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The Portuguese midfielder was the hero for Portugal with a last-gasp decisive strike in their World Cup clash against Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had kept out a spot-kick from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Match Overview

Neves found the net during stoppage time to secure a narrow triumph, four years after Ronaldo had bagged a brace late on to overcome a resilient Irish side.

The Irish squad appeared poised to leave Lisbon with a hard-fought point, but in the end left empty-handed, despite regaining a significant amount of pride with a gritty performance that overshadowed some of the memories of last month’s disappointing loss in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the defeat puts them in a difficult position, with their first three qualifying group games having produced only a single point. They need to defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any hope of claiming a playoff spot.

Key Incidents

• 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 shot had struck an Irish defender’s arm.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of added time when he directed Trincão’s cross past the Irish goalkeeper.

Other Group Results

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team enhanced their chances of advancing by securing their initial victory with a two-goal victory over Armenia, moving above their opponents into the runner-up spot behind the group leaders in Group F. Daniel Lukacs provided Hungary the advantage in the opening period and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the points in second-half stoppage time.

Group K

Serbia suffered a 1-0 loss at home to the Albanian squad, with the result meaning the Three Lions can now seal their qualification from Group K by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj scored the decisive strike for Albania with a well-taken shot in first-half added time.

Latvia struggles in their group persisted as they were held to a 2-2 draw at home by Andorra. Ian Olivera scored for the away side late on from time to claim them their initial draw of the qualifying campaign and prolong Latvia’s winless run to five games.

Spain’s Group

Spain continued their impressive qualifying group campaign with a 2-0 win over the Georgian side after strikes from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in the match venue. The result continued the title holders’ flawless run in the qualifiers, having scored 11 goals in three matches without conceding.

In spite of the absence of key figures such as a talented winger, another forward, and Rodri due to fitness issues, Luis de la Fuente’s side demonstrated their dominance against a Georgia team that passed 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 create a scoring opportunity, with only shot-stopper Giorgi Mamardashvili averting a rout.

Pino broke the deadlock in the first half from a expertly taken set-piece move, and his compatriot secured the victory in the 64th minute with a spectacular set-piece after Mamardashvili had denied a Spanish player’s penalty.

Additional Results

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a comprehensive thrashing over the Bulgarian side to keep the pressure on the group leaders in Group E. Real Madrid’s Arda Güler was one of the scorers.
• The Italian squad improved their hopes of at least making the knockout stage with a comfortable victory away to Estonia, thanks to goals from a forward, Mateo Retegui, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “Our focus isn’t on Norway or our next opponents. We are aware of what we have to do.”

The Azzurri failed to qualify for the last two World Cups, twice falling short in the playoffs, and the feared backdoor route now appears their primary opportunity after Norway’s comprehensive win over the Israeli side in Group I. Norway are leading on 18 points from six games. Italy have 12 points with a match less played on their competitors and are a trio of points ahead of Israel. Estonia stay in fourth place on three points. The top teams qualify directly for the tournament, with the second-placed sides going into 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 Norwegians’ far superior goal difference means a playoff spot likely awaits for the Italian squad.