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Cristiano Ronaldo’s out-of-sorts Portugal recorded a 3-0 shootout win over Slovenia after playing out a goalless draw over 120 minutes in their EURO 2024 Round-of-16 clash at Deutsche Bank Park on Monday night (July 1). Portuguese goalkeeper Diogo Costa was the star of the show in Frankfurt, as his spectacular saves denied Slovenia their first knockout victory in the EUROs.
Cristiano Ronaldo & Co. Fail To Break Down Slovenia
One of the most stacked teams in EURO 2024 were the overwhelming favorites to claim the victory over Slovenia in the Round of 16. The result ultimately pointed that way, but the contest was much tighter than most expected.
Roberto Martinez fielded a fiery XI on Monday, featuring Ronaldo, Rafael Leao, Bruno Fernandes, and Bernando Silva in attack. The midfield, consisting of Vitinha and Joao Palhinha, alongside high-flying full-backs, Joao Cancelo and Nuno Mendes, regularly fed the attacking unit. Portugal also enjoyed a lot of possession and regularly made inroads into dangerous areas. However, it just did not come together inside the box.
The top scorer in European Championship history, Ronaldo had eight shots over the course of 120 minutes against Slovenia, four of which landed on target. Jan Oblak, however, refused to be beaten by his former rival. The 39-year-old even had the opportunity to fire his team into the lead from the penalty spot in the 105th minute, but Oblak saw his shot all the way through and dove to his left to deny the Real Madrid icon. Fernandes and Silva had one shot each, but it did not carry any merit. Leao, meanwhile, failed to register even a single shot in 76 minutes.
Diogo Costa Saves Portugal’s Blushes In EURO 2024 Showdown
After Portugal failed to breach Slovenia in 120 minutes, the game went to penalties, commencing a battle between two of the best goalkeepers in the business, Costa and Oblak. Portugal’s Costa was up first, and he set the tone by diving to his left and denying Josip Ilicic….
Source link : https://sportslens.com/news/portugal-beat-slovenia-costa-ronaldo/
Author : Sushan Chakraborty
Publish date : 2024-07-02 06:27:43
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