11.10.2019 » Portugal 3-0 Luxembourg. Ronaldo scores in easy home win
Basically, any other result other than a Portugal win tonight, would have shocked the football world. The reigning European champions hosted Luxembourg in Lisbon tonight and managed to beat their opponents 3-0, with more or less difficulty in different moments of the game. The Seleção got in front early in the first half when Bernardo Silva scored his 5th goal at an international level, but then struggled a bit to put the visitors on their back foot and get themselves on a more comfortable position. The Portuguese Team didn't grant their opponents any good chances to score though and Luxembourg have now realized they would have been better off if they had decided to gamble and risk slightly more, almost as if they were playing pokies australia. The second and third goals would only be scored in the second half, first by Cristiano Ronaldo and the last one by Gonçalo Guedes. Portugal will now head to Kiev where they'll meet Ukraine next Monday, in a game where the winner may very well win the group and a ticket for the EURO 2020 finals.
Cristiano Ronaldo game photos in Portugal vs Luxembourg
Portugal 3-0 Luxembourg - Goals and highlights:
All Cristiano Ronaldo actions vs Luxembourg:
Another goal for Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo never lets his teammates down... In a night where there weren't many reasons for the common football fan to want to follow the game, except perhaps to see Cristiano Ronaldo in action, the Juventus forward scored his 94th for the Portugal and finds himself only 15 goals behind the record-holder, Iran's Ali Daei.
The Juventus forward was certainly aware that a home game against Luxembourg represented a great opportunity to add more goals to his personal record and judging by what we've seen from him on the pitch tonight, he was highly determined in helping his team and scoring as many goals as possible in that process. From Portugal's 22 total shots in the game, Ronaldo was responsible for 10 of those, even though only 4 were on target.
But there were several other players performing at a great level this Friday. In fact, Portugal's two best players on the night were also the main actors in the Seleção's opening goal against Luxembourg. In the 16th minute of the fist half, Barcelona's Nélson Semedo had a great run on the right in which he attracted several players to himself, released the ball just before the goalkeeper could intercept it and by doing so, he assisted Bernardo Silva for an easy tap-in. Good football from Portugal and the hardest part done, or at least we thought it was...
3 points there were expected...
Portugal's dominance after the first goal was somehow inconsequential, at least until the break. The hosts had a lot more possession than their opponents, but they couldn't really translate that into the creation of further goalscoring chances. Luxembourg was defending well and were playing compact at the back, not giving the Portuguese players the space they wanted and needed in order to create more dangerous plays.
Things got a bit easier in the second half, as Luxembourg started risking more and exposed themselves to dangerous counters. The second goal was born precisely when the visitors lost possession in a forbidden area of the pitch, mostly due to Cristiano Ronaldo determination in pressing high. The 34-year old forward forced the error of his opponent and allowed himself to go 1-on-1 with Luxembourg's goalkeeper in a privileged position. He then realized there was a chance to lob the ball over the goalie and he did it without hesitation. The result was a beautiful goal and Portugal had finally got their cushion goal.
The last goal of the night was scored in the 89th minute of the game, when a rebound from a corner-kick fell straight to Gonçalo Guedes, who then controlled the ball and quickly struck it into the back of the net. It was his 6th goal for Portugal, his 3rd in 2019. Don't be surprised if you see him on the starting lineup next Monday, most likely replacing Atletico Madrid's João Félix.
Portugal line-up vs Luxembourg:
Goalkeeper: Rui Patrício
Defenders: Raphael Guerreiro, Rúben Dias, Pepe, Nélson Semedo
Midfielders: Danilo Pereira, João Moutinho, Bruno Fernandes
Attackers: João Félix, Bernardo Silva, Cristiano Ronaldo.
Match stats provided by www.ronaldo7.net
|
||
|---|---|---|
Portugal
|
vs
|
Luxembourg
|
3 |
Goals |
0 |
22 |
Shots |
6 |
10 |
Shots on goal |
2 |
6 |
Corner kicks |
1 |
8 |
Fouls commited |
8 |
0 |
Yellow cards |
2 |
0 |
Red cards |
0 |
61% |
Ball possession |
39% |
Cristiano Ronaldo next game for Portugal in the EURO 2020 Qualifiers is on October 14, against Ukraine. You can watch Portugal vs Ukraine, Italy vs Greece, Norway vs Spain, Georgia vs Ireland, Denmark vs Switzerland, and USA vs Cuba, all matches provided from our football soccer game pages.
Portugal next game:
Ukraine vs Portugal kick-off time (14-10-2019):
Beijing (China) | UTC/GMT+8: 02:45
Jakarta (Indonesia) | UTC/GMT+7: 01:45
India (New Delhi) | UTC/GMT+5.30: 00:15
Italy (Turin) | UTC/GMT+2: 20:45
Spain (Madrid) | UTC/GMT+2: 20:45
Portugal and England (Lisbon/London) | UTC/GMT+1: 19:45
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) | UTC/GMT-3: 15:45
New York (United States) | UTC/GMT-4: 14:45
Los Angeles (United States) | UTC/GMT-7: 11:45
Sources: ronaldo7.net / bbc.com / uefa.com / espn.com
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