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The Portuguese midfielder was the hero for the Portuguese side with a last-gasp decisive strike in their World Cup qualifying match against Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had kept out a spot-kick from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Game Overview

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

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought point, but ultimately left empty-handed, despite restoring a good deal of pride with a battling performance that overshadowed some of the recollections of last month’s embarrassing defeat in Armenia.

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

Major Moments

• Kelleher looked to have earned Ireland a draw when he superbly kept out Ronaldo’s penalty with his trailing leg after Francisco Trincão’s effort had struck Dara O’Shea’s arm.
• The match-winner came to his side’s rescue in the first minute of added time when he headed a delivery from the wing past Kelleher.

Additional Qualifying Results

Group F

Hungary enhanced their chances of advancing by picking up their first win with a two-goal triumph over Armenia, climbing above their opponents into the runner-up spot behind Portugal in Group F. Daniel Lukacs provided Hungary the advantage in the first half and a teammate secured the victory in second-half added time.

Group K

Serbia slipped to a narrow loss at home to Albania, with the result meaning England can now seal their qualification from Group K by beating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker netted the only goal for his team with a neat volley in first-half stoppage time.

The Latvian side difficulties in their group continued as they were forced to a two-all draw at home by the Andorran team. An Andorran player scored for the away side 12 minutes from time to earn them their initial draw of the qualifying campaign and prolong Latvia’s winless run to five games.

Group E

The Spanish national team continued their dominant qualifying group campaign with a 2-0 victory over the Georgian side after strikes from a Spanish attacker and his teammate in the match venue. The result extended the European champions’ perfect run in the qualifiers, having scored eleven strikes in three matches without conceding.

Despite the unavailability of key figures such as a talented winger, Nico Williams, and Rodri due to fitness issues, Luis de la Fuente’s side showcased their dominance against a Georgian team that spent most of the match defending deep. Spain controlled the encounter with more than 80% possession, and the visitors did not have one shot on target or create a clear chance, with only goalkeeper their keeper preventing a heavy defeat.

The scorer opened the scoring in the 24th minute from a well-executed dead-ball routine, and his compatriot wrapped up the victory in the second period with a spectacular free kick after the Georgian keeper had saved a Spanish player’s penalty.

Other Results

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a 6-1 thrashing over Bulgaria to keep the pressure on Spain in Group E. The Spanish club’s Arda Güler was one of the goal-getters.
• Italy improved their hopes of at least making the knockout stage with a 3-1 victory away to Estonia, thanks to strikes from Moise Kean, Mateo Retegui, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

The Italian coach said: “We’re not thinking about the group leaders or Israel. We know our responsibilities.”

Italy missed out for the last two World Cups, twice missing out in the playoffs, and the feared backdoor route now looks their primary chance after Norway’s 5-0 hammering over Israel in their qualifying group. Norway are leading on 18 points from six games. Italy have twelve points with a game in hand on their rivals and are a trio of points ahead of their next opponents. Estonia stay in fourth place on three points. The group winners advance automatically for the tournament, with the second-placed sides entering the playoffs.

Italy host their rivals on Tuesday, where a win would secure the runner-up position and, while they can still theoretically catch Norway on the table, the Norwegians’ far superior goal ratio means a qualifying place probably awaits for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.