This was the easy game. From now on it's extra time/penalties and wins. Don't ever lose confidence! Forca!
Can you imagine !!!! I don’t think my heart can take it lol . All the none GTA posters are asking , what’s the big deal ?
I do, have a good friend who runs a GTA pension account. Always thought of Greater Toronto Area as more of an Indian place though.
That was a rollercoaster!! Much happier with the team selection today and Santos’ subs were also great I couldn’t contain my pride at Palhinha slide tackling Kante twice in succession, breaking forward, nutmegging Pogba and laying it out wide.. what a guy Palhinha, Renato and Moutinho from the start please Fernando
I would be very happy with that mid , even neves for moutinho would work for me. Fernandes or Bernardo, use one and don’t play them together seems to work lol.
The two pk calls in the first half: 1- I can see why to some it's 50/50 and a definite talking point. It glanced off Danilo's head first, Lloris then ensues to touch the ball first before dragonball Z punching him in the head in a perceived reckless play. To me that should always be given as a pk yet also why some refs give it and some refs haven't in the past. 2- The Mbappe dive was shambolic, an absolutely shocking call that was a blatant make up call to the refs eyes, which caused an actual pk call in added time to not be even looked at. As for the game itself, Portugal was a lot better during the 1st half then they were all tournament, and really grew in confidence to spread play up until the Mbappe call, I knew it would shake them and wake the French up and it did. Coupled with Santos turtling in the second half when the game was there for the taking ( Felix left on the bench, how?! He should have been running at Rabiot for the entire 35 minutes that he had to replace Digne ), and I'm not surprised the way the second half went. Sanches was fantastic, really happy for him after how his career went when he left Benfica far too early. Palhinha showed his quality, what a run in the second half when he literaly tackled through two players then nutmegged Kante, did not see that sort of skill in his locker. Danilo himself was a completely different player today as well, great in showing for the ball and evading the press, finding Sanches/Moutinho to cycle possesion. Hope he's ok. Pogba is the inverse Bruno Fernandes, struggles at Manchester United at times yet amazing for France (what a play and then shot that Patricio miraculously saved). And Bruno Fernandes continues to be a complete no show at the Euros after a great club season, he's been great for Manchester United but the last month he's really struggled. Felix HAS to start, can't have Moutinho in there at his age and his lack of legs. His experience was critical in settling the team down after the German debacle, yet Bernardo needs to play in the CM position he took up for City during the months De Bruyne was out in order for Felix to come on and join Ronaldo/Jota up front. We need to go at that fragile Belgium midfield and defense on counters. Another point, they\ll have 48 hours extra rest.... Semedo better be ok because imagine Dalot starting against Carrasco or Mertens. Dalot looked so shaky the 15 minutes he was on...
He did well, showed more in his locker at this high level then I figured he would have. What a run when he smashed through 2 French players then megged Kante, Still inexperienced at times with his lack of positioning to show for the centrebacks when building play ( needs to come deeper ) and covering some spaces, but that will grow with time. If Danilo isn't healthy for the Belgium game, we won't be weaker because of him.
I had my bracket wrong it would be Belgium > Italy/Austria > France/Switzerland/Croatia/Spain England/Germany/Sweden/Ukraine is on the other side of the bracket
I honestly think he’s fatigued. He’s played so much for United in the last 18 months and because they rely on him so much he’s never benched. Barely even gets substituted off Forgot to mention in my earlier post.. my god I love Rui Patricio. That double save was tremendous
oh but he wasnt fatigued against israel? Im sorry but this is an awful excuse. I feel bad for him becaue he does try his best, but he just does not suit this team at all
I didn't get to see the game since I was at work, but I kept checking on the score. I knew Santos has to make some changes. William was obviously the casting error. I love the man, and I hope he moves to a better team. One can say it is easy to say after the facts, but for a player who rarely played at lowly Betis, it is unlikely that he would shine as a starter for a side with ambitions at a major tournament. Sanches has had quite a comeback. Palhinlha showed that he is a valid option.I bet that after this Euro, he won't play for Sporting much longer. Respect to Hungary for holding on to Germany (I was hoping they would get eliminated). Their performance tells us that, no, Germany isn't the Panzer they said it is, and that yes, playing at home is a factor. Now Belgium...They have a lot of talent and a lot of weaknesses. I'd say that together with Holland, it is the most suitable type of opponent for Portugal, but we'll see.
Its been a while since I posted on here, but what a jackass @SCP_16 is. Reminder why I haven't been on here.
Patricio, Pepe, Renato, Danilo, Palhinha all played well. Thought Semedo had a better game. His best game was vs. Hungary, but thought his speed helped a bit today. Still not good enough though. Missing Cancelo a ton. Disappointed with Ruben Dias, Diogo Jota and Bruno Fernandes. Those are three players that were great for their club, yet have been so poor for Portugal. Thought Guerreiro, CR7, Moutinho, Bernardo, Neves had a mehh game. Nothing that stood out too much, besides Ronaldo's balls of steel.
What a game and it was great to see our team play toe to toe with the supposed “best team in the world”. This is how Portugal should approach every game. Play for the win and use our possession game to fatigue our opponents. We didn’t have the team for this type of football but now we do and we must use our talent. Renato has literally won his starting position back in the Seleção. Incredible stuff! Energetic, super talented and seems to have all the confidence. Palhinha did well and I truly believe he could do even better. Let’s not forget that was just first game at this stage and he was subbed in. This kid is LEGIT. Some other players stepped up their game which was nice to see such as Semedo, Guerreiro but you could tell France were also targeting that left side with Mbappe’s runs… Gotta be prepared for that. The draw is a good result and it gives us a lot of confidence going forward, surviving the group of death. Vamosssss!!!!!
fair summation of the situation, hopefully Dias, Jota & Bruno improve which would take us to a level required to get through the match against Belgium.
We've all crapped on Fernando Santos but kudos to him for not being completely stubborn today with the tactics and making the changes when needed, also the subs were good. This squad and even this generation is built for the 4-3-3 or a 4-1-4-1 against equal or stronger teams. 4-2-3-1 does not work - William shouldn't play right now but even if he did he shouldn't play next to Danilo. Our midfield needs a dynamic beast like Renato, a lone DM like Danilo or Palhinha, and a creative outlet like Bernardo. Look at France's midfield, Pogba today had exceptional passes and chances, but he has the freedom to do whatever he wants because he has a monster in Kante always doing the dirty work. Bernardo does press but he's wasted on the wing, Bernardo needs to be in the midfield where he can press but be a creative outlet, having the freedom to pass or find channels of space and his dribbling can cause problems in the middle. Jota has had a mixed tournament but his work off the ball and tracking back are crucial especially to help Guerreiro, that's why he doesn't get subbed out. Need someone like that on the right in these types of games.