🔗 Share this article

The Portuguese midfielder was the hero for Portugal with a dramatic winning goal in their World Cup encounter against the Republic of Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had saved a spot-kick from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Game Overview

Neves nodded in during injury time to snatch a slender win, four years after the star striker had bagged a brace at the death to defeat a resilient Ireland team.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men looked set to depart the Portuguese capital with a hard-fought draw, but ultimately left empty-handed, despite regaining a significant amount of honor with a battling performance that erased some of the recollections of last month’s disappointing loss in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the loss puts them in a difficult position, with their first three qualifying group matches having yielded only a solitary draw. They need to beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any chance of securing a qualifying spot.

Key Moments

• The Liverpool keeper seemed to have secured Ireland a point when he superbly kept out Ronaldo’s penalty with his trailing leg after Francisco Trincão’s effort had hit an Irish defender’s arm.
• Neves saved Portugal in the opening moments of stoppage time when he directed a delivery from the wing past the Irish goalkeeper.

Additional Group Results

Group F

Hungary boosted their hopes of advancing by picking up their initial victory with a two-goal victory over the Armenian side, climbing above their rivals into the runner-up spot behind the group leaders in the standings. A Hungarian forward provided Hungary the lead in the opening period and a teammate made sure of the victory in second-half added time.

England’s Group

Serbia suffered a 1-0 loss at home to the Albanian squad, with the outcome meaning the Three Lions can now seal their passage from their qualifying group by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker netted the only goal for Albania with a neat shot in late added time.

Latvia struggles in Group K continued as they were held to a 2-2 draw at home by Andorra. An Andorran player scored for the visitors late on from time to earn them their first point of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s poor form to five games.

Group E

The Spanish national team maintained their dominant Group E campaign with a 2-0 victory over the Georgian side after strikes from a Spanish attacker and Mikel Oyarzabal in the match venue. The result extended the European champions’ flawless record in the qualifiers, having scored 11 goals in three games without letting in a goal.

Despite the unavailability of key figures such as Lamine Yamal, another forward, and the midfield anchor due to fitness issues, the Spanish squad demonstrated their dominance against a Georgia team that passed the majority of the game defending deep. Spain dominated the match with over eighty percent possession, and the visitors did not have a single attempt on target or create a scoring opportunity, with only shot-stopper Giorgi Mamardashvili averting a heavy defeat.

Pino opened the scoring in the 24th minute from a expertly taken set-piece move, and his compatriot secured the victory in the 64th minute with a spectacular free kick after the Georgian keeper had saved Ferran Torres’s penalty.

Other Scores

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a comprehensive thrashing over Bulgaria to keep the pressure on the group leaders in their section. Real Madrid’s Arda Güler was one of the scorers.
• Italy boosted their prospects of at least reaching the qualifying playoffs with a 3-1 win away to the Estonian team, thanks to goals from Moise Kean, another attacker, and a third scorer.

The Italian coach said: “Our focus isn’t on the group leaders or our next opponents. We know what we have to do.”

The Azzurri failed to qualify for the previous two World Cups, twice falling short in the playoffs, and the feared playoff path now looks their primary chance after Norway’s 5-0 win over the Israeli side in their qualifying group. Norway are top on eighteen points from six matches. The Italians have 12 points with a match less played on their competitors and are a trio of points clear of Israel. Estonia stay in fourth place on three points. The top teams advance automatically for the tournament, with the runners-up entering the playoffs.

The Italian national team face Israel on Tuesday, where a win would cement second spot and, while they can still theoretically catch Norway on the table, the Norwegians’ much better goal ratio means a playoff spot likely awaits for the Italian squad.