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The Portuguese midfielder saved the day for Portugal with a injury-time decisive strike in their World Cup clash against the Republic of Ireland, following the Irish goalkeeper had denied a penalty from the veteran forward.

Match Summary

Neves headed home during injury time to snatch a narrow win, several seasons after Ronaldo had bagged a brace at the death to defeat a resilient Irish side.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought draw, but ultimately left empty-handed, despite regaining a significant amount of pride with a gritty display that erased some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing loss in Armenia.

However, the defeat leaves them staring down the barrel, with their first three qualifying group games having yielded only a solitary point. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any hope of claiming a qualifying spot.

Major Incidents

• Kelleher looked to have secured Ireland a point when he superbly kept out Ronaldo’s penalty with his outstretched foot after Francisco Trincão’s effort had struck an Irish defender’s hand.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of added time when he headed a delivery from the wing past Kelleher.

Additional Group Outcomes

Group F

The Hungarian team enhanced their hopes of advancing by picking up their initial victory with a 2-0 victory over Armenia, climbing above their rivals into the runner-up spot behind Portugal in the standings. A Hungarian forward gave Hungary the lead in the first half and a teammate secured the points in second-half stoppage time.

Group K

Serbia suffered a 1-0 defeat at home to the Albanian squad, with the result meaning England can now seal their passage from Group K by beating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj scored the only goal for his team with a neat shot in late added time.

The Latvian side difficulties in their group persisted as they were held to a two-all draw at home by the Andorran team. Ian Olivera scored for the visitors 12 minutes from time to earn them their first point of the qualifying campaign and extend Latvia’s poor form to five games.

Spain’s Group

Spain maintained their impressive qualifying group run with a 2-0 victory over Georgia after goals from a Spanish attacker and Mikel Oyarzabal in the match venue. The win continued the title holders’ flawless record in qualifying, having notched 11 goals in three matches without letting in a goal.

In spite of the absence of players such as Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, and the midfield anchor due to fitness issues, the Spanish squad showcased their dominance against a Georgian team that spent most of the match defending deep. The home side dominated the match with more than 80% of the ball, and Georgia did not have a single attempt on target or generate a clear chance, with only goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili preventing a heavy defeat.

The scorer broke the deadlock in the first half from a expertly taken dead-ball routine, and Oyarzabal wrapped up the win in the 64th minute with a spectacular free kick after the Georgian keeper had denied Ferran Torres’s spot-kick.

Additional Scores

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a 6-1 victory over Bulgaria to stay close to Spain in Group E. Real Madrid’s Arda Güler was among the goal-getters.
• The Italian squad improved their prospects of at least reaching the qualifying playoffs with a 3-1 win away to Estonia, thanks to strikes from a forward, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

The Italian coach commented: “We’re not thinking about Norway or our next opponents. We are aware of what we have to do.”

Italy failed to qualify for the previous two global tournaments, on two occasions falling short in the playoffs, and the dreaded playoff path now looks their most likely chance after the Norwegian team’s comprehensive win over Israel in their qualifying group. The Norwegians are leading on eighteen points from six matches. The Italians have 12 points with a match less played on their rivals and are a trio of points clear of Israel. Estonia remain fourth on three points. The group winners qualify directly for the tournament, with the second-placed sides entering the playoffs.

Italy host their rivals on Tuesday, where a win would secure second spot and, while they can still mathematically overtake Norway on points, the Norwegians’ far superior goal difference means a playoff spot likely awaits for the Italian squad.