Photo: EPA/HUGO DELGADO

Portugal in pole position

A late three-goal burst, including a brace from Ronaldo, against Hungary on Tuesday afternoon gave Portugal the initiative in Group F which also saw a narrow 1-0 own goal win for France over Germany.

On Sunday, England had made a perfect start with a 1-0 Wembley victory over 2018 World Cup runners-up Croatia, while the Czech Republic beat Scotland 2-0 in the other Group D encounter.

As the second round of group matches begins (Wednesday), Italy, Belgium, Finland, Austria, Holland and Slovakia also took maximum points during the opening week of the European Championships.

By SKIP BANDELE