Portugal struggled to beat Czech Republic at RedBull Arena, Leipzig. Roberto Martinez’s squad had to wait for more than 90 minutes to seal the victory through a youngster Francisco Conceicao in the last seconds of the game. Czech, who have been under pressure since kick-off, took the lead first in the second half through Lukas Provod.
However, Czech messed up by conceding an own goal in the crucial moment. That was when Robin Hranac diverted Jindrich Stanek’s ball into his own net. One thing led to another, Martinez put Conceicao on, in the 90th minute, where the latter found the back of the net after two minutes of being on the pitch. Here’s the Portugal vs Czech Republic Player Ratings:
Portugal National Football Team Player Ratings
Goalkeeper
Diogo Costa (6.2/10)
Barely touch the ball throughout the game as Portugal kept giving constant pressure on Czech.
Defenders
Ruben Dias (7.3/10)
Worked hand-in-hand with Joao Cancelo to attack from the right side of the flank.
Pepe (7.1/10)
Staying aback when Ruben Dias and Nuno Mendes helped the attacking plan for Portugal. His maturity was the reason why Portugal’s defensive line played positively.
Nuno Mendes (7.3/10)
Actively helped the frontside to form an attacking scheme to put Czech’s defenfers under siege.
Midfielders
Vitinha (8/10)
Dictate the midfield well with his composure, making several successful dribble attempts that led to chances created for Portugal.
Bruno Fernandes (7.5/10)
Being a target of Czech’s hostile defensive force, being fouled multiple times in his area of play.
Diogo Dalot (6.8/10)
Joao Cancelo (7.5/10)
Helped Portugal to tear the opponents defending wall alongside Bruno and Leao.
Forwards
Bernardo Silva (7.4/10)
His appearance was a serious threat for Czech as the Man City winger created several chances for Portugal.
Rafael Leao (6.5/10)
Broke into Czech’s defensive line from the left flank to create chances.
Cristiano Ronaldo (7.1/10)
Age is just a number for Ronaldo as he shows no signs of downfall in terms of playing.
Substitutions
Diogo Jota (6.6/10)
Made a positive impact with his scoring attempts, getting his goal denied by VAR for offside.
Goncalo Inacio (6.8/10)
Helped Portugal to keep a constant pressure for Czech throughout the game.
Francisco Conceicao (7.6/10)
Saved the day for Portugal after taking Portugal lead, two minutes after coming on
Nelson Semedo (N/A)
Coming on to prevent Czech from scoring another goal which he did well.
Pedro Neto (N/A)
Continued his team’s relentless pressure towards Czech which ended up well as Portugal overturn the table in the last seconds.
Manager – Roberto Martínez (7.5/10)
His plan was to make Portugal possess the ball as long as possible which worked but the finishing could have been better for the next game.
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Czech Republic National Football Team Player Ratings
Goalkeeper
Jindřich Staněk (7.5/10)
Showing a decent display amid the relentless pressure from Portugal throughout the game with Ronaldo at the front.
Defenders
Ladislav Krejčí (6.5/10)
Portugal dominated the possession so bad that it was hard for Doudera to develop his game throughout the match.
Robin Hranáč (5.9/10)
Stayed in his post waiting for Portugal’s attacking force came to give threats, led to his disastrous own-goal in the second half despite making several attempts to block it.
Tomáš Holeš (6.8/10)
Had to deal with a sugar high-like Rafael Leao who kept threatening Czech defence with his pacey movement.
Midfielders
Tomas Soucek (6.6/10)
Control the transition from defending and attacking process of Czech, including sent several key passes for his teammates upfront.
Lukáš Provod (7.2/10)
Helped Coufal and Shick when attacking, scoring the goal himself in the second half and stunned Portugal who have been dominated the game.
David Douděra (6.6/10)
Started Czech’s attacking from the left flank frequently but found it hard to break the opponents defensive force.
Vladimír Coufal (6.8/10)
Made Pepe busy with his pacey penetrations down the flank, sending multiple passes to open the defenders apart.
Pavel Šulc (6.9/10)
Provided threats for Portugal since the beginning
Forwards
Jan Kuchta (6.8/10)
Could not give a maximum contribution as Portugal heavily dominated the ball possession.
Patrick Schick (6.5/10)
Playing passively, waiting for a counter-attack opportunity.
Substitutions
Ondrej Lingr (6.3/10)
Strengthen the Czech frontline as the team’s goal came since he appeared on the pitch.
Mojmir Chytil (6.5/10)
Not much has changed following the substitutions as Portugal still dominated the game, even gave enough pressure for Czech to commit a mistake at the back.
Antonin Barak (6.4/10)
One of those players who kept putting pressure on Portugal through the right flank.
Petr Sevcik (6.3/10)
Expected to add more goal for Czech which he found it hard to do so, getting his shot blocked.
Tomas Chory (N/A)
Comin on in the last seconds of the game with hope of scoring a leveler which he failed to do so.
Manager – Ivan Hašek (6.8/10)
Frustrating Portugal with a defensive approach for most of the time of the game but his players were switched off in the crucial moment.
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