He made two brilliant saves to keep his side in the match

[Nonverbis]

He made two brilliant saves to keep his side in the match.

This is taken from here: https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/brilliant?q=brilliant

Could you tell me what does it mean "to keep his side in the match"?

A match is between two teams. They were already playing that match.
If it were referred to a play off competition, I would understand.

Could you clarify it for me?

 

[Rover_KE]

to make sure his team still had a chance of remaining unbeaten

 

[Nonverbis]

I can't understand you. Exactly to remain unbeaten? Not to win?
Can I find this expression somewhere in a dictionary?

 

[GoesStation]

An unbeaten team ("side" in British English) is one which has not been defeated. The brilliant saves prevented the other team from scoring.

 

[Rover_KE]

Not to win?

There's a possibility of them winning, but the implication is that they're facing a better team.

 

[emsr2d2]

I can't see any reason to think that the team in question is unbeaten up to now. For me, the sentence in post #1 simply means that the goalkeeper's saves allowed his team to remain hopeful of winning this specific match.

 

[5jj]

Imagine two teams, Munchester Rovers and Nohope County are playing against each other. MR are clearly the much stronger team but, by fifteen minutes before the final whistle they are winning by only two goals to one. NC are clearly tiring, and their best player has just been sent off; they are now down to ten players. Everybody knows that NC are going to lose badly. Then in the fourteenth and in the tenth minute before the final whistle, MR make two devastating attacks; their leading striker has clear shots at NC's goal. Each time, the NC goalkeeper makes brilliant saves. It gives the NC players and supporters the (faint) hope that they may not lose after all. The game's not over till it's over.