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The Portuguese midfielder came to the rescue for the Portuguese side with a injury-time winning goal in their World Cup qualifying encounter against the Republic of Ireland, following the Irish goalkeeper had kept out a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Game Summary

Neves found the net during injury time to claim a 1-0 triumph, 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 in the end left empty-handed, despite regaining a significant amount of pride with a gritty display that erased some of the memories of last month’s disappointing defeat in Armenia.

However, the defeat leaves them staring down the barrel, with their initial trio of qualifying group matches having produced only a solitary point. They need to beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any chance of claiming a playoff place.

Key Moments

• The Liverpool keeper seemed to have secured Ireland a draw when he superbly kept out Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his outstretched foot after a Portuguese player’s effort had struck an Irish defender’s arm.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of stoppage time when he directed Trincão’s cross past the Irish goalkeeper.

Additional Group Results

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team boosted their chances of qualifying by securing their initial victory with a 2-0 triumph over Armenia, moving above their rivals into second place behind Portugal in the standings. A Hungarian forward provided Hungary the lead in the first half and a teammate made sure of the points in second-half added time.

Group K

The Serbian national team slipped to a 1-0 defeat at home to the Albanian squad, with the result meaning England can now secure their qualification from Group K by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker scored the only goal for his team with a well-taken shot in first-half added time.

Latvia difficulties in their group continued as they were forced to a 2-2 tie at home by the Andorran team. Ian Olivera found the net for the visitors 12 minutes from time to earn them their first point of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s winless run to several matches.

Group E

Spain maintained their impressive qualifying group campaign with a 2-0 victory over the Georgian side after strikes from a Spanish attacker and Mikel Oyarzabal in the match venue. The win continued the title holders’ perfect run in the qualifiers, having scored eleven strikes in three games without conceding.

In spite of the unavailability of key figures such as Lamine Yamal, another forward, and Rodri due to injuries, Luis de la Fuente’s side showcased their superiority against a Georgia team that passed most of the match defending deep. The home side dominated the encounter with over eighty percent of the ball, and the visitors did not have one shot on target or create a scoring opportunity, with only goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili preventing a heavy defeat.

Pino opened the scoring in the 24th minute from a expertly taken dead-ball routine, and Oyarzabal wrapped up the victory in the second period with a spectacular set-piece after the Georgian keeper had denied Ferran Torres’s penalty.

Additional Scores

• The Turkish national team returned to winning ways with a 6-1 thrashing over Bulgaria to stay close to Spain in their section. The Spanish club’s Arda Güler was among the goal-getters.
• The Italian squad boosted their hopes of at least reaching the knockout stage with a 3-1 win away to the Estonian team, thanks to goals from a forward, Mateo Retegui, and a third scorer.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “Our focus isn’t on the group leaders or Israel. We know what we have to do.”

The Azzurri failed to qualify for the previous two global tournaments, twice missing out in the playoffs, and the dreaded backdoor route now looks their most likely opportunity after Norway’s comprehensive win over Israel in their qualifying group. The Norwegians are top on eighteen points from six matches. The Italians have 12 points with a match less played on their rivals and are three points clear of their next opponents. Estonia remain fourth on three points. The top teams advance automatically for the World Cup, with the second-placed sides entering the qualifying stage.

The Italian national team host Israel on Tuesday, where a victory would secure the runner-up position and, while they can still theoretically catch Norway on points, the leaders’ far superior goal ratio means a qualifying place probably beckons for the Italian squad.