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The Portuguese midfielder saved the day for Portugal with a last-gasp winner in their World Cup qualifying match against the Republic of Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had denied a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Game Overview

Neves nodded in during added time to snatch a 1-0 victory, several seasons after the star striker had scored twice late on to overcome a stubborn Irish side.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought draw, but ultimately suffered defeat, despite restoring a significant amount of pride with a battling performance that erased 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 qualifying group games having produced only a solitary point. They need to defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any hope of securing a qualifying spot.

Major Incidents

• The Liverpool keeper looked to have earned Ireland a point when he brilliantly kept out Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg after Francisco Trincão’s shot had struck Dara O’Shea’s arm.
• The match-winner came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of stoppage time when he directed a delivery from the wing past the Irish goalkeeper.

Other Group Results

Group F

Hungary enhanced their hopes of qualifying by securing their initial victory with a 2-0 triumph over Armenia, moving above their opponents into the runner-up spot behind the group leaders in Group F. A Hungarian forward gave his team the lead in the opening period and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the points in late added time.

England’s Group

Serbia slipped to a narrow loss at home to the Albanian squad, with the outcome meaning England can now seal their passage from their qualifying group by beating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj scored the only goal for Albania with a well-taken shot in first-half added time.

The Latvian side difficulties in Group K persisted as they were forced to a two-all tie at home by the Andorran team. Ian Olivera found the net for the visitors late on from time to earn them their first point of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s poor form to several matches.

Group E

Spain maintained their dominant 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 win extended the title holders’ flawless record in qualifying, having notched 11 goals in three matches without letting in a goal.

Despite the unavailability of key figures such as a talented winger, another forward, and the midfield anchor due to fitness issues, the Spanish squad demonstrated their superiority against a Georgian team that spent most of the match defending deep. The home side dominated the encounter with more than 80% possession, and Georgia did not have a single attempt on target or generate a clear chance, with only goalkeeper their keeper averting a rout.

Pino opened the scoring in the first half from a well-executed dead-ball move, and his compatriot wrapped up the victory in the 64th minute with a stunning free kick after Mamardashvili had saved a Spanish player’s spot-kick.

Other Results

• The Turkish national team returned to winning ways with a 6-1 thrashing over Bulgaria to stay close to the group leaders in Group E. Real Madrid’s a young talent was among the goal-getters.
• Italy improved their prospects of at least making the qualifying playoffs with a 3-1 win away to the Estonian team, thanks to goals from a forward, another attacker, and a third scorer.

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

The Azzurri missed out for the previous two global tournaments, twice falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded playoff path now appears their primary chance after the Norwegian team’s comprehensive win over the Israeli side in Group I. The Norwegians are leading on 18 points from six games. The Italians have twelve points with a game in hand on their competitors and are a trio of points clear of Israel. The Estonian squad stay fourth on three points. The top teams advance automatically for the tournament, with the runners-up entering the qualifying stage.

Italy face Israel on Tuesday, where a victory would secure second spot and, while they can still theoretically catch Norway on the table, the Norwegians’ much better goal difference means a playoff spot probably awaits for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.