Portugal tied Slovenia in the round of 16 at the 2024 Uefa Championship (Euro 2024) held at Frankfurt Arena in Germany on Tuesday (Korea time) without a goal and advanced to the quarterfinals after a penalty shootout. It was its first quarterfinal match in eight years since winning Euro 2016. Portugal was eliminated in the round of 16 at Euro 2020, when it played as a defending champion.
Ronaldo’s last dance almost fell through. He couldn’t blame anyone, as he made the biggest mistake. As the front line striker in the 4-2-3-1 formation, Ronaldo led Portugal’s first and second halves of the game for 90 minutes. He aimed for Slovenia’s goal by mobilizing every means possible, including a header and free kick. However, Ronaldo’s attempt repeatedly turned a blind eye to the goalpost, disappointing the team.
Amid Ronaldo’s silence, Portugal failed to properly target Slovenia, which is considered a step down, for 90 minutes. Bruno Fernandes’ rush to the gate in the 13th minute of the first half did not catch a shot, and before the end of the first half, the cutback that Rafael Leão allowed to break deep into the left was connected by Palinha with a shot of his heart, but it did not lead to a score.
In the second half, he lost critical chances once at a time. Vitinha shot Canselo’s pass in the 12th minute of the second half, but it was blocked by the defense wall. Slovenia, which was concentrating on defense, also made its final shot after Cesco beat Pepe at speed in the 16th minute of the second half, but failed.
Frustrated, Portugal strengthened its offense by putting in Giogu Jota. Ronaldo also threatened Slovenia with a shot. At the end of the second half, Ronaldo’s left foot shot was sharp but was blocked by goalkeeper Jan Oblak.
In the end, Portugal, which entered extra time 0-0, had a chance to score the first goal. Jota tripped over the opponent’s defense in the penalty box. The penalty kick was declared, and Ronaldo came out as a kicker. Ronaldo confidently hit a right-footed shot, which was perfectly read by goalkeeper Oblak. Ronaldo, who missed the penalty kick, failed to score even seven shots. In the end, the game was not even over, but he shed tears and attracted attention. His team hardly missed the penalty kick, so he seemed to be unable to overcome the shock.
It was a penalty shootout as neither side scored a goal for 120 minutes. It started with Slovenia’s main axis, and Portugal’s winner was not Ronaldo but goalkeeper Geogu Costa. Costa blocked all of Slovenia’s 1st and 3rd kickers. Portugal made up for its loss in extra time as Ronaldo became the first player and succeeded this time.
While Slovenia failed all the time, Portugal finished 3-0 with Ronaldo, Fernandez and Bernardu Silva succeeding. While sobbing, Ronaldo smiled brightly with his teammates. As it was his last participation in the Euro as of his career, Ronaldo continued his bid to win the title, which seemed to have been lost due to his mistake.스포츠토토사이트
“It was tough, but this is soccer. The opponent team’s defense was very strong. Nonetheless, we played better and deserved to advance to the quarterfinals,” Ronaldo said after the match on the Euro 2024 website. The most valuable player of the match went to Costa, the goalkeeper who blocked three kicks in the shootout.
Portugal, which reached the quarterfinals for the first time in eight years, will face France, which beat Belgium 1-0 earlier, to advance to the semifinals. The de facto final round of the quarterfinals between Portugal and France will take place at 4 a.m. on Saturday.