Although Portugal attacked a lot – and had some finishing moves – the best member of the team ended up, above all, because of his performance in the defensive sector: Pepe.
Vitinha and Palhinha were also in good form, unlike Ronaldo, Bernardo and Bruno Fernandes.
Diogo Costa – 6/10
Two easy saves in the first half, two more in the second, good control in depth. This time no penalties.
Joao Cancelo – 6/10
The match started very tense, both defensively and offensively. The defence linked up with Mbappé in a very open way, forcing Cancelo to be careful, that is, not to give space to the Frenchman at the beginning. The offensive reason is that Portugal pressed the left wing for long minutes, because he was working well. The full-back did not appear in the match until the 37th minute, where Bernardo first launched it and then his City teammate sent it. Defensively, he was very strong in one-on-one confrontations and was replaced at a stage when he looked better in the match, with more attacking brilliance.
Baby – 9/10
A senseless mistake at the start of the match, but then there were important pieces, always showing a lot of energy – some of which applied to the referee. The ball seemed to be a magnet for the feet and head of the experienced centre-back, who kept out almost everything he could. Pepe’s brutal performance, which he won in the air, on the ground, in the engravings, in the tackles and in controlling the depth. In short, he had it all in Hamburg.
Ruben Dias – 6/10
He was conservative until the 65th minute, both in defense and in build-up. But the cut he made in that minute, on Muani’s shot, was decisive. Then he returned to “silence”, leaving the most striking cuts to Pepe. It went almost unnoticed in the match, but it did not concede.
Nuno Mendes – 6/10
The first half was probably the worst for a player who had been one of the best in every match. He made one technical mistake after another, sometimes with a short pass, sometimes with a long pass, sometimes with a dribble. He even simulated a mistake in a one-on-one defensive game with Mbappé, in a situation where such a fall could have caused problems for Portugal. In the second half he improved a little, but he was not happy either defensively or offensively, losing balls in attack and leaving the lane unprotected several times. However, the match ended better, due to the offensive readiness, even if without finesse. The team’s last goal failed two seconds after the 120th minute.
Straw – 8/10
When Deschamps asked Mouani to close down Portugal’s left side, crowding the Leao and Mendes area, Palhinha had the wisdom to understand that the game changes had to go to the other side. This kind of reading of the game shows another dimension of growth for Palhinha, who does not always execute these passes with maximum “power” (and even in this game he did, with a powerful strike from a long pass), but he actually reads them much better, like a number 6 who is more than just a recovery strike. Defensively he was also very strong.
Vitinha – 8/10
There was not much at stake in the opening minutes, especially since the French diamond was very dense in the middle. When Camavinga exchanged with Kanté and started to open up more on the Portuguese left, Vitinha developed into the game and had more of the ball against the French defence. In the second half, perhaps on Martinez’s instructions, he started to recover the game much later and had a greater impact on the game, always seeing the game in the build-up phase, not the creative phase. Interestingly, he approached the goal in a driving play in which he seemed more advanced, between the lines, with Bruno building behind him. He developed with the game and played a great second half and dominated the game. Along with Palhinha, the best Portuguese in this European Championship.
Bruno Fernandes – 5/10
For half an hour, the French diamond could have made a golden goose for Bruno Fernandes. When the ball reached Nuno Mendes, Kanté opened the diamond to cover it. There, a space was created in the left half, which Bruno could have used more. He started to ask for more of the ball in that area only… when France moved Muani to the wing, a phase in which the superiority and space were no longer there. He still had his first great chance to score, in the second half, with a good header that had been lacking until then. But he is still not the best Bruno, something that can be seen in the amount of misplaced passes he made.
Bernardo – 5/10
Little at stake. Only towards the end of the first half did more appear, with Cancelo, but it was not enough. Clinging to the runner is a less influential player – he loses and loses the choice. When he moved to the middle, he had a little more influence, but by then he lacked the physical brilliance to be clairvoyant. Interestingly, the match ended well, both in the work without the ball, “biting” the French, and in the wonderful assist by Nuno Mendes.
Rafael Leao – 6/10
Well, expand the game and destroy Kounde every time he plays. It didn’t always work out well, but that seems to be more down to the lack of presence and movement in the area from his teammates than Leao’s inability to make the final pass – something he often fails to do. A very high-level first half and a less intense second half, especially as France mustered the means to stop him.
Ronaldo – 4/10
Good performance from the captain in the first half – and not just because of the miracle of letting someone take a free-kick (oddly enough, that happened the day after he faced Martinez). He provided a lot of support up front and was more capable of getting the game back for his team-mates than he had been before. In the second half, he disappeared and barely touched the ball – which is not surprising considering he is 39, has played 51 games and has been at Euro 2024, even when he could have been rested. He still has very little sense of his movement in the box, being a striker, he does not do much good to those who try to serve him – like Leao, Mendes and Vitinha, those who tried the most. Even when he moves well, he does not finish on purpose. He was again a complete nullity.
Nelson Semedo – 7/10
He came with a lot of energy, dynamism, willingness to attack and was sure to defend, even in one-on-ones with Mbappé. He looked very good in this European Championship.
Francisco Conceicao – 6/10
In addition to the usual energy without the ball, he gave the game good individual initiatives, almost all of which were not completed by his teammates. Better accompaniment could have been decisive in extra time.
Ruben Neves – 5/10
Came to distribute the ball. No effect.
Joao Felix – 4/10
You don’t have luck and/or ingenuity in your career.
Matheus Nunes – No score
Little time in the field.
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