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The Portuguese midfielder was the hero for the Portuguese side with a last-gasp winner in their World Cup qualifying encounter against Ireland, following Caoimhín Kelleher had denied a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Game Overview

The Wolves midfielder found the net during stoppage time to claim a narrow win, several seasons after Ronaldo had bagged a brace at the death to defeat a stubborn Ireland team.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a well-earned draw, but in the end suffered defeat, despite restoring a significant amount of honor with a battling display that overshadowed some of the memories of last month’s disappointing defeat in Armenia.

However, the defeat puts them staring down the barrel, with their initial trio of Group F matches having yielded only a single draw. They must defeat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any hope of securing a qualifying spot.

Major Moments

• The Liverpool keeper seemed to have secured Ireland a point when he superbly kept out Ronaldo’s penalty with his outstretched foot after a Portuguese player’s effort had struck Dara O’Shea’s arm.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of added time when he headed a delivery from the wing past Kelleher.

Additional Qualifying Results

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team boosted their chances of advancing by picking up their initial victory with a two-goal victory over the Armenian side, moving above their opponents into the runner-up spot behind the group leaders in Group F. Daniel Lukacs 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 slipped to a 1-0 defeat at home to Albania, with the result meaning the Three Lions can now seal their qualification from their qualifying group by defeating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker scored the decisive strike for Albania with a neat volley in late stoppage time.

Latvia difficulties in Group K continued as they were held to a 2-2 draw at home by the Andorran team. An Andorran player found the net for the visitors 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

The Spanish national team continued their dominant qualifying group campaign with a comfortable victory over Georgia after goals from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in Elche. The win extended the European champions’ perfect run in qualifying, having notched 11 goals in three matches without letting in a goal.

Despite the absence of key figures such as a talented winger, Nico Williams, and Rodri due to injuries, the Spanish squad showcased their superiority against a Georgian team that passed most of the match sitting back. Spain dominated the encounter with more than 80% of the ball, and the visitors did not have one shot on target or generate a scoring opportunity, with only goalkeeper their keeper averting a heavy defeat.

The scorer opened the scoring in the 24th minute from a well-executed dead-ball move, and his compatriot secured the win in the 64th minute with a stunning set-piece after Mamardashvili had saved a Spanish player’s penalty.

Other Results

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a 6-1 victory over the Bulgarian side to stay close to Spain in their section. The Spanish club’s Arda Güler was among the scorers.
• The Italian squad boosted their prospects of at least reaching the knockout stage with a comfortable win away to the Estonian team, 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 our responsibilities.”

Italy missed out for the last two global tournaments, twice missing out in the qualifying rounds, and the feared backdoor route now looks their primary chance after the Norwegian team’s 5-0 win over Israel in Group I. The Norwegians are leading on 18 points from six matches. Italy have twelve points with a match less played on their competitors and are a trio of points ahead of their next opponents. The Estonian squad stay in fourth place on three points. The top teams advance automatically for the World Cup, with the second-placed sides going into the qualifying stage.

The Italian national team host their rivals on Tuesday, where a victory would cement second spot and, while they can still mathematically catch Norway on the table, the leaders’ much better goal difference means a qualifying place probably beckons for the Italian squad.