Portugal 5-2 (5-3) Denmark Player Ratings: Trincão’s brace seals Portugal’s ticket to the Nations League Semi-Finals

Portugal and Denmark faced off yet again after a span of three days but this time at Portugal’s den in the José Alvalade Stadium for the second leg of the quarter-finals in the UEFA Nations League. When both teams met each other in the first keg, the hosts Denmark had the final laugh when they won the match 1-0 thanks to Rasmus Hojlund’s late goal.

Both Denmark and Portugal came into the field with high hopes and determination with Denmark aiming to keep their momentum and Portugal aiming to take revenge and have the final laugh of the match.

Portugal fielded themselves in the 4-3-3 setup rather than the 4-2-3-1 setup from the first leg and Denmark adopted the same formation. The game began with Portugal’s touch and from the very first minute, Portugal was desperate to score and equalize the aggregate score and their constant pressure led to Denmark conceding a penalty in the 3rd minute. Cristiano Ronaldo who stepped in to take the penalty took a weak shot which was easily saved by Schmeichel by diving to his left.

However, that did not stop Portugal from attacking more. They properly maintained a high-line defense that made the Danish strikers struggle to get past their half with the ball. Portugal kept attacking aggressively and a cross from Rafael Leão was headed powerfully by Ronaldo which was saved by the Danish keeper proving his worth

The Denmark defenders and the goalkeeper also made sure that they stood firm however a mistake from the very same defense led to an own goal helping Portugal score their first and equalize the damages. With only seconds remaining for the first half to end, Ronald found himself in the back of the net which was overturned as Rafael Leão was caught offside

In the second half, both the teams attacked aggressively and the ball went from one box to another in the 56th minute, Rasmus Kristensen headed the ball from the right side of the six-yard box to the bottom left corner making the score 1-1. The Portuguese became more desperate than ever and kept on knocking on the opposition goal until 15 minutes later, Ronaldo finally registered his name on the scoresheet by tapping the rebound ball from the Danish keeper.

The goal, however, made the Portugal team comfortable, which was capitalized properly by Erikson who scored a tap in giving back the lead to Denmark, and that is when Portugal came out of its comfort zone and Trincão scored from the center of the box equalize again the aggregate score and after a couple of minutes the referee blew the whistle for a full time calling for additional 30 minutes of play

In the very first minute of the second half the Super-Sub, the boy from Viana do Castelo, Francisco Trincão scored his second goal of the day sealing a victory for Portugal. With four minutes remaining Gonçalo Ramos scored one last time putting the nail to the coffin and at Full Time (AET) the final score was 5-2(5-3) in favor of Portugal

Here are the Portugal vs Denmark Player Ratings.

Portugal Player Ratings

GK – Diogo Costa – 6.5/10

Was not put to the test for much of the regular time. Had only one or two proper saves. However, in the extra time, he made some important saves that were on target

LB – Nuno Mendes – 6.7/10

Played one of his best-ever matches, providing an assist and covering the entire left flank ensuring that Isaksen does not make his moves in the defensive boundary.

CB – Gonçalo Inácio – 7/10

Played a big role in defending the last man of Denmark in the dying minutes of the game. Made important blocks and interceptions in between the matches that proved vital

CB – Rúben Dias – 7/10

Intervened whenever required ensuring that no further progress was made by the Danish strikers. Properly covered Erikson who frequently lurked into the box. Stood as a leader

RB – Diogo Dalot – 5/10

Did not have much of a role in the match. Only made one clearance and also committed one error which led to a shot by a Danish Player

CM – Bruno Fernandes – 7.5/10

Made some important dribbles and some shots on target. Had an opportunity to add his name to the scorecard in the extra time but the ball went flying above the crossbar

CM – Vitinha – 7/10

Stood solid in the midfield, providing almost half a dozen accurate long balls into the box. Had a playmaker role during the entire match and received a standing ovation from the crowd once he was subbed off in the

CM – Bernardo Silva -6.5/10

Made his presence felt both in the attack and the defense providing crosses and through balls also making timely interceptions and blocks in the defensive third

LW – Rafael Leão – 5/10

Provided quality crosses exactly where the men were, however, none of them were converted. Failed to dribble and pass Rasmus Kristensen making his impact nominal

RW – Francisco Conceição – 6.5/10

Kept the Danish defenders busy by constantly making runs through the right wing and providing timely crosses

CF – Cristiano Ronaldo – 6.5/10

Was not his first half. Attempted a penalty, and made a few powerful shots on target only to be saved by the keeper. The one time he found the back of the net was overruled due to offside. Although, in the second half his constant efforts bore fruits as he scored the second goal for his team

Sub – Diogo Jota – 6.5/10

Came in and attacked to the best of his ability. Though he shook the net, the goal was disallowed due to an offside call

Sub – Francisco Trincão– 8/10

Trincão of Sporting who plays his club football at the very same ground came into the rescue as the super sub scoring two major goals and making way for Portugal to the Semi-Finals.

Sub – Gonçalo Ramos – 7/10

Came in at the last moments and scored at the very end re-sealing the tickets to the semi-final.

Sub – Nélson Semedo – 6.5/10

Sub – Ruben Neves – 6.5/10

Manager – Roberto Martinez – 7/10

Timely substitutions by the gaffer eased the path forward for the Portuguese to move forward in the league.

Denmark Player Ratings

GK – Kasper Schmeichel – 6.5/10

Properly judged and saved the penalty to keep the lead alive. Blocked a powerful header from Ronaldo that was destined to be a goal

LB – Patrick Dorgu – 6.5/10

Conceded a penalty in the very initial minutes but compensated for the mistake by providing an important assist to Erikson

CB – Jannik Vestergaard– 5/10

Was a bit slippery in the key moments, but did his best to minimize the damage to the fortress. Won a few duels keeping the red jersey away from the box.

CB – Joachim Andersen – 5/10

Completely misjudged the corner kick leading to their own goal.

RB – Rasmus Kristensen- 6.5/10

Made some key interceptions in the left flank. Properly marked Leão not allowing him to infiltrate the penalty box.

CM – Christian Nørgaard – 6.5/10

Played a pivotal role in clearing the ball from the midfield and making tackles to keep possession.

CM – Morten Hjulmand – 6.5/10

Was dominant in the second third of the pitch winning both ground and Ariel duels.

AM – Christian Eriksen- 7/10

Made a few ambitious shots from outside the box, but most of them were overhit and went wide. Scored an important goal that gave hope to Denmark but it was not their day.

LM – Jesper Lindstrøm – 6/10

Made a few accurate passes. Other than that the player did not have much impact in the game. Although the player tried to make dribbles, he was denied by the Portuguese Defenders

RM – Gustav Isaksen – 6/10

Won some key free kicks in the attacking third adding pressure to the Portuguese Defense.

CF – Rasmus Højlund -6.5 /10

Properly collected the loose balls and mounted pressure on the opposition, nevertheless, none of them challenged the keeper

Sub – Andreas Skov Olsen – 6/10

Sub – Victor Kristiansen – 6/10

Sub – Mika Biereth – 6/10

Sub – Morten Frendrup – 6/10

Sub – Victor Froholdt- 6/10

Sub – Conrad Harder – 6/10

Manager – Brian Riemer – 6/10

Made some proper work, however the homework, unfortunately, did not have the resistance to stop the Portuguese from scoring.

Sportsdunia Player of the Match goes to Francisco Trincão