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The Portuguese midfielder came to the rescue for Portugal with a last-gasp winning goal in their World Cup match against Ireland, following Caoimhín Kelleher had denied a spot-kick from the veteran forward.

Game Summary

The Wolves midfielder nodded in during added time to secure a narrow win, several seasons after the star striker had scored twice late on to overcome a stubborn Ireland team.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a well-earned point, but ultimately left empty-handed, despite restoring a good deal of pride with a battling display that erased some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing defeat in Armenia.

However, the loss puts them in a difficult position, with their first three qualifying group matches having yielded only a single draw. They need to beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any hope of securing a playoff place.

Key Incidents

• Kelleher seemed to have earned Ireland a point when he brilliantly kept out Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg after Francisco Trincão’s effort had hit Dara O’Shea’s arm.
• The match-winner came to his side’s rescue in the first minute of stoppage time when he headed a delivery from the wing past Kelleher.

Additional Qualifying Outcomes

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team boosted their chances of qualifying by picking up their initial victory with a two-goal triumph over Armenia, moving above their opponents into second place behind Portugal in the standings. A Hungarian forward gave Hungary the lead in the opening period and Zsombor Gruber secured the victory in late added time.

England’s Group

Serbia suffered a narrow defeat at home to Albania, with the result meaning England can now secure their passage from their qualifying group by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj scored the only goal for his team with a well-taken shot in late added time.

Latvia difficulties in their group persisted as they were held to a 2-2 draw at home by the Andorran team. An Andorran player scored for the visitors late on from time to claim them their initial draw of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s winless run to five games.

Group E

The Spanish national team continued their dominant Group E campaign with a 2-0 win over Georgia after strikes from a Spanish attacker and his teammate in Elche. The win continued the title holders’ perfect record in the qualifiers, having notched eleven strikes in three matches without conceding.

In spite of the unavailability of players such as a talented winger, another forward, and the midfield anchor due to injuries, Luis de la Fuente’s side demonstrated their superiority against a Georgia team that passed the majority of the game defending deep. The home side controlled the match with over eighty percent possession, and the visitors did not have one shot on target or create a scoring opportunity, with only shot-stopper their keeper preventing a heavy defeat.

Pino opened the scoring in the first half from a well-executed dead-ball routine, and Oyarzabal secured the victory in the second period with a stunning free kick after Mamardashvili had denied a Spanish player’s penalty.

Other Results

• Turkey bounced back with a comprehensive thrashing over Bulgaria to stay close to Spain in their section. The Spanish club’s a young talent was among the goal-getters.
• The Italian squad improved their hopes of at least reaching the knockout stage with a 3-1 victory away to Estonia, thanks to strikes from Moise Kean, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

Gennaro Gattuso said: “We’re not thinking about Norway or Israel. We are aware of what we have to do.”

Italy missed out for the previous two World Cups, twice missing out in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded backdoor route now appears their most likely opportunity after the Norwegian team’s 5-0 win over the Israeli side in their qualifying group. Norway are top on eighteen points from six matches. Italy have twelve points with a match less played on their rivals and are a trio of points ahead of Israel. The Estonian squad remain in fourth place on three points. The top teams advance automatically for the tournament, with the second-placed sides going into the qualifying stage.

Italy face their rivals on Tuesday, where a win would secure the runner-up position and, while they can still mathematically catch Norway on the table, the Norwegians’ far superior goal difference means a qualifying place probably awaits for the Italian squad.