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The Portuguese midfielder was the hero for the Portuguese side with a injury-time winner in their World Cup clash against Ireland, after Caoimhín Kelleher had denied a penalty from the veteran forward.

Match Overview

The Wolves midfielder headed home during added time to snatch a slender triumph, several seasons after Ronaldo had bagged a brace at the death to overcome a stubborn Ireland team.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men looked set to leave Lisbon with a well-earned point, but in the end suffered defeat, despite restoring a good deal of pride with a gritty performance that erased some of the memories of last month’s embarrassing defeat in Armenia.

However, the loss leaves them staring down the barrel, with their first three Group F matches having produced only a solitary point. They need to 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 saved Ronaldo’s penalty with his trailing leg after Francisco Trincão’s effort had struck Dara O’Shea’s hand.
• Neves came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of added time when he directed Trincão’s cross past the Irish goalkeeper.

Other Qualifying Results

Portugal’s Group

The Hungarian team enhanced their chances of qualifying by picking up their first win with a 2-0 victory over Armenia, climbing above their rivals into the runner-up spot behind Portugal in the standings. A Hungarian forward gave Hungary the advantage in the first half and Zsombor Gruber made sure of the victory in second-half added time.

England’s Group

The Serbian national team slipped to a narrow defeat at home to the Albanian squad, with the result meaning England can now seal their passage from their qualifying group by beating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker scored the only goal for his team with a well-taken volley in late added time.

Latvia struggles in their group continued as they were forced to a 2-2 draw at home by the Andorran team. Ian Olivera 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 several matches.

Spain’s Group

The Spanish national team continued their dominant qualifying group run with a 2-0 victory over the Georgian side after strikes from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in Elche. The win extended the European champions’ flawless record in the qualifiers, having notched 11 goals in three games without letting in a goal.

Despite the absence of key figures such as Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, and Rodri due to fitness issues, Luis de la Fuente’s side showcased their dominance against a Georgia team that spent the majority of the game sitting back. The home side controlled 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 shot-stopper their keeper preventing a rout.

The scorer opened the scoring in the first half from a expertly taken set-piece move, and his compatriot secured the win in the second period with a spectacular set-piece after the Georgian keeper had denied a Spanish player’s spot-kick.

Other Scores

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a 6-1 thrashing over the Bulgarian side to keep the pressure on the group leaders in their section. The Spanish club’s a young talent was among the goal-getters.
• The Italian squad boosted their prospects of at least reaching the knockout stage with a comfortable victory away to the Estonian team, thanks to strikes from a forward, Mateo Retegui, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “We’re not thinking about the group leaders or Israel. We know our responsibilities.”

Italy missed out for the previous two World Cups, on two occasions falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the feared backdoor route now looks their most likely chance after Norway’s 5-0 hammering over Israel in Group I. 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 three points ahead of Israel. Estonia stay in fourth place on three points. The group winners qualify directly for the tournament, with the second-placed sides entering the playoffs.

The Italian national team face their rivals on Tuesday, where a victory would secure the runner-up position and, while they can still mathematically overtake Norway on the table, the Norwegians’ much better goal difference means a qualifying place likely awaits for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.