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The Portuguese midfielder came to the rescue for the Portuguese side with a dramatic winner in their World Cup clash against Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had saved a spot-kick from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Match Overview

Neves nodded in during stoppage time to claim a slender victory, four years after Ronaldo had bagged a brace at the death to overcome a resilient Irish side.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought point, but in the end left empty-handed, despite restoring a good deal of honor with a battling performance that overshadowed some of the recollections of last month’s embarrassing defeat in Armenia.

However, the defeat leaves them staring down the barrel, with their initial trio of Group F matches having produced only a single draw. They need to defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any chance of securing a qualifying spot.

Key Incidents

• Kelleher looked to have secured Ireland a draw when he superbly kept out Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg after a Portuguese player’s shot had struck an Irish defender’s arm.
• The match-winner saved Portugal in the opening moments of added time when he directed a delivery from the wing past the Irish goalkeeper.

Additional Qualifying Outcomes

Portugal’s Group

Hungary enhanced their hopes of qualifying by securing their initial victory with a two-goal triumph over the Armenian side, climbing above their opponents into second place behind Portugal in Group F. Daniel Lukacs provided Hungary the lead in the opening period and Zsombor Gruber secured the points in late stoppage time.

England’s Group

Serbia suffered a narrow defeat at home to Albania, with the result meaning England can now seal their qualification from Group K by beating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj netted the decisive strike for his team with a neat shot in first-half added time.

Latvia struggles in Group K continued as they were forced to a two-all draw at home by Andorra. An Andorran player scored for the visitors 12 minutes from time to earn them their initial draw of the qualifying campaign and prolong Latvia’s poor form to five games.

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 European champions’ flawless run in the qualifiers, having notched eleven strikes in three matches without letting in a goal.

In spite of the unavailability of key figures such as a talented winger, Nico Williams, and Rodri due to injuries, the Spanish squad demonstrated their dominance against a Georgian team that spent most of the match sitting back. Spain controlled the match with over eighty percent of the ball, and Georgia did not have one shot on target or create a clear chance, with only shot-stopper their keeper averting a rout.

Pino broke the deadlock in the first half from a well-executed dead-ball move, and Oyarzabal secured the victory in the 64th minute with a spectacular set-piece after Mamardashvili had denied Ferran Torres’s penalty.

Other Scores

• Turkey bounced back with a comprehensive thrashing over the Bulgarian side to keep the pressure on the group leaders in Group E. The Spanish club’s a young talent was among the goal-getters.
• Italy improved their hopes of at least making the knockout stage with a comfortable win away to the Estonian team, thanks to strikes from a forward, another attacker, and a third scorer.

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

The Azzurri failed to qualify for the previous two global tournaments, on two occasions 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 12 points with a game in hand on their rivals and are a trio of points clear of Israel. The Estonian squad remain fourth on three points. The group winners qualify directly for the World Cup, with the second-placed sides entering the playoffs.

Italy face their rivals on Tuesday, where a victory would secure second spot and, while they can still theoretically overtake the group leaders on points, the Norwegians’ far superior goal difference means a qualifying place likely awaits for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.