29.03.2016 » Portugal 2-1 Belgium. Good feelings ahead of the EURO 2016
After failing to impress in last Friday's friendly against Bulgaria, Portugal have now redeemed themselves through an encouraging 2-1 win against Belgium this Tuesday night in Leiria. The match had initially been agended to take place in Brussels, but due to the vile terrorist attacks last week, it ended up being rescheduled to Leiria. The emotional charge behind this game was naturally heavy and it would be Portugal coming on top at the end. Nani broke the deadlock in the 20th minute of the first half and Cristiano Ronaldo would put the lead in a 2-goal difference still before the break with a great header. Belgium would still cut the distances to a single goal deep in the second half thanks to a goal from Lukaku, but Portugal held tight and took the win. Next Saturday, it's time for another El Clasico in La Liga and for a thrilling Barcelona vs Real Madrid at the Camp Nou.
Cristiano Ronaldo game photos in Portugal vs Belgium
Portugal 2-1 Belgium - Goals and highlights:
All Cristiano Ronaldo actions vs Belgium:
Fernando Santos made several changes to his side coming off the surprising loss against Bulgaria last week and the truth is that it seems to have paid off, as Portugal went on to beat Belgium, FIFA's current number 1 ranked side, in a 2-1 victory.
Rui Patrício may have remained in goal, but from the back four in front of him only Pepe kept his place. The Real Madrid defender had Fonte partnering up with him in the center, while Raphael Guerreiro took the left wing at the back and Cedrid Soares got in charge of the right.
Without a reliable choice for a center forward, Fernando Santos opted by playing with Cristiano Ronaldo upfront and a heavily packed 5-man midfield. Danilo Pereira and Adrien Silva were tasked with the mission of linking up the team's defensive and attacking sectors, while João Mário, André Gomes and Nani tried to help winning the battle in midfield at the same time they granted support to Ronaldo in the attack. Judging from what we've seen in the first half, this team's dynamic can very well surprise any team they end up facing in the EURO 2016 in France.
In tonight's first half, Portugal has probably gone through the best 45 minutes they ever had since Fernando Santos took over. The "Selecção" was all over Belgium, creating chance after chance and forcing Courtois to be at his best in order to keep the Belgium side only 2 goals behind at the break. It was a very encouraging first half performance from Portugal, making us believe that there might be good reasons to believe that this side can go all the way in the 2016 European Championship that will be hosted in France next summer.
It would take around 20 minutes for the first blow to be delivered though. Nani scored the opener after a very effective attacking play on the left wing orchestrated by Valencia's midfielder, André Gomes. The 22-year old spotted his teammate free in the box, used the outside of his boot to assist him and the former Manchester United winger didn't miss his 1-on-1 chance against Courtois.
The 2-0 had the mark of Real Madrid's legend, Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese rose high into the air to beat the Belgium goalkeeper with a powerful and precise header, following a perfect cross on the left from João Mario. With this goal, Ronaldo ended his 4-game goal drought with Portugal and helped securing an important win to boost the confidence levels ahead of next summer's EURO 2016. Belgium would still score a solitary goal in the second half following a good header from Lukaku, but the final score didn't suffer any further changes and remained 2-1 until the referee's final whistle. This has been Portugal's last game before Fernando Santos announcement for the final 23-man list that will travel to France next summer to seek the glory in the EURO 2016.
Portugal line-up vs Belgium:
Goalkeeper: Rui Patrício
Defenders: Cedric, Fonte, Pepe, Guerreiro
Midfielders: Danilo, Adrien, João Mario, André Gomes
Attackers: Nani, Cristiano Ronaldo.
| Match stats provided by www.ronaldo7.net
|
||
|---|---|---|
Portugal
|
vs
|
Belgium
|
2 |
Goals |
1 |
14 |
Shots |
8 |
7 |
Shots on goal |
3 |
2 |
Corner kicks |
4 |
9 |
Fouls commited |
10 |
1 |
Yellow cards |
1 |
0 |
Red cards |
0 |
44% |
Ball possession |
56% |
Cristiano Ronaldo next game with Real Madrid for La Liga is on the 2nd of April of 2016, against Barcelona. You can watch Juventus live stream, Barcelona vs Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid vs Betis, Aston Villa vs Chelsea, Arsenal vs Watford, and Bournemouth vs Manchester City, all matches provided from our football streaming game pages.
Real Madrid next game:
Barcelona vs Real Madrid kick-off time (02-04-2016):
Beijing (China) | UTC/GMT+8: 02:30
Jakarta (Indonesia) | UTC/GMT+7: 01:30
India (New Delhi) | UTC/GMT+5.30: 00:00
Spain (Madrid) | UTC/GMT+2: 20:30
Portugal and England (Lisbon/London) | UTC/GMT+1: 19:30
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) | UTC/GMT-3: 17:30
New York (United States) | UTC/GMT-4: 16:30
Los Angeles (United States) | UTC/GMT-7: 13:30
Sources: ronaldo7.net / usatoday.com / goal.com / eurosport.co.uk
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