Cristiano Ronaldo (38) made history.
Portugal defeated Iceland 1-0 in the fourth round of the European Football Association (UEFA) Euro 2024 qualifying group J at Reykjavík, Iceland, on July 21 at 3:45 a.m. ET. With the win, Portugal remained unbeaten in four matches (14 goals scored and 0 conceded).
Ronaldo was in the starting lineup. The formation was 3-4-2-1, with Ronaldo, Leroy, Silva, Cancelo, Bruno, Neves, Dalot, Danilo, Pepe, Dias, and Costa.
From the start, Portugal pushed hard. They gained possession, won a set piece, and looked to open the scoring, but Iceland maintained a tight defense. The good news came in the second half as they continued to push forward. In the 36th minute, Iceland’s Willumsson committed a dangerous foul and was sent off with a second yellow card to accumulate cautions.
With the numerical advantage, Portugal stepped up their attack. In the 39th minute, Bruno and Danilu were taken off for Vitinha and Otavio. With more players on the attack, Portugal made a final push.
The long-awaited goal arrived, and Ronaldo was the hero. In the 45th minute of the second half, Ronaldo slotted home a pass from Inacio. The initial call was offside, but the video assistant referee (VAR) ruled it a goal. The game ended with a 1-0 victory for Portugal. 토토사이트
Ronaldo’s appearance marked his 200th appearance in an A-match. It took Ronaldo 20 years to reach the milestone, as he made his A-match debut against Kazakhstan in 2003. He is the first male player to reach 200 matches. And to top it off, he scored the winning goal.
After the game, Ronaldo said: “It’s an unbelievable achievement to play 200 A matches, it’s amazing, and it’s even more special to score a goal in a game like that. “I want to thank the people of Iceland for organizing this ceremony for me. I also want to thank the Portuguese national team and the federation. They made my day special today,” he said.
“We didn’t play well. Sometimes that happens in football, but in the end we scored a goal and deserved to win. I’m very happy to play my 200th A match, but it’s even more special to win today.”