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The Portuguese midfielder came to the rescue for Portugal with a dramatic winning goal in their World Cup qualifying clash against the Republic of Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had saved a penalty from the veteran forward.

Game Summary

Neves headed home during added time to secure a 1-0 win, several seasons after the star striker had scored twice late on to defeat a resilient Ireland team.

The Irish squad appeared poised to leave Lisbon with a well-earned point, but in the end suffered defeat, despite restoring a significant amount of honor with a battling performance that erased some of the recollections of last month’s embarrassing defeat in Armenia.

However, the loss leaves them in a difficult position, with their first three Group F matches having produced only a solitary draw. They need to beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any chance of securing a playoff spot.

Key Moments

• Kelleher looked to have secured Ireland a draw when he brilliantly saved Ronaldo’s penalty with his outstretched foot after Francisco Trincão’s shot had hit an Irish defender’s hand.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of stoppage time when he headed a delivery from the wing past Kelleher.

Additional Group Results

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team boosted their chances of qualifying by securing their initial victory with a two-goal triumph over Armenia, climbing above their rivals into second place behind Portugal in the standings. Daniel Lukacs gave his team the advantage in the opening period and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the victory in late added time.

Group K

Serbia slipped to a narrow defeat at home to Albania, with the result meaning the Three Lions can now secure their qualification from Group K by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker scored the decisive strike for Albania with a well-taken volley in late stoppage time.

The Latvian side struggles in Group K continued as they were forced to a 2-2 draw at home by the Andorran team. Ian Olivera scored for the away side 12 minutes from time to earn them their first point of the qualifying campaign and extend Latvia’s winless run 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 Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in the match venue. The win continued the European champions’ flawless run in the qualifiers, having scored 11 goals in three games without letting in a goal.

Despite the unavailability of key figures such as Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, and Rodri due to injuries, Luis de la Fuente’s side demonstrated their superiority against a Georgia team that spent the majority of the game defending deep. The home side controlled the match with more than 80% of the ball, and the visitors did not have a single attempt on target or create a scoring opportunity, with only shot-stopper Giorgi Mamardashvili averting a rout.

Pino broke the deadlock in the 24th minute from a expertly taken dead-ball routine, and his compatriot wrapped up the victory in the second period with a spectacular free kick after Mamardashvili had saved a Spanish player’s spot-kick.

Additional Results

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a 6-1 victory over Bulgaria to stay close to Spain in their section. The Spanish club’s Arda Güler was among the goal-getters.
• Italy boosted their prospects of at least making the knockout stage with a comfortable victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to strikes from Moise Kean, Mateo Retegui, and a third scorer.

The Italian coach said: “Our focus isn’t on the group leaders or our next opponents. We know our responsibilities.”

Italy failed to qualify for the last two World Cups, on two occasions missing out in the playoffs, and the feared backdoor route now looks their most likely chance after the Norwegian team’s comprehensive hammering over Israel in Group I. The Norwegians are leading on 18 points from six games. Italy have 12 points with a game in hand on their competitors and are three points ahead of their next opponents. The Estonian squad stay fourth on three points. The top teams qualify directly for the World Cup, with the runners-up entering the playoffs.

Italy host Israel on Tuesday, where a win would secure second spot and, while they can still mathematically catch the group leaders on points, the Norwegians’ much better goal difference means a playoff spot probably beckons for the Italian squad.