Portugal had one of the most one-sided performances of Euro 2024 so far, but did not claim victory until a dramatic moment in stoppage time.
Young Francisco Conceicao came off the bench to earn the win for Portugal on a night in which they had 74 percent possession against a stubborn Czech team.
Cristiano Ronaldo and company were stunned when they fell behind thanks to a wonder goal from Lukas Provod, but they responded impressively to turn the game around.
An own goal put them back on level terms and Ronaldo thought he had set up Diogo Jota to win it late, only for the semi-automatic offside technology to kick in and rule the man’s header offside. Liverpool.
Here, Mail Sport’s NATHAN SALT dominates both teams…
PORTUGAL (3-5-2)
Diogo Costa – 6
Forty-five minutes passed without him facing a shot on goal and he remained a spectator in Leipzig until he was beaten by a devastating shot. Will will be left scratching his head not to leave the field with a clean sheet, such was the dominance.
Nuño Mendes – 7
Starting on the left of a back three before being pushed further forward once Portugal fell behind, the PSG winger saw a lot of the ball and was more than willing to push forward as a ball carrier. His header to the far post led to the tie being an own goal.
Pepe – 6
At 41, he set a record as the oldest player to appear at a European Championship, but did not look out of place among a sea of youngsters. I was able to sit back and watch for most of it as Portugal dominated, only to be thwarted by a special blow.
Ruben Dias – 6.5
In reality, he had very little to do and will know that much more difficult defensive tasks await him. He is a calming presence and provides good leadership for coach Roberto Martínez.
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Joao Cancelo – 6
He was given license to move, such was Portugal’s dominance and the former Manchester City full-back spent much of the game in attacking areas. His best moment was a delightfully disguised pass to play in Bernardo Silva, but he needs to do more in the final third to deserve playing there.
Vitina – 6.5
A player gem that can activate a postage stamp. His one-touch passing game can leave your head spinning and here there were glimpses of why he was named in the Champions League team of the season. However, he should become more decisive as the tournament progresses.
Bruno Fernandez – 7.5
The heartbeat of this team and he should have scored his first assist when he passed the ball across the box to a sliding Rafael Leao in the first half. He led this game as Portugal’s quarterback and is the player that each of his teammates were looking for in an attempt to open up the Czech Republic. MOTM
Bernardo Silva – 6.5
Clean and tidy as always, but here he didn’t do enough to break the stubborn Czech rearguard. He should have shot instead of looking for a pass into the box as Cancelo played smartly.
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Diogo Dalot – 6
He has shown at Manchester United his willingness to go inside and there was plenty of that here with little defensive work to do before he was taken off just after the hour mark. He needs to do better with his crossover with Ronaldo as a constant target.
Cristiano Ronaldo – 6.5
He scored 10 goals in qualifying and should have scored at least another here, had it not been for some poor finishes. He made some very smart runs to create space for himself, but he no longer has the threat of being able to run behind him, which helps his markers.
Rafael Leao – 7
He should have made it 1-0, but he couldn’t connect on the slide to meet a delightful cross from Bruno Fernandes in the first half. It was surprising to see him withdrawn as Portugal’s first sub, but he was left walking a tightrope after being shamefully booked for jumping.
COACH: Roberto Martínez – 8
He deserves an immense amount of credit for the impact his substitutions had on the game’s victory. He is under the microscope in this tournament given the talent at his disposal and therefore seeing his changes pay off will give him and all the Portuguese a huge boost.
SUBS
Diogo Jota (by Rafael Leao, 63) – 6
Gonçalo Inácio (by Diogo Dalot, 63) – 6
Nelson Semedo (substitute for Nuño Mendes, 90)
Pedro Neto (substitute for Joao Cancelo, 90)
Francisco Conceição (by Vitinha, 90)
CZECH REPUBLIC (3-5-2)
Jindrich Stanek – 6
He made a great save to deny Ronaldo one-on-one at 0-0, but it was his mistake that led to Robin Hranac’s own goal. He needed to catch the ball when he panicked and stopped the drenched ball from his central defense.
Ladislav Krejci – 6.5
The 25-year-old had his hands full but mostly held his own as Portugal isolated him and chased him. He deserves credit for being under pressure from the first whistle to the last.
Robin Hranac – 5
Can considers himself very unlucky because they scored an own goal after seeing how the goalkeeper pushed the ball at him. The three defenders did well for the most part to create a wall, but his own goal, and his slip in the second goal, cost him dearly.
Hole Shots – 6.5
He kept busy covering Cancelo and Rafael Leao on Portugal’s left side and made some crucial interceptions. He gets a lot of credit since he took on the most difficult task.
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David Doudera – 5.5
He was a relatively irrelevant factor that night, but he wasn’t alone in that. She should have more joy against Türkiye and Georgia.
Lucas Provod – 6.5
He produced the wonderful goal that will go down in Czech football history. His finishing was even more notable given that he spent much of the game without the ball.
Tomas Soucek – 6
He played every minute of their qualifying campaign and is very important for this team. A phenomenal header to deny Ronaldo an almost certain goal at 0-0 set the tone for others to follow. The West Ham man will have to take a big step forward for the Czech Republic to progress.
Pavel Sulc – 5
He spent the afternoon chasing shadows around midfield in bustling Leipzig. He had very little left in the tank when he came out and hopes to have more influence in the group’s supposedly “easier” matches.
Vladimir Coufal – 5.5
The West Ham man looked nervous from the start with some very weak touches in his own third, but soon calmed down. He will have to become a bigger threat in the future to help supply the strikers.
Jan Kuchta – 4.5
It was temporary during the hour he spent on the field. It must be very demoralizing when your team only has 25 percent of the ball and almost nothing gets to you. I should have paid an entrance fee.
Patrik Schick – 5
In the few moments when Czechia managed to touch the ball while on the field, the Bayer Leverkusen striker wasted too much of the ball by giving it away. He was the first player hooked after receiving a yellow card in the pouring rain.
COACH: Ivan Hasek – 6.5
He knew that his team would have little ball and with the score at 1-1 he would have liked to have taken advantage of the point as a cornerstone. His substitutions didn’t work as well as Martínez’s, in the end.
SUBS
Ondrej Lingr (by Jan Kuchta, 60) – 6.5
Mojmar Chytil (substitute for Patrik Schick, 61) – 5
Antonin Barak (substitute for Pavel Sulc, 79)
Petr Sevcik (substitute for Lukáš Provod, 79)
Tomas Chory (for Tomas Holes, 90+3)
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