run in the qualifiers, having scored eleven strikes in three games without letting in a goal.

In spite of the absence of players such as a talented winger, another forward, and Rodri due to fitness issues, Luis de la Fuente’s side demonstrated their dominance against a Georgia team that spent the majority of the game defending deep. The home side dominated the encounter with more than 80% of the ball, and the visitors did not have one shot on target or create a scoring opportunity, with only shot-stopper Giorgi Mamardashvili averting a heavy defeat.

The scorer broke the deadlock in the 24th minute from a expertly taken dead-ball routine, and his compatriot secured the victory in the 64th minute with a stunning free kick after Mamardashvili had denied Ferran Torres’s penalty.

Additional Scores

• The Turkish national team returned to winning ways with a comprehensive victory over the Bulgarian side to keep the pressure on the group leaders in their section. The Spanish club’s Arda Güler was one of the goal-getters.
• Italy improved their prospects of at least making the knockout stage with a 3-1 victory away to Estonia, thanks to goals from Moise Kean, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “We’re not thinking about the group leaders or our next opponents. We know what we have to do.”

The Azzurri failed to qualify for the last two World Cups, on two occasions missing out in the playoffs, and the dreaded playoff path now looks their most likely chance after Norway’s 5-0 win over the Israeli side in Group I. Norway are leading on eighteen points from six games. Italy have twelve points with a match less played on their rivals and are a trio of points clear of their next opponents. Estonia stay fourth on three points. The group winners qualify directly for the tournament, with the runners-up entering the qualifying stage.

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