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The Portuguese midfielder was the hero for the Portuguese side with a last-gasp decisive strike in their World Cup qualifying encounter against the Republic of Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had denied a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Match Summary

The Wolves midfielder found the net during injury time to snatch a slender triumph, four years after Ronaldo had bagged a brace at the death to defeat a stubborn Irish side.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a well-earned point, but ultimately left empty-handed, despite regaining a significant amount of pride with a battling display that erased some of the memories of last month’s disappointing loss in Armenia.

However, the loss puts them staring down the barrel, with their initial trio of qualifying group matches having produced only a solitary draw. They must beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any hope of securing a playoff spot.

Key Incidents

• The Liverpool keeper seemed to have secured Ireland a draw when he brilliantly kept out Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg after a Portuguese player’s effort had struck Dara O’Shea’s arm.
• Neves saved Portugal in the first minute of stoppage time when he headed Trincão’s cross past the Irish goalkeeper.

Other Group Results

Portugal’s Group

Hungary enhanced their chances of qualifying by securing their initial victory with a two-goal triumph over Armenia, climbing above their rivals into the runner-up spot behind the group leaders in Group F. A Hungarian forward provided his team the advantage in the opening period and a teammate secured the points in second-half stoppage time.

England’s Group

The Serbian national team 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 beating Latvia on Tuesday. Rey Manaj scored the only goal for his team with a neat shot in late stoppage time.

The Latvian side difficulties in their group continued as they were forced to a two-all draw at home by Andorra. Ian Olivera scored for the away side 12 minutes from time to earn them their initial draw of the qualifiers and prolong Latvia’s poor form to several matches.

Spain’s Group

Spain maintained their dominant Group E campaign with a comfortable victory over Georgia after strikes from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in Elche. The result extended the title holders’ flawless record in the qualifiers, having scored 11 goals in three matches without conceding.

Despite the absence of key figures such as a talented winger, another forward, and the midfield anchor due to injuries, the Spanish squad demonstrated their superiority against a Georgian team that spent most of the match sitting back. Spain dominated the encounter with more than 80% possession, and the visitors did not have a single attempt on target or generate a clear chance, with only goalkeeper their keeper averting a rout.

The scorer broke the deadlock in the 24th minute from a well-executed set-piece move, and his compatriot secured the victory in the 64th minute with a stunning free kick after the Georgian keeper had saved a Spanish player’s penalty.

Other Results

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a comprehensive thrashing over the Bulgarian side to stay close to Spain in Group E. Real Madrid’s a young talent was among the scorers.
• Italy improved their prospects of at least reaching the qualifying playoffs with a comfortable victory away to Estonia, thanks to goals from a forward, another attacker, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

Gennaro Gattuso said: “Our focus isn’t on Norway or our next opponents. We know what we have to do.”

Italy failed to qualify for the last two World Cups, twice falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded backdoor route now looks their most likely opportunity after Norway’s comprehensive win over the Israeli side in their qualifying group. The Norwegians are leading on eighteen points from six matches. The Italians have twelve points with a game in hand on their rivals and are a trio of points clear of Israel. Estonia remain in fourth place on three points. The group winners advance automatically for the tournament, with the second-placed sides entering the playoffs.

The Italian national team host their rivals on Tuesday, where a win would cement the runner-up position and, while they can still mathematically catch the group leaders on points, the leaders’ much better goal difference means a playoff spot probably awaits for the Italian squad.