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The Portuguese midfielder was the hero for the Portuguese side with a injury-time winning goal in their World Cup qualifying encounter against Ireland, after the Irish goalkeeper had denied a spot-kick from the veteran forward.

Game Overview

The Wolves midfielder nodded in during stoppage time to secure a 1-0 win, several seasons after the star striker had bagged a brace late on to defeat a resilient Ireland team.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men looked set to depart the Portuguese capital with a well-earned draw, but in the end left empty-handed, despite regaining a good deal of pride with a gritty display that overshadowed some of the recollections of last month’s disappointing defeat in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the defeat puts them facing elimination, with their first three Group F matches having produced only a single draw. They need to beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any hope of claiming a qualifying spot.

Major Moments

• The Liverpool keeper seemed to have secured Ireland a draw when he brilliantly saved Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his outstretched foot after Francisco Trincão’s shot had struck Dara O’Shea’s hand.
• Neves saved Portugal in the opening moments of stoppage time when he directed a delivery from the wing past the Irish goalkeeper.

Additional Group Results

Group F

Hungary enhanced their hopes of qualifying by securing their first win with a two-goal triumph over Armenia, climbing above their opponents into second place behind Portugal in Group F. Daniel Lukacs gave Hungary the advantage in the opening period and a teammate made sure of the points in second-half stoppage time.

Group K

Serbia suffered a 1-0 loss at home to the Albanian squad, with the outcome meaning England can now secure their passage from their qualifying group by beating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker netted the decisive strike for Albania with a neat shot in late added time.

Latvia struggles in their group persisted as they were forced to a 2-2 tie at home by the Andorran team. Ian Olivera found the net for the visitors late on from time to claim them their first point of the qualifiers and prolong Latvia’s winless run to several matches.

Group E

The Spanish national team continued their dominant Group E campaign with a 2-0 victory over Georgia after strikes from Jéremy Pino and his teammate in Elche. The result continued the title holders’ flawless record in the qualifiers, 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 the midfield anchor due to injuries, Luis de la Fuente’s side demonstrated their superiority against a Georgia team that spent the majority of the game sitting back. The home side dominated the encounter with more than 80% possession, and Georgia did not have a single attempt on target or create a clear chance, with only shot-stopper Giorgi Mamardashvili averting a rout.

Pino opened the scoring in the 24th minute from a expertly taken set-piece move, and Oyarzabal secured the win in the 64th minute with a spectacular set-piece after the Georgian keeper had denied Ferran Torres’s penalty.

Other Results

• Turkey returned to winning ways with a comprehensive thrashing over Bulgaria to stay close to the group leaders in Group E. Real Madrid’s a young talent was one of the goal-getters.
• The Italian squad boosted their prospects of at least making the knockout stage with a 3-1 victory away to Estonia, thanks to goals from a forward, Mateo Retegui, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

The Italian coach said: “We’re not thinking about the group leaders or our next opponents. We are aware of what we have to do.”

The Azzurri missed out for the previous two World Cups, twice falling short in the qualifying rounds, and the dreaded playoff path now looks their most likely opportunity after Norway’s comprehensive win over Israel in Group I. Norway are leading on eighteen points from six matches. The Italians have twelve points with a match less played on their competitors and are three points clear of their next opponents. Estonia remain fourth on three points. The group winners advance automatically for the tournament, with the runners-up going into the playoffs.

Italy face Israel on Tuesday, where a win would secure the runner-up position and, while they can still theoretically overtake the group leaders on points, the leaders’ far superior goal ratio means a playoff spot likely beckons for Gennaro Gattuso’s side.