Ronaldo scored in the 95th minute, helping Portugal defeat Denmark
A late header from the captain's superstar was enough for Portugal to win 1-0 yesterday, October 14, earning their first three points in the Euro 2016 qualifiers.
Ronaldo played as a striker and was ineffective for most of the official time, causing the entire Portuguese team to stagnate when they visited Denmark in the third match of Group I. But then he shone at the right moment when the home team was most desperate and seemed to have to leave with only a meager point.
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Ronaldo (number 7) in a header that helped Portugal defeat Denmark. Photo: Reuters. |
From Quaresma's cross from the right, Ronaldo jumped higher than center-back Simon Kjaer, headed the ball far away, leaving goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel helpless, sealing a valuable 1-0 victory for Portugal.
Thanks to this late goal, Portugal had their first victory in the Euro 2016 qualifiers, after a surprising 0-1 home defeat to Albania in the opening match. With three points now, Portugal escaped the bottom position to rise to third place in Group I, just one point behind the two teams above them, Albania and Denmark, but with Albania having played one less match than Denmark.
New coach Fernando Santos also won his first official match in charge of the national team. When he was introduced on October 11, Portugal lost 1-2 to France in a friendly at the Stade de France.
The hosts Denmark, who led Group I after the first two rounds, did not play well in this match. They only had one truly dangerous opportunity in the whole match, when the team's brightest star Christian Eriksen passed the ball intelligently to Michael Krohn-Dehli, who shot against the far post of the visitors' goal.
Learning from the loss to France and carefully studying Denmark's playing style, coach Santos yesterday abandoned Portugal's familiar 4-3-3 system to switch to a 4-4-2 formation, with Danny playing at the highest point of the diamond-shaped midfield, behind the striker duo Nani and Ronaldo, with the current Ballon d'Or winner playing as a striker.
With this new system, Portugal proved to be much more flexible and caused many difficulties for the home side. Ronaldo, with his speed and power, participated in the visitors' four best chances in the first hour of the match. But Ronaldo himself missed two of them, both of which were not beaten by Schemichel, while Nani headed over the bar and Danny shot wide.
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Ronaldo and his teammates missed many scoring opportunities during regular time. Photo: Reuters. |
The ineffectiveness of both himself and his teammates made Ronaldo angry, leading to him receiving a yellow card after a foul on Hojbjerg in the 92nd minute. But just two minutes later, the 29-year-old superstar turned his anger into joy with an accurate header, deciding the victory for Portugal.
Line-up:
Denmark: Schmeichel, Jacobsen, Kjaer, Agger, Boilesen (Poulsen 58), Hojbjerg, Kvist Jorgensen, Vibe (Bech 45), Eriksen (Kahlenberg 84), Krohn-Delhi, Bendtner.
Unused substitutes: Andersen, Ankersen, Braithwaite, Bjelland, Kian Hansen, Schone, Poulsen, Poulsen, Jesper Hansen.
Portugal: Rui Patricio, Cedric Soares, Carvalho, Pepe, Eliseu, Joao Moutinho, William Carvalho, Tiago (Quaresma 84), Ronaldo, Danny (Eder 78), Nani (Eduardo 70).
Unused subs: Lopes, Bruno Alves, Fonte, Vieirinha, Antunes, Ivo Pinto, Andre Gomes, Adrien Silva, Joao Mario, Beto.
Yellow card: Ronaldo.
Goal scorer: Ronaldo 90+5
Referee: Felix Brych (Germany)
Table I
Team | Battle | T | H | B | BT | BB | HS | Point |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albania | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| Denmark | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| Portugal | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Serbia | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Armenia | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | -1 | 1 |
According to VnExpress.net
