Cristiano Ronaldo set a new record while Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes had an unforgettable night as Portugal conceded a last-minute equalizer in World Cup qualifiers
Portuguese media have expressed concern over the condition of Bruno Fernandes after the Manchester United star was suspended for the draw between Portugal and Hungary. Despite Cristiano Ronaldo setting a new record for World Cup qualifying goals, the Group F leaders’ hopes of sealing their place in next year’s competition with two games remaining were dashed with a 2-2 draw with Liverpool’s Dominik Szoboszlai equalizing in stoppage time.
Ronaldo has scored two goals so far, making him the all-time leading scorer in a World Cup qualifier with 41, surpassing Guatemalan striker Carlos Ruiz, who has scored 39 goals in his career. But while Ronaldo was destined for another great milestone, it was a night to remember for Fernandes. Fernandes was booked and left out of Portugal’s penultimate qualifier against Ireland in Dublin, where he was substituted in the 62nd minute.
Local media were unimpressed with Fernandes, with Renasheka saying he, along with Manchester City’s Bernardo Silva, was showing some “physical fatigue”, but that was not what manager Ruben Amorim wanted to hear ahead of United’s game against Liverpool on Sunday.
On the other hand, A. Bora gave him a rating of 6/10 as he had little impact on the match. “He hit the post once in the second half, but that was probably the only time he was able to find space in the central passage. For this reason he often appeared close to the line, especially on the left flank, but did not gain any influence.”
With the exception of Ronaldo, who received a score of 8/10, the rest of the team received ratings between 5 and 7. Fernandes felt Portugal were guilty of letting the match drag on too long after his sending off.
read more: Cristiano Ronaldo sets new record after yet another Portuguese heroicsread more: When is the draw for the 2026 World Cup? Who could play for England?
“In the last 30 minutes, we got into their game, a transition game, and spread the field wide. We were controlling the game well, pushing them back and creating chances. All of a sudden, we started getting into a transition game that wasn’t beneficial for us. We were controlling the game well.”
“Our strength is to keep the ball and push teams back. Even if it’s difficult to find the goal, as we did against Ireland (Portugal won 1-0 in the second half), it’s always better to keep the ball and create our own chances than to play a game of opening up the field and switching attacks. It turned out to be an advantage for them.”
“Hungary are very strong on set-pieces, transitions and second balls. When they have space they can create danger and that happened. We have to give credit to them too.”
Despite the setback, qualifying should still be a formality for Portugal, who lead second-placed Hungary by five points with two games in hand.
Fernandes added: “If we were to play in the World Cup, we would be the favorites, like every team that plays, because every team, regardless of their level of recognition, has a chance to win the World Cup.”
“Our goal is to qualify first and then we think about the World Cup. But this does not affect what we can do as a team. Win or lose, every game is a learning experience for the next one.”
“We played against a team with a very low block and it was difficult to find space to finish, but we were able to win the match. We have to try again to qualify for the World Cup.”
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