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The Portuguese midfielder came to the rescue for Portugal with a last-gasp winner in their World Cup qualifying encounter against the Republic of Ireland, following Caoimhín Kelleher had kept out a penalty from the veteran forward.

Match Summary

Neves nodded in during added time to snatch a 1-0 victory, four years after Ronaldo had scored twice late on to overcome a stubborn Irish side.

The Irish squad appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a well-earned draw, but in the end left empty-handed, despite regaining a significant amount of honor with a gritty performance that erased some of the recollections of last month’s disappointing defeat in Armenia.

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

Key Moments

• Kelleher seemed to have earned Ireland a draw when he brilliantly saved Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his outstretched foot after a Portuguese player’s effort had struck an Irish defender’s hand.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of stoppage time when he directed a delivery from the wing past Kelleher.

Additional Group Results

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team enhanced their chances of qualifying by picking up their first win with a 2-0 victory over the Armenian side, climbing above their opponents into the runner-up spot behind the group leaders in the standings. A Hungarian forward gave his team the advantage in the first half and a teammate made sure of the points in late added time.

England’s Group

The Serbian national team suffered a 1-0 loss at home to the Albanian squad, with the result meaning the Three Lions can now seal their passage from Group K by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker netted the only goal for his team with a neat volley in first-half added time.

The Latvian side difficulties in Group K continued as they were held to a 2-2 tie at home by the Andorran team. Ian Olivera found the net for the visitors 12 minutes from time to claim them their first point of the qualifying campaign and prolong Latvia’s winless run to five games.

Spain’s Group

Spain maintained their impressive Group E campaign with a comfortable victory over Georgia after goals from a Spanish attacker and his teammate in Elche. The win continued the title holders’ perfect run in the qualifiers, having scored eleven strikes in three matches without conceding.

Despite the unavailability of players such as Lamine Yamal, another forward, and Rodri due to fitness issues, Luis de la Fuente’s side showcased their dominance against a Georgia team that passed the majority of the game sitting back. The home side dominated the encounter with over eighty percent of the ball, and Georgia did not have a single attempt on target or generate a clear chance, with only goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili preventing a rout.

The scorer opened the scoring in the first half from a well-executed dead-ball move, and Oyarzabal secured the win in the second period with a stunning set-piece after Mamardashvili had saved Ferran Torres’s spot-kick.

Additional Results

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a 6-1 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.
• Italy boosted their hopes of at least making the qualifying playoffs with a 3-1 victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to goals from Moise Kean, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “We’re not thinking about the group leaders or our next opponents. We know what we have to do.”

The Azzurri failed to qualify for the last two global tournaments, on two occasions missing out in the qualifying rounds, and the feared playoff path now looks their primary opportunity after the Norwegian team’s 5-0 win over Israel in their qualifying group. The Norwegians are leading on eighteen points from six matches. The Italians have 12 points with a game in hand on their rivals and are three points clear of Israel. The Estonian squad stay fourth on three points. The group winners advance automatically for the World Cup, with the second-placed sides entering the playoffs.

The Italian national team face their rivals on Tuesday, where a victory would cement the runner-up position and, while they can still mathematically catch the group leaders on points, the Norwegians’ much better goal ratio means a qualifying place probably awaits for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.