Republic of Ireland stun Portugal

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Republic of Ireland 2 - 0 Portugal

Cristiano Ronaldo was dismissed for the first time in his international career as Portugal squandered the chance to seal World Cup qualification in defeat to the Republic of Ireland.

Author | Lee Francis

Stadium | Aviva Stadium

World Cup Qualifying | Ireland v Portugal | Post match celebrations

Troy Parrott struck twice before the break to give the hosts control, and the night unravelled further for Portugal when Ronaldo received a yellow card for catching Dara O'Shea with an elbow just after the hour. The caution was upgraded to a red after referee Glenn Nyberg consulted the pitch-side monitor on the advice of the VAR.

It marked a bleak conclusion to the five-time Ballon d'Or winner's evening, the first sending off of his 226 appearances for Portugal.

A win would have booked Portugal's place at next year's finals with a match to spare, but Parrott's double kept Roberto Martinez's side in check and revived Ireland's hopes of progressing.

Portugal remain favourites to top the group, although Ronaldo will miss Sunday's home fixture against Armenia, with the length of any further suspension to be determined by a disciplinary committee. Ireland, meanwhile, can secure a play-off place if they beat Hungary in Budapest on Sunday.

Best reaction

Goalscorer Troy Parrott told RTE: "This is probably the best night I have had in my entire life, I have no words to describe it. We all know how important this game was for us, particularly after the other result tonight. I am overwhelmed.”

Richard, an Ireland fan who was at the stadium, said: "For those of us who follow the Republic of Ireland, we have been coming for years and we have not had anything that has come close to warranting celebrations like this."

Location: Lansdowne Rd, Dublin 4, Ireland

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