"The most important thing was qualifying for the World Cup. For me, as I always say, the team always comes before the individual, Neves told RTP after opening his account for Portugal. I'm very happy to have scored my first goal for the national team, and my second and third as well. I'm happy to be able to share the pitch with great players and a great team."
"It was only Armenia's third goal in the qualifying group having failed to score in their previous three games. However, any hopes of an upset were quickly extinguished as Goncalo Ramos restored Portugal's lead while Neves added two goals before half-time, including a superb free-kick into the top corner. Fernandes then converted a penalty in first-half added time to make it 5-1 at the break."
"The second half continued in the same pattern as Fernandes struck again soon after the restart after he was set up by Ramos. A flurry of substitutions followed but Portugal's pressure never relented and when they earned another penalty, Fernandes completed his hat-trick. Neves then added his third goal of the night with a composed finish after Portugal hit the post while, at the other end, goalkeeper Diogo Costa and the Portuguese defence comfortabl"
Portugal secured qualification for the 2026 World Cup with a 9-1 victory over Armenia in Porto, climbing to the top of Group F with 13 points. Bruno Fernandes and Joao Neves each scored hat-tricks, while Goncalo Ramos and Renato Veiga also found the net. Portugal had lost 2-0 to the Republic of Ireland earlier in the campaign and saw Cristiano Ronaldo sent off in that match, but qualification ensures Ronaldo can contest a record sixth World Cup. Armenia briefly equalized through Eduard Spertsyan, but Portugal dominated thereafter, converting two penalties and maintaining relentless pressure throughout the match.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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