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The Portuguese midfielder came to the rescue for the Portuguese side with a dramatic winner in their World Cup qualifying clash against the Republic of Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had kept out a spot-kick from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Game Overview

Neves nodded in during injury time to claim a 1-0 win, four years after Ronaldo had bagged a brace at the death to overcome a stubborn Ireland team.

The Irish squad looked set to depart the Portuguese capital with a well-earned draw, but in the end suffered defeat, despite regaining a significant amount of pride with a battling display that overshadowed some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing loss in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the defeat leaves them staring down the barrel, with their first three Group F matches having produced only a single draw. They need to defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any hope of claiming a qualifying place.

Key Incidents

• The Liverpool keeper seemed to have secured Ireland a draw when he brilliantly kept out Ronaldo’s penalty with his outstretched foot after a Portuguese player’s shot had struck an Irish defender’s hand.
• The match-winner saved Portugal in the first minute of stoppage time when he directed a delivery from the wing past Kelleher.

Additional Group Outcomes

Group F

The Hungarian team boosted their chances of qualifying by securing their initial victory with a 2-0 victory over Armenia, climbing above their opponents into the runner-up spot behind Portugal in the standings. A Hungarian forward provided Hungary the advantage in the opening period and a teammate made sure of the points in late stoppage time.

Group K

Serbia slipped to a narrow defeat at home to Albania, with the result meaning England can now seal their passage from their qualifying group by beating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj scored the only goal for his team with a well-taken volley in late added time.

The Latvian side difficulties in their group persisted as they were forced to a two-all draw at home by Andorra. An Andorran player scored for the visitors 12 minutes from time to claim them their first point of the qualifiers and prolong Latvia’s poor form to several matches.

Group E

The Spanish national team maintained their impressive qualifying group campaign with a 2-0 victory over Georgia after goals from a Spanish attacker and Mikel Oyarzabal in Elche. The result extended the title holders’ flawless run in qualifying, having scored 11 goals in three games without conceding.

Despite the unavailability of players such as Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, and the midfield anchor due to injuries, the Spanish squad demonstrated their dominance against a Georgian team that passed most of the match sitting back. Spain dominated the match with more than 80% of the ball, and the visitors did not have one shot on target or generate a scoring opportunity, with only goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili preventing a heavy defeat.

The scorer broke the deadlock in the first half from a well-executed dead-ball routine, and Oyarzabal wrapped up the win in the 64th minute with a spectacular set-piece after Mamardashvili had denied a Spanish player’s penalty.

Other Results

• The Turkish national team returned to winning ways with a 6-1 victory over Bulgaria to stay close to the group leaders in their section. Real Madrid’s a young talent was one of the scorers.
• Italy improved their hopes of at least reaching the qualifying playoffs with a comfortable win away to the Estonian team, thanks to strikes from a forward, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “Our focus isn’t on the group leaders or Israel. We are aware of what we have to do.”

The Azzurri missed out for the last two global tournaments, on two occasions falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded playoff path now appears their most likely chance after Norway’s comprehensive hammering over the Israeli side in Group I. The Norwegians are leading on eighteen points from six matches. Italy have twelve points with a match less played on their rivals and are a trio of points ahead of Israel. Estonia remain fourth on three points. The top teams qualify directly for the tournament, with the runners-up entering the playoffs.

The Italian national team face their rivals on Tuesday, where a win would cement second spot and, while they can still mathematically catch Norway on the table, the leaders’ far superior goal difference means a qualifying place probably awaits for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.