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The Portuguese midfielder saved the day for the Portuguese side with a dramatic winning goal in their World Cup clash against the Republic of Ireland, following the Irish goalkeeper had saved a penalty from the veteran forward.

Match Summary

Neves found the net during stoppage time to claim a narrow win, four years after Ronaldo had bagged a brace late on to defeat a resilient Ireland team.

The Irish squad appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a well-earned draw, but in the end suffered defeat, despite restoring a good deal of honor with a battling display that erased some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing defeat in Armenia.

However, the loss puts them facing elimination, with their initial trio of qualifying group games having produced only a single point. They need to beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any chance of securing a qualifying place.

Major Moments

• The Liverpool keeper looked to have secured Ireland a point when he brilliantly saved Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his outstretched foot after a Portuguese player’s shot had hit an Irish defender’s arm.
• The match-winner saved Portugal in the first minute of added time when he headed a delivery from the wing past Kelleher.

Other Group Results

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team boosted their chances of qualifying by securing their first win with a two-goal victory over the Armenian side, moving above their rivals into second place behind the group leaders in the standings. A Hungarian forward provided his team the lead in the first half and a teammate made sure of the points in second-half added time.

England’s Group

The Serbian national team slipped to a 1-0 loss at home to Albania, with the result meaning England can now seal their passage from Group K by beating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker scored the decisive strike for Albania with a well-taken volley in first-half stoppage time.

The Latvian side difficulties in their group persisted as they were held to a two-all tie at home by the Andorran team. Ian Olivera scored for the away side 12 minutes from time to claim them their first point of the qualifying campaign and extend Latvia’s poor form to five games.

Group E

Spain maintained their dominant qualifying group campaign with a comfortable victory over the Georgian side after goals from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in Elche. The win extended the title holders’ flawless run in the qualifiers, having notched 11 goals in three games without conceding.

Despite the absence of key figures such as Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, and Rodri due to injuries, Luis de la Fuente’s side showcased their superiority against a Georgia team that passed most of the match sitting back. The home side dominated the encounter with more than 80% of the ball, and Georgia did not have one shot on target or generate a scoring opportunity, with only shot-stopper Giorgi Mamardashvili preventing a rout.

Pino opened the scoring in the 24th minute from a well-executed dead-ball routine, and Oyarzabal wrapped up the win in the 64th minute with a stunning free kick after Mamardashvili had denied a Spanish player’s penalty.

Additional Scores

• Turkey bounced back with a comprehensive thrashing over the Bulgarian side to keep the pressure on the group leaders in Group E. Real Madrid’s a young talent was among the scorers.
• The Italian squad improved their prospects of at least reaching the knockout stage with a 3-1 victory away to Estonia, thanks to goals from a forward, Mateo Retegui, and a third scorer.

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

The Azzurri missed out for the previous two World Cups, twice missing out in the qualifying rounds, and the feared backdoor route now looks their primary opportunity after Norway’s 5-0 hammering over the Israeli side in their qualifying group. Norway are top on 18 points from six games. Italy have 12 points with a match less played on their rivals and are three points ahead of Israel. Estonia stay in fourth place on three points. The top teams qualify directly for the tournament, with the runners-up entering the playoffs.

Italy host Israel on Tuesday, where a victory would cement the runner-up position and, while they can still mathematically catch the group leaders on the table, the Norwegians’ much better goal difference means a playoff spot likely beckons for the Italian squad.