Clear favorites Portugal were able to count on their regulars in defense again. Nuno Mendes, Pepe and João Cancelo returned to the starting XI.
North Macedonia presented themselves astonishingly brave instead of only acting in their own penalty area. Therefore, however, gaps emerged, as in the 14th minute. Bruno Fernandes put the ball through for Cristiano Ronaldo, who slid the ball past the far post from inside the penalty area.
Portugal got stronger and almost took the lead after a header from Diogo Jota (24′). A goal was scored shortly afterwards: The captain of the North Macedonians, Stefan Ristovski, made a bad pass for the first time in the game and it was immediately punished.
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Bruno Fernandes took the ball in midfield, got it back after a interaction with Ronaldo in front of the edge of the penalty area and hit the bottom left corner precisely (32′).
After this sense of achievement, Fernando Santos’ team wanted to step up their game, but despite a further increase in performance, that didn’t work before the half-time whistle.
North Macedonia came out well from the dressing room but conceded their second goal just over an hour later.
A loss of possession by Enis Bardhi to Pepe was to prove fatal for the visitors, as Diogo Jota then crossed from the left and landed in front of Bruno Fernandes in the penalty area. The 27-year-old volleyed the ball into the goal from a few meters to make it 2-0 (65′).
Afterwards, the Portuguese easily played the win over time.
The voices:
Pepe (Portugal): “I would like to thank all the Portuguese. It was an exciting evening, the atmosphere was fantastic.”
Fernando Santos (Trainer Portugal): “Fantastic attitude from the players, with great collective spirit. It was a fair win. My only dream is to win a third competition. I dream of the World Cup.”
The tweet about the game:
Portugal’s qualification also means another World Cup appearance for Cristiano Ronaldo and coach Fernando Santos remaining on the touchline.
That was noticeable: No Bruno, no party
Bruno Fernandes was clearly more present than his club colleague from Manchester, Cristiano Ronaldo. The 27-year-old was rightly celebrated by the crowd for scoring both goals and delighted the spectators with his outstanding technique in the second goal via direct acceptance. Fernandes was by far the most conspicuous player in an average Portuguese team.
The stats: zero
Not once did the North Macedonians get a shot on goal today. This is surprising due to the quite solid performance. For comparison: Portugal hit the target three times, two shots were in it.
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