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The Portuguese midfielder saved the day for the Portuguese side with a last-gasp winner in their World Cup qualifying encounter against the Republic of Ireland, following the Irish goalkeeper had kept out a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Game Overview

Neves headed home during injury time to claim a slender victory, several seasons after Ronaldo had bagged a brace late on to defeat a stubborn Irish side.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men looked set to leave Lisbon with a well-earned point, but in the end suffered defeat, despite restoring a significant amount of pride with a battling display that overshadowed some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the loss puts them staring down the barrel, with their first three Group F matches having produced only a single point. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any hope of securing a playoff place.

Key Moments

• The Liverpool keeper looked to have earned Ireland a draw when he superbly saved Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his outstretched foot after Francisco Trincão’s effort had struck an Irish defender’s arm.
• The match-winner came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of added time when he directed a delivery from the wing past Kelleher.

Other Qualifying Results

Group F

Hungary boosted their chances of qualifying by picking up their first win with a two-goal triumph over Armenia, moving above their opponents into second place behind the group leaders in the standings. Daniel Lukacs provided his team the advantage in the first half and a teammate secured the victory in second-half added time.

England’s Group

The Serbian national team slipped to a narrow loss at home to Albania, with the outcome meaning England 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 volley in first-half added time.

Latvia struggles in Group K persisted as they were held to a 2-2 tie at home by the Andorran team. An Andorran player found the net for the visitors late on from time to claim them their first point of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s poor form to five games.

Spain’s Group

Spain maintained their dominant qualifying group run with a 2-0 win over the Georgian side after strikes from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in the match venue. The win continued the title holders’ flawless run in qualifying, 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 fitness issues, Luis de la Fuente’s side showcased their superiority against a Georgian team that passed 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 one shot on target or create a scoring opportunity, with only goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili averting a heavy defeat.

Pino opened the scoring in the 24th minute from a expertly taken set-piece routine, and his compatriot secured the win in the 64th minute with a spectacular set-piece after Mamardashvili had saved a Spanish player’s spot-kick.

Other Scores

• 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. The Spanish club’s Arda Güler was one of the goal-getters.
• The Italian squad boosted their prospects of at least making the qualifying playoffs with a 3-1 win away to Estonia, thanks to strikes from Moise Kean, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

The Italian coach said: “Our focus isn’t on Norway or our next opponents. We know what we have to do.”

The Azzurri missed out for the last two global tournaments, twice falling short in the playoffs, and the dreaded backdoor route now appears their primary chance after the Norwegian team’s comprehensive win over the Israeli side in their qualifying group. Norway are top on 18 points from six matches. The Italians have twelve points with a match less played on their competitors and are three points ahead of their next opponents. Estonia remain fourth on three points. The group winners qualify directly for the tournament, with the runners-up going into the qualifying stage.

Italy face Israel on Tuesday, where a win would secure second spot and, while they can still theoretically catch the group leaders on points, the Norwegians’ far superior goal ratio means a qualifying place probably beckons for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.