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The Portuguese midfielder saved the day for the Portuguese side with a dramatic winning goal in their World Cup qualifying match against the Republic of Ireland, following the Irish goalkeeper had denied a penalty from the veteran forward.

Match Summary

Neves nodded in during injury time to snatch a 1-0 win, four years after the star striker had scored twice at the death to defeat a stubborn Irish side.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a well-earned point, but ultimately suffered defeat, despite restoring a good deal of honor with a gritty performance that overshadowed some of the recollections of last month’s embarrassing defeat in Armenia.

However, the loss leaves them facing elimination, with their first three qualifying group matches having produced only a solitary point. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any hope of securing a qualifying spot.

Key Moments

• The Liverpool keeper looked to have earned Ireland a draw when he brilliantly saved Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his outstretched foot after Francisco Trincão’s shot had hit an Irish defender’s hand.
• The match-winner saved Portugal in the opening moments of stoppage time when he headed a delivery from the wing past the Irish goalkeeper.

Additional Qualifying Outcomes

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team enhanced their hopes of qualifying by picking up their first win with a two-goal triumph over the Armenian side, moving above their opponents into second place behind the group leaders in the standings. Daniel Lukacs provided Hungary the advantage in the first half and Zsombor Gruber secured the victory in second-half added time.

England’s Group

Serbia suffered a 1-0 defeat at home to Albania, with the outcome meaning the Three Lions can now secure their passage from their qualifying group by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj netted the only goal for his team with a well-taken shot in first-half stoppage time.

The Latvian side struggles in their group continued as they were forced to a two-all draw at home by Andorra. Ian Olivera scored for the visitors 12 minutes from time to claim them their first point of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s poor form to several matches.

Group E

Spain continued their impressive Group E run with a 2-0 win over the Georgian side after strikes from a Spanish attacker and Mikel Oyarzabal in Elche. The result extended the title holders’ perfect run in qualifying, having scored eleven strikes in three games without letting in a goal.

In spite of the unavailability of key figures such as Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, and the midfield anchor due to injuries, the Spanish squad demonstrated their dominance against a Georgia team that spent most of the match sitting back. Spain dominated the encounter with more than 80% possession, and the visitors did not have one shot on target or generate a scoring opportunity, with only shot-stopper their keeper averting a rout.

The scorer opened the scoring in the 24th minute from a expertly taken set-piece move, and Oyarzabal wrapped up the win in the second period with a spectacular free kick after Mamardashvili had denied Ferran Torres’s penalty.

Additional Scores

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a 6-1 thrashing over the Bulgarian side to stay close to Spain in their section. Real Madrid’s Arda Güler was among the scorers.
• Italy boosted their hopes of at least reaching the knockout stage with a 3-1 win away to the Estonian team, thanks to strikes from Moise Kean, another attacker, and a third scorer.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “Our focus isn’t on Norway or Israel. We are aware of our responsibilities.”

Italy missed out for the last two World Cups, twice missing out in the playoffs, and the feared playoff path now looks their primary opportunity after the Norwegian team’s comprehensive win over the Israeli side in Group I. The Norwegians are leading on 18 points from six games. Italy have twelve points with a match less played on their rivals and are three points ahead of Israel. Estonia remain in fourth place on three points. The group winners advance automatically for the tournament, with the runners-up going into the qualifying stage.

Italy host Israel on Tuesday, where a victory would cement the runner-up position and, while they can still mathematically catch Norway on points, the leaders’ far superior goal ratio means a playoff spot probably awaits for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.