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The Portuguese midfielder was the hero for Portugal with a dramatic winner in their World Cup qualifying encounter against Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had saved a penalty from the veteran forward.

Match Summary

The Wolves midfielder headed home during stoppage time to snatch a narrow victory, several seasons after the star striker had bagged a brace at the death to overcome a resilient Ireland team.

The Irish squad appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought point, but in the end left empty-handed, despite regaining a significant amount of pride with a gritty display that erased some of the memories of last month’s disappointing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the defeat puts them staring down the barrel, with their initial trio of Group F matches having yielded only a single draw. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any chance of claiming a qualifying place.

Major Moments

• The Liverpool keeper seemed to have earned Ireland a point when he brilliantly saved Ronaldo’s penalty with his outstretched foot after a Portuguese player’s shot had hit Dara O’Shea’s arm.
• The match-winner saved Portugal in the first minute of stoppage time when he directed a delivery from the wing past Kelleher.

Additional Group Outcomes

Portugal’s Group

Hungary enhanced their hopes of advancing by securing their first win with a two-goal victory over the Armenian side, climbing above their opponents into second place behind Portugal in Group F. Daniel Lukacs provided Hungary the advantage in the first half and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the victory in second-half added time.

England’s Group

Serbia suffered a narrow defeat at home to Albania, with the result meaning the Three Lions can now seal their qualification from their qualifying group by beating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj netted the only goal for his team with a well-taken volley in first-half stoppage time.

Latvia struggles in Group K persisted as they were forced to a 2-2 draw at home by Andorra. An Andorran player scored for the visitors 12 minutes from time to earn them their initial draw of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s winless run to five games.

Spain’s Group

The Spanish national team maintained their dominant qualifying group campaign with a 2-0 win over the Georgian side after strikes from a Spanish attacker and his teammate in the match venue. The win continued the European champions’ flawless run in qualifying, having notched 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 the midfield anchor due to injuries, the Spanish squad showcased their superiority against a Georgian team that spent the majority of the game sitting back. Spain dominated the encounter with over eighty percent of the ball, and Georgia did not have one shot on target or create a clear chance, with only goalkeeper their keeper averting a heavy defeat.

The scorer broke the deadlock in the 24th minute from a well-executed set-piece routine, and his compatriot wrapped up the win in the 64th minute with a spectacular set-piece after Mamardashvili had saved Ferran Torres’s penalty.

Other Scores

• Turkey bounced back with a 6-1 thrashing over the Bulgarian side to keep the pressure on the group leaders in Group E. The Spanish club’s a young talent was one of the scorers.
• The Italian squad improved their prospects of at least making the qualifying playoffs with a comfortable win away to Estonia, thanks to strikes from Moise Kean, Mateo Retegui, and a third scorer.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “We’re not thinking about the group leaders or Israel. We are aware of what we have to do.”

The Azzurri missed out for the last two global tournaments, on two occasions falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded backdoor route now looks their primary opportunity after Norway’s 5-0 hammering over the Israeli side in Group I. The Norwegians are top on eighteen points from six games. The Italians have twelve points with a match less played on their competitors and are a trio of points ahead of Israel. Estonia stay fourth on three points. The top teams advance automatically for the tournament, with the second-placed sides entering the qualifying stage.

The Italian national team face their rivals on Tuesday, where a victory would secure second spot and, while they can still theoretically overtake the group leaders on points, the Norwegians’ much better goal difference means a qualifying place probably awaits for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.