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The Portuguese midfielder saved the day for Portugal with a last-gasp decisive strike in their World Cup qualifying clash against the Republic of Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had kept out a penalty from the veteran forward.

Match Summary

Neves headed home during injury time to secure a slender triumph, four years after the star striker had scored twice late on to defeat a resilient Ireland team.

The Irish squad looked set to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought draw, but ultimately suffered defeat, despite restoring a significant amount of pride with a gritty display that erased some of the recollections of last month’s disappointing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the loss puts them facing elimination, with their first three Group F games having produced only a solitary draw. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any hope of claiming a qualifying spot.

Major Moments

• Kelleher looked to have secured Ireland a draw when he superbly saved Ronaldo’s penalty with his trailing leg after a Portuguese player’s effort had struck Dara O’Shea’s arm.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the first minute of added time when he directed a delivery from the wing past the Irish goalkeeper.

Other Qualifying Results

Portugal’s Group

Hungary enhanced their hopes of advancing by securing their initial victory with a 2-0 triumph over Armenia, climbing above their opponents into the runner-up spot behind Portugal in the standings. Daniel Lukacs provided Hungary the advantage in the first half and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the points in second-half stoppage time.

Group K

The Serbian national team suffered a 1-0 loss at home to the Albanian squad, with the result meaning the Three Lions can now secure their qualification from Group K by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj netted the decisive strike for his team with a neat volley in first-half stoppage time.

The Latvian side struggles in Group K persisted as they were forced to a 2-2 draw at home by Andorra. Ian Olivera found the net for the visitors late on from time to claim them their initial draw of the qualifying campaign and prolong Latvia’s poor form to several matches.

Spain’s Group

The Spanish national team continued their dominant qualifying group campaign with a comfortable victory over the Georgian side after strikes from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in the match venue. The result extended the European champions’ flawless run in qualifying, having notched 11 goals in three games without conceding.

In spite of the absence of key figures such as a talented winger, another forward, and the midfield anchor due to injuries, the Spanish squad showcased their superiority against a Georgia team that spent the majority of the game sitting back. The home side controlled the encounter with over eighty percent of the ball, and Georgia did not have one shot on target or create a scoring opportunity, with only goalkeeper their keeper preventing a rout.

The scorer opened the scoring in the 24th minute from a well-executed dead-ball routine, and Oyarzabal wrapped up the victory in the 64th minute with a stunning free kick after Mamardashvili had denied Ferran Torres’s spot-kick.

Other Scores

• Turkey bounced back with a 6-1 thrashing over Bulgaria to keep the pressure on Spain in their section. The Spanish club’s a young talent was among the scorers.
• Italy improved their hopes of at least reaching the qualifying playoffs with a comfortable victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to strikes from a forward, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

Gennaro Gattuso said: “We’re not thinking about the group leaders or Israel. We are aware of our responsibilities.”

The Azzurri missed out for the last two World Cups, on two occasions falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the feared playoff path now looks their most likely chance after Norway’s 5-0 win over Israel in Group I. The Norwegians are leading on eighteen points from six matches. The Italians have 12 points with a game in hand on their competitors and are three points ahead of Israel. Estonia stay fourth on three points. The top teams qualify directly for the World Cup, with the second-placed sides going into the playoffs.

The Italian national team face their rivals on Tuesday, where a win would cement the runner-up position and, while they can still mathematically overtake the group leaders on points, the Norwegians’ much better goal ratio means a qualifying place likely beckons for the Italian squad.