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The Portuguese midfielder came to the rescue for Portugal with a dramatic winner in their World Cup qualifying encounter against the Republic of Ireland, following Caoimhín Kelleher had kept out a penalty from the veteran forward.

Match Overview

Neves found the net during stoppage time to snatch a slender triumph, four years after the star striker 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 left empty-handed, despite restoring a good deal of pride with a gritty display that erased some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing loss in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the loss leaves them facing elimination, with their first three Group F games having yielded only a solitary point. They need to defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any chance of claiming a qualifying spot.

Key Moments

• Kelleher seemed to have earned Ireland a point when he brilliantly saved Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his outstretched foot after a Portuguese player’s effort had hit an Irish defender’s arm.
• The match-winner saved Portugal in the first minute of stoppage time when he headed Trincão’s cross past the Irish goalkeeper.

Other Qualifying Results

Group F

The Hungarian team boosted their chances of qualifying by securing their first win with a two-goal triumph over Armenia, moving above their opponents into the runner-up spot behind the group leaders in the standings. Daniel Lukacs provided Hungary the lead in the first half and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the victory in second-half stoppage time.

England’s Group

Serbia slipped to a narrow loss at home to the Albanian squad, with the result meaning England can now secure their qualification from Group K by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker scored the decisive strike for Albania with a neat volley in first-half added time.

The Latvian side difficulties in Group K persisted as they were held to a two-all tie at home by Andorra. Ian Olivera scored for the away side late on from time to claim them their first point of the qualifying campaign and prolong Latvia’s poor form to five games.

Group E

The Spanish national team continued their impressive Group E run with a comfortable victory over Georgia after strikes from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in Elche. The win continued the European champions’ flawless run in the qualifiers, having notched eleven strikes in three games without letting in a goal.

Despite the unavailability of players such as Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, and Rodri due to fitness issues, Luis de la Fuente’s side demonstrated their superiority against a Georgia team that spent most of the match defending deep. The home side controlled the match with over eighty percent possession, and Georgia did not have one shot on target or generate a clear chance, with only shot-stopper Giorgi Mamardashvili preventing a rout.

The scorer broke the deadlock in the 24th minute from a well-executed set-piece routine, and his compatriot secured the win in the second period with a stunning set-piece after the Georgian keeper had denied a Spanish player’s penalty.

Other Scores

• The Turkish national team returned to winning ways with a comprehensive thrashing over the Bulgarian side to stay close to the group leaders in their section. The Spanish club’s a young talent was among the goal-getters.
• The Italian squad improved their prospects of at least making the knockout stage with a 3-1 win away to Estonia, thanks to goals from Moise Kean, Mateo Retegui, and a third scorer.

The Italian coach said: “We’re not thinking about the group leaders or Israel. We are aware of what we have to do.”

The Azzurri missed out for the last two global tournaments, twice missing out in the playoffs, and the dreaded backdoor route now appears their most likely opportunity after the Norwegian team’s comprehensive hammering over Israel in their qualifying group. The Norwegians are top on eighteen points from six matches. Italy have twelve points with a game in hand on their competitors and are three points ahead of their next opponents. The Estonian squad stay in fourth place on three points. The group winners qualify directly for the tournament, with the second-placed sides going into the qualifying stage.

The Italian national team face Israel on Tuesday, where a win would secure the runner-up position and, while they can still mathematically catch the group leaders on points, the leaders’ much better goal ratio means a qualifying place probably awaits for the Italian squad.