Portugal took an important step towards Euro 2016 qualification tonight (November 14) at Estádio do Algarve, beating Armenia 1-0 in a tense match where once again the shining star was none other than Cristiano Ronaldo.
CR7 broke yet another record, becoming the player with the most goals (23) ever in the history of qualifying and final stages of Euro matches.
With a line-up featuring newbie Raphäel Guerreiro and returning right-back and former Chelsea star José Bosingwa, Portugal had trouble making it past the Armenian defense in the first half. Portuguese goalie Rui Patrício was in fact put to the test on two occasions by the Eurasians as Portugal struggled to adapt to new coach Fernando Santos’ tactical ideas.
In the second half, however, Portugal gained momentum with substitutes Éder and Ricardo Quaresma hitting the pitch with a vengeance. It was the latter who fired a shot deflected by Armenian keeper Berezovsky, leaving the ball at Nani’s mercy. Sporting’s winger delivered the ball to Ronaldo, who had only to flick the ball into the net.
By the end of the 90 minutes, the Portuguese side could have built up a heftier scoreboard but an unluckly Éder was unable to score his first goal for the national team.
Portugal is now placed second in Group I of Euro 2016’s qualifiers with 6 points but with one less match than Denmark (7 points).
