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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 encounter against the Republic of Ireland, following the Irish goalkeeper had kept out a spot-kick from the veteran forward.

Game Summary

The Wolves midfielder headed home during stoppage time to snatch a narrow victory, four years after Ronaldo had bagged a brace at the death to defeat a stubborn Ireland team.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men looked set to leave Lisbon with a well-earned point, but ultimately left empty-handed, despite restoring a significant amount of pride with a gritty display that erased some of the memories of last month’s disappointing loss in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the loss leaves them staring down the barrel, with their initial trio of Group F matches having produced only a solitary point. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any chance of claiming a playoff place.

Key Moments

• Kelleher seemed to have secured Ireland a draw when he superbly kept out Ronaldo’s penalty with his trailing leg after a Portuguese player’s effort had hit Dara O’Shea’s hand.
• The match-winner 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 Group Results

Group F

Hungary boosted their hopes of advancing by securing their first win with a 2-0 triumph over Armenia, moving above their opponents into the runner-up spot behind the group leaders in Group F. A Hungarian forward provided Hungary the advantage in the first half and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the victory in late stoppage time.

England’s Group

The Serbian national team slipped to a narrow loss at home to the Albanian squad, with the outcome meaning the Three Lions can now secure their qualification from Group K by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj netted the only goal for his team with a well-taken volley in late added time.

The Latvian side difficulties in their group continued as they were forced to a 2-2 draw at home by the Andorran team. An Andorran player found the net for the away side late on from time to claim them their initial draw of the qualifiers and prolong Latvia’s winless run to five games.

Spain’s Group

The Spanish national team maintained their dominant Group E run with a comfortable win over the Georgian side after strikes from Jéremy Pino and his teammate in the match venue. The result continued the title holders’ perfect record in the qualifiers, having scored 11 goals in three games without conceding.

In spite of the unavailability of key figures such as a talented winger, Nico Williams, and the midfield anchor due to fitness issues, Luis de la Fuente’s side demonstrated their dominance against a Georgia team that spent most of the match sitting back. The home side controlled the match with more than 80% possession, and Georgia did not have a single attempt on target or create a clear chance, with only goalkeeper their keeper preventing a rout.

Pino opened the scoring in the 24th minute from a expertly taken set-piece routine, and Oyarzabal secured the win in the second period with a stunning set-piece after Mamardashvili had denied Ferran Torres’s spot-kick.

Additional Results

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a comprehensive victory over Bulgaria to keep the pressure on the group leaders in their section. The Spanish club’s a young talent was one of the scorers.
• Italy improved their prospects of at least reaching the qualifying playoffs with a 3-1 win away to the Estonian team, thanks to goals from a forward, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “Our focus isn’t on Norway or our next opponents. We are aware of our responsibilities.”

Italy failed to qualify for the previous two global tournaments, twice missing out in the qualifying rounds, and the feared playoff path now appears their most likely chance after Norway’s comprehensive hammering over the Israeli side in Group I. Norway are top on 18 points from six matches. The Italians have twelve points with a match less played on their rivals and are a trio of points clear 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 playoffs.

Italy host their rivals on Tuesday, where a win would cement the runner-up position and, while they can still mathematically overtake the group leaders on points, the Norwegians’ far superior goal difference means a qualifying place likely beckons for the Italian squad.