Portugal 1-0 Republic of Ireland: Highlights, man of the match, stats as Cristiano Ronaldo spared in World Cup qualifying

The Republic of Ireland's hopes of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup took a major blow on Saturday night as a late header saw them lose 1-0 to Portugal at Estadio Jose Alvalade.

Heimir Hallgrimsson named a defensive lineup in Lisbon, setting the Boys in Green up to sit deep, and while they faced 30 shots overall, they limited their star-studded opponents to just six shots on target, many of which were from long range.

That being said, Manchester City's Bernardo Silva should have opened the scoring in the 17th minute when he latched onto a rebound from a Cristiano Ronaldo strike, before fumbling his own effort wide.

Roberto Martinez's side continued to apply pressure in the second half, but other than a couple of saves from distance, Caoimhin Kelleher was relatively untested until the final 15 minutes of the clash.

The referee pointed to the spot after Dara O'Shea was judged to have handled the ball, but former Liverpool goalkeeper Kelleher denied former Manchester United forward Ronaldo from opening the scoring with an outstretched leg.

However, Ronaldo's blushes were spared when Ruben Neves reached Francisco Trincao's cross ahead of Kelleher to head home his first goal for the national team and snatch all three points in stoppage time.

SPORTS MOLE'S VERDICT

Portugal were largely blunt on Saturday, and their talisman, Ronaldo, had a night to forget that included missing what could have been a crucial penalty.

Regardless, Selecao das Quinas are five points clear at the top of their qualifying group, and they will be confident of reaching the World Cup directly.

The mood out of the Ireland camp this week was that while they had made a disappointing start to their qualifying campaign, things were not over by any means.

However, after Saturday's defeat, while they are not yet eliminated from qualifying, the Boys in Green remain bottom of group F with one point, three behind second-placed Hungary and eight behind Portugal with just three matches played.

PORTUGAL VS. REPUBLIC OF IRELAND HIGHLIGHTS

17th min: Bernardo Silva (Portugal) big chance missed

Ronaldo's effort from outside the box strikes the post, and while the rebound falls to Silva, he hits wide of an open goal from 10 yards out.

53rd min: Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) miss

Bruno Fernandes controls the ball on the edge of the box and moves clear of the Ireland defence before picking out Ronaldo 15 yards from goal.

However, the captain is unable to break the deadlock and fires his shot wide of the right-hand post.

75th min: Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) penalty miss

Ireland have defended steadfastly, but a handball from O'Shea sees the referee point to the spot.

Ronaldo hits the penalty towards the centre of the goal, but Kelleher continues his excellent record from 12 yards to deny the 40-year-old with an outstretched leg.

90+1 mins: Portugal 1-0 Republic of Ireland (Ruben Neves)

Trincao picks up the ball outside of the Irish defensive block on the right flank, cuts inside onto his left foot and curls a cross into the box from near the corner of the 18-yard area.

Kelleher tries to punch the ball away, but Neves bravely reaches it first and heads into the top-right corner from the edge of the six-yard box.

MAN OF THE MATCH - RUBEN NEVES

The Portugal midfielder created three chances on Saturday against a determined defensive unit, and when his attacking teammates failed to find the breakthrough, secured all three points himself with a stoppage-time header.

PORTUGAL VS. REPUBLIC OF IRELAND MATCH STATS

Possession: Portugal 70%-30% Republic of Ireland

Shots: Portugal 30-2 Republic of Ireland

Shots on target: Portugal 6-0 Republic of Ireland

Corners: Portugal 9-0 Republic of Ireland

Fouls: Portugal 6-9 Republic of Ireland

BEST STATS

Caoimhín Kelleher's last three penalty saves for club and country (excluding shootouts) have come against:

? Kylian Mbappé
? Bruno Fernandes
? Cristiano Ronaldo

Denying an elite list of names from the spot ?

(h/t @Squawka) pic.twitter.com/NIuNrEffCu
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) October 11, 2025

What a time to score your first goal for Portugal. ??

Rúben Neves won the game in stoppage time against the Republic of Ireland to make it three wins from three in World Cup qualifying.

His game by numbers:

114 touches
88/93 passes completed
8x possession won
5 shots
5… pic.twitter.com/L9YYfQ5Ioq
— Squawka (@Squawka) October 11, 2025