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portugaslb-blog · 7 years ago

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Fernando Santos’ Portugal squad for UEFA Nations League games against Italy and Poland.

Portugal plays there third and fourth games of their UEFA Nations League group games November 17th against Italy and November 20th with Poland. Portugal only needs one point from their next two games to secure their place in the Final Four of the UEFA Nations League which will be played in June 2019. Santos called up his 25 player squad last Thursday with a few players returning to the Selecao such as Joao Mario, Raphael Guerreiro, Andre Gomes, and Jose Fonte. Players who did not return from the previous call up in October were Helder Costa, Kevin Rodrigues, Pedro Mendes, and Sergio Oliveira. The full call-up is listed below….

Goalkeepers: Rui Patricio (Wolverhampton), Beto (Goztepe), and Claudio Ramos (Tondela)

Defenders: Joao Cancelo (Juventus), Cedric (Southampton), Jose Fonte (Lille), Ruben Dias (Benfica), Pepe (Besiktas), Luis Neto (Zenit), Mario Rui (Napoli), and Raphael Guerreiro (Dortmund)

Midfielders: Danilo (Porto), Ruben Neves (Wolverhampton), Renato Sanches (Bayern), Andre Gomes (Everton), Pizzi (Benfica), Bruno Fernandes (Sporting), William Carvalho (Real Betis), and Joao Mario (Inter Milan).

Attackers: Bernardo Silva (Manchester City), Bruma (Leipzig), Goncalo Guedes (Valencia), Rafa Silva (Benfica), Andre Silva (Sevilla), and Eder (Lokomotiv Moscow).

As of this week Andre Gomes has returned to Everton with an undisclosed injury and will not be available for the upcoming fixtures. There were a few reports coming out of Italy that Ronaldo was going to be called up for these round of fixtures, but true to their words from Santos and Ronaldo back in September. Ronaldo will not feature for the national team until March. No real surprises to the squad as Santos is still injecting youth to the Selecao and although Ronaldo would help us greatly. I am happy Santos is keeping him out and instilling his confidence in this “new blood” team. It will only make the team stronger in the future.

Andre Gomes and Joao Mario inclusion was a bit of a surprise. Although Andre Gomes has impressed recently in his past few games for Everton, he has been underperforming for Portugal for the last two years. It has been shown Andre Gomes is a favorite of Santos given the long leash given to him. Let’s hope Andre Gomes can find his old Valencia form where he was a threat every game. Everton’s coach Marco Silva has so far been able to get more out of him than his horrendous stint at Barcelona in just a few games. As for Joao Mario, he has played less and gets the nod. Mario has only featured recently for Inter Milan and although he had a great game against Genoa with a goal and three assists. Inter Milan did not even include him in their Champions League roster and also stripped him of the number 10 jersey. This has to be a rough time for Mario and while Santos stresses the importance of form and game time, Mario’s inclusion is puzzling.

Moments before Santos called up the squad there was a bit of awkwardness pertaining to a certain player. Sevilla reported on their webpage and congratulated center back Daniel Carrico for being called up by Santos only to realize that he did not make the cut. Sevilla later apologized and stated there was miscommunication. One has to feel for Daniel Carrico who has been with Sevilla since 2013 and has won three Europa League titles and when not injured, has been a steady player for the Spanish club. Luis Neto has yet to prove his worth to Portugal and Carrico has the experience of big games and being 32 years old, brings the experience Santos desires. Carrico has only represented Portugal once.

Portugal plays Italy Saturday in Milan at the majestic San Siro stadium at 19:45 Lisbon time and Poland next Tuesday in Guimaraes at 19:45 Lisbon time.

#portugal national team #portuguese football #selecao #portugal #fernando santos #uefa #uefa nations league #Portugal v Italy #Portugal v Poland

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portugaslb-blog · 7 years ago

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Portugal 3 Scotland 1 Friendly Review

In a cool brisk rainy night in Glasgow, Scotland last evening, Portugal prevailed 3-1 against the Scots in a friendly match. Portugal’s record improved to 8W-D3-L4 against Scotland. In a nearly half empty stadium of less than 20,000 fans, Fernando Santos made ten changes to the squad who beat Poland three days before. Helder Costa made his senior debut for the team, listed below was the rest of the lineup…

Beto

Cedric Ruben Dias Neto K. Rodrigues

Danilo

Sergio Oliveira Bruno Fernandes

Helder Costa Eder Bruma

Santos opted for Beto in the net, which was surprising to me as he has been with the National team since 2009 and although Beto has had few poor performances in the Seleção shirt. The 36 year old isn’t getting any younger and surely Ramos could have been given the nod. Cedric and Rodrigues defend the flanks which was no surprise while Ruben Dias and Neto anchored the center. As with Beto, another player who has been around since 2013 yet still to prove his worth as a steady option for Portugal is Neto. Which triggers the question once again, why did he start? Why weren’t Pedro Mendes and Ramos given a debut like Costa? Danilo came in for Ruben Neves as the defensive/holding mid alongside his Porto compatriot Sergio Oliveira and Sporting’s Bruno Fernandes in the middle. Deserving of getting his senior debut was Helder Costa, while Bruma returning from his earlier illness entertained the other wing. Finally, the hero of EURO 2016, King Eder returned to the starting lineup as the lone striker.

Alex McLeish made six changes to the side that fielded against Israel in the UEFA Nations League this past week. McLeish was hoping that the changes would mix things up as his side was looking for a positive match to boost confidence after the loss against Israel. Scotland lined up as followed…

Gordon

O’Donnell Hendry McKenna Robertson

Forrest McGinn Armstrong McGregor

Naismith McBurnie

The match started stale as Scotland ran hard and applied pressure on Portugal who failed to find any rhythm in the first ten to fifteen minutes of the match. The first real chance of the game came off a designed Scotland free kick in the 14th minute. Well outside the box to the left of Portugal’s net, Armstrong stepped up to take the free kick and passed to a wide open Forrest on the right side that caught the Portuguese defense sleeping and curled a cross into the box. The ground cross ricocheted off a poor clear attempt from Bruno Fernandes and jumped up towards Sergio Oliveira who attempted to head the ball clear. Instead he heads toward the net and forces Beto into an incredible save from close range to deny the own goal. Portugal had to wait until the 26th minute to pose a real threat on Scotland and it came through Bruma. Bruma received the ball in the Scots half on the left side from Rodrigues. Bruma proceeded to dribble into the center of the half sucking defenders towards him to find Sergio in the middle. The Leipzig man continued his run towards the box as Sergio layed the ball over the back line towards Fernandes. Right back Hendry intercepted the pass by heading the ball back into danger and Bruma won the race to the loose ball and cut into the box with a shot that gets deflected wide for a corner. Best quality chance from Portugal as of then. There was no action again until the 36th minute when Forrest dribbled past Rodrigiues and crossed the ball into the box where he found Naismith. Naismith, almost from his knees headed the ball towards the far post and missed wide. A half chance from Scotland that almost proved deadly. Portugal got their chance four minutes later. Eder tested the Scottich goalkeeper from close range and if the ball was hit a meter in either direction, surely would have found the net. Eder took his chance through the neat work again from the lively Bruma. Bruma received the ball on the left side line and dribbled towards the box to find Sergio for a quick 1-2 pass. Bruma then tried another 1-2 pass with Eder at the penalty spot and instead of passing back Eder took the pass back towards goal, spun and shot it, but Gordon pushed it wide well.

Helder Costa makes his mark on his debut…

Although the game was not as smooth flowing as the Portuguese might expected the wingers and Bruma and Costa were showing moments of ingenuity when they received the ball. In the 43rd minute Sergio collected the ball in the middle and found Bruma once again on the left side. Bruma started to dribble towards the box and immediately sucked two defenders towards him. Patiently, Bruma waited for his support Rodrigues who made the overlapping run towards the end line and Bruma fed him the ball. Intelligently Rodrigues played a onetime ground pass across the six yard box and Costa beat Liverpool’s Robertson for the sliding tap in goal. Portugal 1-0 heads into halftime.

Portugal’s gloomy start to the second half…

The second half showed no changes to Portugal and like the first half started musty for the Portuguese. First chance of the half came to the Scots in the 53rd minute. A corner kick delivered on the right side of the Portugal goal was taken nicely by McGinn and met by a diving Mckenna who just missed the right side of the goal by the narrowest of margins to tie the game. Replays showed how Neto just watched and let Mckenna slip right by him with ease and were very lucky that Portugal didn’t concede. Beto, rightfully so was furious with his defenders. Neto certainly wouldn’t want to see the replay of his poor play on that one.

Portugal starts to get a hold of the middle…

Play in the middle of the field started to improve once Santos started to make changes. Sergio came off in the 56th minute for Renato Sanches and Gedson Fernandes for Bruno Fernandes in the 68th minute. Pedro Mendes also came in for Ruben Dias alongside Renato. Almost instantly Renato started to improve the middle with his energy and swift quick passes to the outlets of Costa and Bruma tiring the Scottish midfield a bit more. It was until Gedson came in that the two Benfica academy players really started to take control of the game. Gedson, who just came on the pitch in the 68th minute with one of his first touches, played a lovely ball over the Scots defense down the right side to a streaking Costa who nearly got his shot off inside the six yard box without being timely tackled by Scots defender Mckenna. A few minutes later in the 73rd minute, Renato drew a foul outside the box and stepped up to take the free kick. Renato delivered a lovely inside curled ball into the box and King Eder meets it with a greatly timed header into the far net of the goal. No chance for Gordon, 2-0 Portugal!

Portugal was really taking control of the game at this point and it was inevitable that they were going to find a third. Ten minutes after Portugal’s second goal, Rodrigues intercepts a Scottish pass in his own half and directs it towards Gedson. Gedson takes one touch with the ball in his own half, looks up and with his second touch delivered a wonderful ball through to a darting Bruma down the left side. Bruma took the ball in a 1v1 situation just inside the right side of the box with Scottish substitute Shinnie as the defender and beat him towards the inside of the box and shoots a terrific finish into the far top corner of the net. The way Bruma was playing today, you felt there was no doubt once he received that ball in that situation that the play wasn’t going to end without that ball being in the back of the net. Golaço for Bruma who makes it 3-0!

Scotland get one back…

Fernando Santos decided to make three meaningless substitutes bringing on Claudio Ramos for Beto in the 85th and William and Rafa for Bruma and Danilo in the 90th. After the substitutes with the game having seconds left Scotland managed to get the ball down into the Portugal box with some clever play from Naismith, some fortunate bounces in the box, and a superb back heel from Scot substitute Mackay-Steven to Naismith who made no mistake and put the ball past Ramos. With that being the final kick of the game Portugal win 3-1.

Player ratings…

Beto-Like stated above, very few poor performances for Portugal and once again was solid in goal today. Still a nice backup to have behind Patricio.

Claudio Ramos-Pointless bringing him on in the 85th minute. A bit unfair that in his debut, Portugal shut off and let a goal in that he had no chance on. Hopefully he can get some minutes in the future.

Cedric-Solid #2 RB for Portugal right now.

Ruben Dias-Good once again, would love to have seen him partner with Mendes for the game.

Neto-Let’s hope a quality CB for Portugal comes up soon because I think we have seen enough of Neto.

Mendes-Not bad, but didn’t see him get enough attention for a fair judgement.

Rodrigues-Not bad, but in the rare occasion Raphael and Mario Rui get hurt I would like to see Wolves’ Ruben Vinagre given a shot over him.

Danilo-Good performance, but his performances at Porto are slightly better. Still waiting for that dominating presence he shows for Porto on a weekly basis for the NT.

Bruno Fernandes-Not a good performance, like Danilo still waiting for Sporting form to carry over. Has been dreadful to watch for the NT as of late.

Sergio Oliveira-Between him and Bruno Fernandes, I thought he was the better of the two.

Renato Sanches-Not sure what it takes for him to be a consistent starter. If he still is playing consistently for Bayern, there is no excuse why he doesn’t start against Italy next month. Game changed when he came in. If Santos trusted him to start the EURO final at 18, why can’t he start these games at 21?

Gedson Fernandes-The little action we saw from Gedson shows us the talent he possesses. Still early in his career he looks promising. Not a starter for the NT at this moment, but definitely can be a creative asset off the bench when others are under performing. Game changed with him and Renato played middle together.

Helder Costa-Great debut arguably could have been MOTM in my opinion. Every time he played the ball, he looked creative, dangerous, and positive. I think he has now joined a three headed race with Gelson Martins and Rony Lopes for a RW position.

Eder-Good game by the Hero. What you would expect from him? Don’t see him here unless Andre or Ronaldo are injured. I think Eder will always have a place in our hearts, but with this current crop of players his chances are slim of being on the team consistently.

Bruma-MOTM for me. He was always buzzing around the box and creating dangerous plays by coming off that left side. Watching him at Leipzig last year and seeing him come off the left with a chance to shoot is dangerous. Folks, he doesn’t miss often. It is the difference between him and Guedes. Guedes is not doubt explosive, but I feel he is not as deadly in front of the net as Bruma.

William and Rafa-Two meaningless substitutes that should have never happened. Unless it’s the EURO or World Cup final and your killing time, why is Santos making these subs.

Final thoughts…

Portugal’s talent pool has really hit the ceiling over the past year and a half and it showed over these past 4 games. We have scored 8 goals and have three wins and one draw in the last four games without Ronaldo. Portugal fans and others worldwide have asked the question who will score for Portugal when Ronaldo is gone? Who will Portugal rely on without Ronaldo? How will Portugal cope without Ronaldo? Yes, it’s only been 4 games, but the future is bright for Portugal and they have taken leaps and bounds over the past month in answering these questions. These groups of players are young and there are even more rising. The 1999 generation who just won the U17 & U19 EURO championships have not yet arrived. Most certainly Portugal will be a force to be reckoning with for the next ten years.

Portugal’s next game will be against Italy on Nov. 17th at the legendary San Siro, Milan in Italy for their third game of the UEFA Nations League. Italy, who defeated Poland away last night has put some added pressure on Portugal. I will be posting a preview of this game later down the road. Stay tuned…

#portugal v scotland #portugal vs scotland #portugal national team #portugal football team #scotland football team #scotland national football team #portugal #scotland #uefa nations league #italy #italy national football team #portugal v italy #portugal v poland #friendlies

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portugaslb-blog · 7 years ago

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Portugal v Scotland Friendly Preview

Portugal play Scotland tomorrow evening in a Friendly match at Hampden Park in Glasgow as both sides played in the UEFA Nations League this past week. Portugal victorious in Poland 3-2. While, Scotland surprisingly lost in Israel 2-1. The sides have met fourteen times in their nation’s history with Portugal being on the winning side with 7W-D3-L4. Last time the teams faced off against one other was November 20th, 2002 in Braga. Portugal, the winners 2-0 as both goals came from the Azorean Eagle, Pauleta. Rui Patricio, Pepe, and Bernardo Silva have been dispensed by Fernando Santos as of yesterday to rejoin their clubs. Rui Patricio is reported to have picked up a knock against Poland. Although, they most certainly were not going to play in this friendly fixture it is hard to understand why Pepe and Bernardo are able to leave. Why not Ruben Neves or Andre Silva as well? Are they not just as important to their clubs as well? Are the clubs demanding the release of the players? I never understood why coaches do this or how can clubs get away this and wonder how it affects the rest of the team. Maybe the special treatment doesn’t affect the team at all, but it warrant’s a mention.

I fully expect Santos to experiment and give chances to player’s who normally don’t play and offer a few debuts. This would be my lineup for the game against Scotland…

Claudio Ramos

Cedric Pedro Mendes Ruben Dias K. Rodrigues

Danilo

Renato Sanches Gedson

Helder Costa Andre Silva Bruma

Starting in goal is Claudio Ramos who works his trade in lower Portuguese side Tondela. Ramos has been called the past couple of times but has never played before Anthony Lopes or Beto. We know Beto and Rui Patricio, this is a great opportunity to see Ramos play in a meaningless game. Ramos who always gets a lot of action playing for a lower side in Portugal has been Goalie of the week twice already this season according to Goalpoint.pt. A great achievement for the 26 year old, when you have one of the greatest goalkeepers of the past twenty years playing in Porto every weak as well as the emergence of Odysseas at Benfica. Cedric comes in at right back as the second best option for Santos at the current moment. Cedric has always played well for the National Team and should play the full 90 in Glasgow. Pedro Mendes is similar to Ramos, called upon by Santos in September as well, but did not play a minute. Pedro Mendes came through Sporting’s youth system and went out on loan to clubs such as Servette (Switzerland), Real Massama (Portugal), and Real Madrid B even making a debut to the senior side of Real Madrid in 2011. Coming back to Sporting B, Mendes struggled to find consistent form at any club and bounced around in Italy at Parma and Sassualo before coming to Rennes, France. After staying in Rennes for two years the 28 year old moved to Montpellier where he finally found stability and secured his spot week in and week out for the Ligue 1 side. Mendes anchored a defense that was ranked 2nd last season to only PSG and remains in 2nd once again this year to PSG. We all know Neto and what he can do for the past five years. It shows the lack of depth Portugal has in the center back position. Would love to see how Ruben Dias and Mendes line up in the occasion of Pepe getting injured. Rodrigues slides in at left back just to get playing time so Mario Rui doesn’t get hurt, with injury prone Raphael Portugal can’t afford another left back injured.

For the midfield, Danilo slides in as the holding defensive midfielder. While Renato deserves the start in the middle, for his great short display in Poland. Bayern Munich also awarded Renato as best player of the month for September, which is a huge boost of confidence given the talent Bayern possesses. I believe Gedson deserves to start alongside Renato as he has performed really well for an 19 year old at Benfica. With these three in the middle, Portugal no doubt would have the upper hand in the center.

Helder Costa gets the nod on the right wing for his great performances at Wolves this season. While Bruma entertains the left side hopefully overcoming his illness suffered on Thursday. I keep Andre Silva up top because in any important match at the moment for Portugal it will either be Ronaldo or Andre Silva, would like to see how his chemistry is with players such as Gedson, Costa, and Renato. As for the substitutes, other than Bruno Fernandes, Eder, and Neto I hope Santos does not make many changes to the players above. Maybe some more minutes for Neves as well, but I would like to see these players almost get a full ninety minutes.

Scotland hasn’t been to a major competition since World Cup 1998, but Alex McLeish must certainly be upset with the result in Israel and will be looking for a positive showing against the reigning European Champions. With notable players on defense such as Kieran Tierney (Celtic) who has been linked to big clubs in England and Andrew Robertson who starts for Liverpool, they should at least be able to show a stubborn defensive presence. With most Scottish sides, they will play physical throughout the park and put pressure on the Portuguese. In the middle, highly regarded by Jose Mourinho, Scott McTominay (Manchester United) who wasn’t fit for Israel might make an appearance tomorrow in the midfield with Steven Naismith (Heart of Midlothian) leading the front line. The Scots might not have any superstars in their squad, but the environment in the stadium and having a point to prove after the Israel game will surely give Portugal a tough physical game.

Prediction…

Portugal 2-0. Bruma and Renato with the goals.

Game will be televised

Portugal-17:00 RTP1 and Sportv1

USA-12:00 ESPN+ and Univision Deportes

Australia-3:00 Optus Sport

Canada-N/A

#portugal #portugal national team #scotland #scotland national football team #international break #uefa nations league #uefa #portuguese football #portugal football team #scotland football #scotland football team

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portugaslb-blog · 7 years ago

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Portugal 3 Poland 2 UEFA Nations League Review

Portugal was victorious last night in Chorzow, Poland with a score line of 3-2 in an exciting fixture for the Seleção. As it was at the EURO 2016 quarterfinals Portugal were trailing 1-0 early only to have to come back and become eventual winners. As predicted, Fernando Santos made no changes to his starting lineup that beat Italy in Lisbon in September other than Rafa coming in for Bruma. Bruma was reported as having an illness before game time which made way for late addition Rafa. The following starting lineup for Portugal was as followed….

Rui Patricio

Cancelo Pepe Ruben Dias Mario Rui

Ruben Neves

Pizzi William

Bernardo Silva Andre Silva Rafa

Poland, who usually play a 4-2-3-1 decided to play with two strikers Piatek and Lewandowski in a 4-4-2 scheme. One can’t wonder why Polish coach Brzeczek wouldn’t play such in form Piatek with known striker Lewandowski up top to give his side optimum chance of victory against a Ronaldo-less Portugal at home. Poland’s lineup is listed below….

Fabianski

Bereszynski Glik Bednarek Jedrzejczyk

Zielinski Krychowiak Klich Kurzawa

Piatek Lewandowski

Poland dominates early on…

The first 15 minutes Poland came out strong and with 48,738 fans backing them up really took the game to Portugal. Portugal struggled to find a rhythm. However despite being out played for the first few minutes of the game a sheer moment of brilliance from Andre Silva almost give the lead to Portugal. A corner kick in the 7th minute was taken by Pizzi, who short passed to Mario Rui who whipped in a curling ball into the six yard box near post which was met by a devious flick by the right foot of Andre Silva that just missed the roof of the night. If the flick was on target, it surely would have fooled Fabianski. The chance didn’t seem to fade Poland and in the 18th minute found the goal they were looking for by, guess who? Piatek. Who has now scored 14 goals in his last 10 games! Piatek’s goal came off a corner kick from Kurzawa as he headed it past Rui Patricio at the far post. Rui Patricio was outraged about a possible non-call on Lewandowski who appeared to have impeded Patricio’s path on retrieving the ball by not even attempting to challenge the cross. The way I see it, I have seen it not called and I have seen it called. Nonetheless Poland takes the lead 1-0.

Portugal steps up their game…

After conceiving the first goal of the game, instead of putting their heads down on the road, Portugal really shined and stepped up their game. In the 21st minute Andre Silva received the ball in the middle of the park and finds a smart run by Rafa across the Polish defense with a through ball and Rafa sidesteps Fabianski for the tying goal only to look up and see he was marginally offside. However, the Seleção wouldn’t wait long because 8 minutes later they would finally find their deserved equalizer. In the 31st minute, Bernardo collected the ball in the middle and found Cancelo on the right flank and picked out a nicely timed run by Pizzi on the end line who made a slick crisp pass across the six yard box to find Andre Silva who makes no mistake. Portugal 1-Poland 1! That’s now 7 goals in his last 6 international away games for Andre Silva. Portugal’s in form striker matches Poland’s in form striker. Portugal’s reluctance to add their tally did not end there as two minutes later Rafa received the ball on the left side of the field. Rafa looked up and found Andre Silva at the six yard box with a low driven cross. Andre calmly settled the ball with his back towards goal and set up Pizzi very nicely at the top of the box who disappointingly fires right at Fabianski with a weak shot. Fast forward two minutes into the 35th minute and Portugal again found another goal scoring opportunity. Andre Silva again, the creator of the play collects the ball around midfield on the counter attack and dribbles down the Polish end to find another surging run from Rafa who shoots his attempt right at Fabianski from the penalty spot. You really felt like Portugal could taste the go ahead goal.

Ruben Neves’ sublime assist…

The 43rd minute showed the class of Ruben Neves who is rated as one of the best young talents in England and all across Europe. Ruben Neves received the ball from Bernardo in his own half and delivered a beautiful 30 meter aerial pass to a racing Rafa down the middle into the Polish box. Rafa took the pass brilliantly with one touch putting it to the left side of Fabianski and with the empty net begging Glik came in with a slide tackle from behind putting the ball into the net. Own goal by Glik Portugal 2-1! After Poland’s opening goal Portugal really picked up their game and scored two goals before halftime and was unlucky not to have one or two more. Great response by the Portuguese.

Portugal keeps the foot on the pedal and a moment of brilliance from Bernardo…

The second half started with no changes to either side. As the first half ended, the second half began the same way, Portugal in control. Poland provided a scare through Zielinski who fired a left footed shot well outside the box that didn’t miss by much on Patricio’s left side of goal in the 50th minute. Great effort. Two minutes later Portugal regathered their dominance through an individual piece of brilliance from Bernardo Silva. The Portuguese wizard picked the ball up on the right side of the field and faked a pass to Cancelo that froze left back Jedrzejczyk and Kurzawa, then preceded to dribble across the top of the box faking the shot fooling Kurzawa once again, before firing a curling shot to the far post with his magical left foot beating Fabianski who got his fingertips on the shot. Portugal 3-1!

Poland doesn’t quit and finds life…

The 74th minute introduced the first substitute of the game for Portugal as Pizzi made way for Renato Sanches whose sub was long overdue at this point. A minute later off a Polish free kick well outside the box, Zielinski curled a tantalizing ball into the area that was met by defender Bednarek that headed the ball inches wide of Patricio’s left post. Dangerous attempt by the Polish. Poland eventually found their lifeline in the 77th minute. Grosicki received the ball and put a move on Mario Rui down the right side line and although the ball seemed to go out of bounds Mario Rui slowed down anticipating the linesman’s flag to go up let Grosicki slip away. Grosicki then threw in a waist high cross across the box that was not met properly by Pepe whose ricochet fell nicely to Blaszczykowski, who stepped into a very well timed volley towards the back of Portugal’s net. Portugal 3-2. Although replays showed the ball did indeed go out of bounds, Mario Rui should have kept playing and perhaps might have been able to make a play on Grosicki’s cross. How UEFA has not incorporated VAR into their competitions is baffling.

Portugal shows their character late…

In the past, we would have seen Portugal crawl into a shell and let the football Gods determine their fate. However, this new look Portugal did quite the opposite and while Poland pushed more players forward it made them susceptible to Portugal’s counter attack. Danilo came in for Rafa at the 84th minute mark as a defensive tactic. Instead of Poland looking like they were going to equalize, it was Portugal who looked more dangerous and more capable of adding to their lead. Andre Silva picked up the ball at the top of Poland’s half with his back towards the goal and made a nifty move past Bednarek. Andre dribbled down the middle of the field to find Renato through the Polish back line. Renato moved around Fabianski to put the ball in the old onion bag, only to be denied by a goal line clearance from a back tracking run by Kedziora. Six minutes later in the 90th, Cancelo streaked down the right side of the field into the Polish box and at the end line pulled back a wonderful pass to the top of the box where it was met by Renato. Who picked his spot on the roof of the net was denied by an amazing save by Poland’s #1. Renato definitely felt unlucky after two great attempts. Still in stoppage time Andre Silva once again with his back towards goal found Bruno Fernandes who just came on for Bernardo and with a glaring empty goal, put the ball over the top. Whistle blows full time. Portugal 3 Poland 2!

How did the players do...?

Rui Patricio-Hard to blame him on either goal. Has been a rock ever since EURO 2016.

Joao Cancelo-A constant offensive threat every time in the opposing half. Always a handful for Poland and great link play with Bernardo. Only negative, he was man marking Piatek on the goal.

Pepe-Like red wine he gets better with age. Let’s hope he still has a few more years in him because he is still so solid on the back line. Kept Lewandowski in his pocket throughout the game. Could have met the ball more properly on the second goal, but nonetheless another great performance.

Ruben Dias-Simple. Defended well. What wasn’t there to like? What I like about his game is he is quick and decisive moving the ball out of the back.

Mario Rui-Other than giving up on the play for Poland’s 2nd goal, another good performance. With Raphael’s injury concerns he is a viable player who continues to grow for Portugal.

Ruben Neves-MOTM for me. His tactical awareness, anticipation, and quick decisive passes makes us more dangerous in possession and gets the ball to our key players without giving the opposing defenses time to set. Been missing this type of player since Maniche. However, I believe Neves’ bar is a lot higher than Maniche’s was.

Pizzi-Disappointing for me. Pizzi made an assist, but it is a play any CM should make. Didn’t even feel like he was playing. Only saw him on set pieces. Portugal has much more to offer in his position.

William-Ever since the emergence of Neves as a holding mid William has been pushed forward and he is playing better. Had a good game and did not give the ball away much. Like Pizzi I believe Portugal has more to offer than William in the middle. However, he had a solid game.

Bernardo-Great game by the Portuguese wizard. Reminds me of Deco. A lot of positivity when he is on the ball. It is why I feel he should play in the middle. The more touches Bernardo gets, the more effective he is in the game and the better Portugal play.

Andre Silva-Could have been MOTM as well. Not only did he score he could have had three assists. His ability to shake defenders off while his back is towards goal is a real threat. Made plays throughout the game in the middle and really should be wearing the #9 jersey.

Rafa-Great first half. Lost in the second half.

Renato Sanches-Did more in 15 minutes than Pizzi in 75 minutes. Came in like a ball shot out of a cannon and could have scored two goals. Needs to start IMO.

Danilo-Only in to close the game. Did his job for ten minutes.

Bruno Fernandes-90 minute sub, you can’t expect much. Needs to bury that late chance. Still waiting for his Sporting success to carry onto the National Team. One starts to wonder if he is only a club player.

What does this mean…?

Poland and Italy play each other in Poland this Sunday and if the match ends in a draw it guarantees Portugal’s presence in the final four. Portugal will be playing against Scotland at Hampden Park in Glasgow at 17:00 local time.

#portugal #portugal national team #poland national team #poland #uefa nations league

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portugaslb-blog · 7 years ago

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Portugal v Poland Nations League Match Preview

Portugal play Poland this evening in the Silesan Stadium in Chorzow, Poland for their second match in the UEFA Nations League. Poland previously tied Italy 1-1 in Italy and Portugal were victorious over the Italians in Lisbon 1-0 back in September. The previous results mean Portugal are on top of the group with 3 points, Poland is in second with 1 point and Italy in third with 1 point, but has played one more game than both Poland and Portugal. This sets up an intriguing fixture tonight.

Last time Poland played Portugal was at the EURO 2016 quarterfinals when Renato Sanches tied the game at 1-1, then Portugal went on to win in penalty kicks, and we all know the rest. Portugal’s record against Poland is 5W-3D-3L. The teams have historically been balanced when facing each other.

Heading into the game Portugal is without two key players Ronaldo and Moutinho. As Fernando Santos did in September, he is calling up new players to experiment for the upcoming EURO 2020, which is refreshing and optimistic with the pool of talent Portugal possesses. New player Helder Costa of Wolverhampton, and the return of long absences of LB Kevin Rodrigues (Real Soicedad) and Eder (Lokomotiv Moscow) were called upon. It will be interesting to see how Portugal lineup against Poland who usually play 4-2-3-1 or 4-4-1-1 formation. Santos for the most part usually carries out previous success. I would bet Portugal start like this…

Rui Patricio

Cancelo Pepe Ruben Dias Mario Rui

Ruben Neves

Pizzi William

Bernardo Silva Andre Silva Bruma

I feel that the defense is quite solid along with Ruben Neves playing in that holding midfield role. Ruben Dias set the bar with his great display against Porto, arguably his best game for Benfica. Let’s hope he continues as he will have the ever dangerous Lewandowski to contain. In the midfield is where I would like to see Santos experiment a little bit. We know Poland play five in the middle. We need someone who is quick thinking and creative coming through the middle. Which is why I firmly believe Bernardo should be there in a floating CAM role. Reiterating on the fact Poland usually play with 5 in the middle or with a holding striker role, I would bring in either Danilo or Renato for the work load in the middle. In the case that Danilo just returned from injury, I would bring in Renato who has been awarded with more playing time for Bayern for his good displays. I like Bruma and Andre Silva up top, but why not see what Helder Costa has in him for the start. Helder Costa has been playing excellent in one of the top leagues in the world for Wolves and undoubtedly deserves a chance. What I like about Bruma and Helder Costa coming off the wings is they are both not afraid to shoot. If Rony Lopes was healthy I would like to see him get the start. I really like Rafa and Gelson and do think they can bring a different aspect to the game positively, but unless they are front in the net, they struggle to find the back of it. My lineup would like this…

Rui Patricio

Cancelo Pepe Ruben Dias Mario Rui

Ruben Neves

Renato Bernardo

Helder Costa Andre Silva Bruma

I feel with this lineup, especially in the middle. You have tactical awareness and intelligence of Ruben Neves, the strength and work rate of Renato, and the free roaming creativity of Bernardo feeding Bruma and Costa into 1v1 situations. Mario Rui has continued to impress with the absence of Raphael and Cancelo, whom I was not a big fan of for awhile is showing true class for Juventus week in and week out. These two also provide a threat coming up the wings.

As for Poland, we all know Lewandowski and what he is capable of producing at any given time. This season has also produced a gem for Poland in the name of Krzysztof Piatek (Genoa), top scorer of Europe’s top five leagues with 13 goals in 9 games. Not sure what Poland’s coach Brzęczek does with Piatek and Lewandowski, but it is a concern for Portugal. As long as Portugal wins the middle and reduces the passes to either Piatek or Lewandowski, I feel that Portugal can control this game through the middle. Poland has quality in the middle through Piotr Zielinkski (Napoli) and Grzegorz Krychowiak who recently moved to Lokomotiv Moscow, Eder’s teammate. It’s quite simple Poland’s strong suit is the forwards, if Portugal can limit them from getting the ball, Portugal have a great chance of getting a positive result in Poland. Poland will feel good about already going to Italy and capturing a point and with the Ronaldo less Portugal, Poland must feel optimistic.

Predictions….

Poland 1-Portugal 1

Lewandowski and Andre Silva are the goal scorers in a tough physical game.

#portugal #portugal national team #uefa nations league #ronaldo #poland national team

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portugaslb-blog · 7 years ago

Text

Portugal v Poland Nations League Match Preview

Rui Patricio

Cancelo Pepe Ruben Dias Mario Rui

Ruben Neves

Pizzi William

Bernardo Silva Andre Silva Bruma

Rui Patricio

Cancelo Pepe Ruben Dias Mario Rui

Ruben Neves

Renato Bernardo

Helder Costa Andre Silva Bruma

Predictions....

Poland 1-Portugal 1

Lewandowski and Andre Silva are the goal scorers in a tough physical game.

2 notes · View notes