🔗 Share this article

The Portuguese midfielder was the hero for Portugal with a injury-time decisive strike in their World Cup qualifying encounter against Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had kept out a spot-kick from the veteran forward.

Match Overview

Neves nodded in during added time to snatch a narrow win, several seasons after the star striker had scored twice late on to defeat a resilient Irish side.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men appeared poised to leave Lisbon with a well-earned point, but in the end left empty-handed, despite regaining a good deal of honor with a gritty display that overshadowed some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing defeat in Armenia.

However, the loss puts them facing elimination, with their initial trio of Group F matches having yielded only a solitary draw. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to maintain any chance of claiming a playoff place.

Key Incidents

• Kelleher looked to have secured Ireland a draw when he superbly saved Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg 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 added time when he directed a delivery from the wing past the Irish goalkeeper.

Additional Group Outcomes

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team enhanced their hopes of qualifying by picking up their initial victory with a two-goal triumph over Armenia, climbing above their opponents into the runner-up spot behind the group leaders in Group F. A Hungarian forward gave Hungary the lead in the opening period and a teammate made sure of the victory in second-half stoppage time.

England’s Group

Serbia slipped to a narrow defeat at home to the Albanian squad, with the outcome 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 neat shot in late stoppage 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 scored for the away side 12 minutes from time to earn them their initial draw of the qualifying campaign and prolong Latvia’s poor form to five games.

Group E

The Spanish national team continued their dominant Group E run with a comfortable win over the Georgian side after goals from a Spanish attacker and his teammate in Elche. The result continued the European champions’ flawless run in the qualifiers, having notched 11 goals in three matches without letting in a goal.

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 dominance against a Georgian team that passed most of the match sitting back. The home side controlled the match with over eighty percent possession, and the visitors 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 24th minute from a well-executed set-piece routine, and his compatriot secured the victory in the 64th minute with a spectacular free kick after Mamardashvili had denied Ferran Torres’s spot-kick.

Additional Results

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a comprehensive victory over Bulgaria to stay close to Spain in their section. Real Madrid’s Arda Güler was among the scorers.
• The Italian squad boosted their prospects of at least reaching the qualifying playoffs with a comfortable victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to goals from Moise Kean, Mateo Retegui, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

The Italian coach said: “Our focus isn’t on Norway or Israel. We know our responsibilities.”

The Azzurri failed to qualify for the previous two global tournaments, on two occasions falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the feared playoff path now appears their most likely opportunity after Norway’s comprehensive hammering over the Israeli side in their qualifying group. The Norwegians are top on eighteen points from six games. The Italians have 12 points with a game in hand on their rivals and are a trio of points clear of their next opponents. The Estonian squad remain fourth on three points. The top teams qualify directly for the World Cup, with the runners-up going into the playoffs.

The Italian national team host Israel 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 probably beckons for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.