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The Portuguese midfielder saved the day for the Portuguese side with a injury-time winner in their World Cup qualifying encounter against Ireland, after Caoimhín Kelleher had denied a spot-kick from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Match Overview

The Wolves midfielder headed home during injury time to claim a narrow victory, four years after the star striker had scored twice late on to overcome a stubborn Ireland team.

The Irish squad looked set to depart the Portuguese capital with a well-earned point, but in the end suffered defeat, despite regaining a significant amount of pride with a gritty performance that overshadowed some of the recollections of last month’s disappointing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the defeat puts them in a difficult position, with their first three Group F games having yielded only a single point. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any hope of claiming a playoff spot.

Key Incidents

• The Liverpool keeper looked to have earned Ireland a draw when he brilliantly kept out Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg after Francisco Trincão’s shot had hit an Irish defender’s hand.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of added time when he headed Trincão’s cross past the Irish goalkeeper.

Additional Qualifying Results

Group F

Hungary boosted their hopes of advancing by securing their initial victory with a two-goal victory 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 first half and a teammate made sure of the points in second-half stoppage time.

Group K

The Serbian national team slipped to a narrow loss at home to the Albanian squad, with the outcome meaning the Three Lions can now secure their qualification from their qualifying group by beating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj scored the decisive strike for his team with a neat shot in late added time.

The Latvian side difficulties in Group K continued as they were held to a 2-2 draw at home by Andorra. Ian Olivera found the net for the away side late on from time to earn them their initial draw of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s winless run to five games.

Group E

The Spanish national team maintained their dominant qualifying group campaign with a comfortable victory over the Georgian side after strikes from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in the match venue. The result continued the European champions’ flawless record in the qualifiers, having scored 11 goals in three matches without letting in a goal.

In spite of the unavailability of players such as Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, and Rodri due to injuries, the Spanish squad showcased their dominance against a Georgian team that passed the majority of the game defending deep. The home side dominated the match with over eighty percent of the ball, and Georgia did not have one shot on target or create a scoring opportunity, with only shot-stopper their keeper preventing a rout.

The scorer opened the scoring in the 24th minute from a expertly taken dead-ball routine, and his compatriot secured the win in the 64th minute with a spectacular set-piece after Mamardashvili had saved a Spanish player’s spot-kick.

Additional Results

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a 6-1 thrashing over Bulgaria to stay close to the group leaders in their section. The Spanish club’s a young talent was among the goal-getters.
• Italy improved their prospects of at least reaching the knockout stage with a 3-1 victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to goals from a forward, Mateo Retegui, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

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, on two occasions missing out in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded playoff path now looks their primary chance after Norway’s comprehensive hammering over the Israeli side in Group I. Norway are top on 18 points from six games. The Italians have 12 points with a match less played on their rivals and are a trio of points clear of Israel. Estonia remain fourth on three points. The group winners qualify directly for the tournament, with the runners-up going into the qualifying stage.

The Italian national team face Israel on Tuesday, where a victory would cement the runner-up position and, while they can still mathematically overtake the group leaders on the table, the leaders’ far superior goal ratio means a qualifying place probably awaits for the Italian squad.