..::Football IV::..

[Wolverine GTR]

'Happy' Ronaldo returns to Real Madrid training

Cristiano Ronaldo affirmed he was "very happy" as he finally rejoined the rest of his Real Madrid team-mates in training on Monday. The Portugal international picked up an injury in the Euro 2016 final which has kept him out of action for the last two months.

In the meantime, Ronaldo has been working hard in the gym to keep up his fitness, and finally resumed regular training with those Madrid players not away for international fixtures.

While the date of the forward's return is yet to be confirmed, he looks raring to go as he was snapped unleashing a ripping volley during the practice session.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Schmeichel: Pogba signing a great statement from Manchester United


Peter Schmeichel thinks Manchester United made a statement of intent by signing Paul Pogba.

United initially signed Pogba from Le Havre in 2009, but three years later he left the club for Juventus on a free transfer after finding first-team minutes hard to come by.

After four successive Scuddeti with the Turin giants, the France international returned to Old Trafford in August in a deal worth a record-breaking initial €105 million.Schmeichel believes the signing proves United remain a force to be reckoned with, despite their struggles since the departure of Alex Ferguson in 2013.

The former goalkeeper also praised the club's financial ethos, rather than relying on the backing of rich owners like Premier League rivals City and Chelsea.Schmeichel told Omnisport: "He went away, spent four very successful years with Juventus and now Man United brought him back and paid an absolute fortune.

"You can argue how you can let him go in the first place, but the important thing is the statement that he is the best player in the world for that position.

"And we don't care how much he costs, we can pay him. So can Man City, so can Chelsea, so can other clubs, but we can too. We make our own money; we don't have someone sat back putting the money in.

"We make our own money and that's how successful we are as Manchester United and we can buy the players we want. And I think that's a great statement, we as supporters haven't seen that for three years."

Eric Bailly and Henrikh Mkhitayran also joined in big-money transfers, while Swedish superstar Zlatan Ibrahimovic signed on a free transfer after his Paris Saint-Germain contract expired.Jose Mourinho's new additions excite Schmeichel, who is confident they can help lead the 20-time champions of England back to where they belong.

He added: "We've paid over the odds for so many players and we've thought: 'Why are we paying this? What is this player going to do to bring Manchester United up to the next level and back to where we were?'

"But now, with four great signings, Mourinho's done that. He's picked four really good players, players that will fit in to the team straight away, and they have done."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Israel 1-3 Italy: Pelle, Candreva & Immobile send Azzurri to victory

Giampiero Ventura's first competitive match as Italy coach ended in a 3-1 victory in Israel as they got their World Cup qualifying campaign off to a winning start despite Giorgio Chiellini's second-half red card.

Italy were seemingly coasting at 2-0 in Haifa, with Graziano Pelle converting Luca Antonelli's excellent low cross inside the six-yard box and Antonio Candreva doubling the lead from the penalty spot after Giacomo Bonaventura was fouled by Ben Bitton.However, Israel were just one goal adrift at the break thanks to a stunning chip from Tal Ben Haim that left veteran Gianluigi Buffon stranded.

The situation became even more tense for the Azzurri when Chiellini was given his marching orders for a second bookable offence and Elisha Levy's side piled on the pressure in search of an equaliser.

But Ciro Immobile eased any Italian nerves with a goal on the counter attack in the 83rd minute and Ventura can now turn his attentions to next month's crucial Group G contest with Spain, who Italy knocked out of Euro 2016.

Tomer Hemed saw a shot deflect off target in a bright Israel start, but Italy soon gained a foothold and went ahead in the 13th minute.

Marco Verratti picked out Antonelli's run and his low cross from the left was coolly slotted home from close by Pelle for his second goal in as many Italy games.

Israel continued to see plenty of the ball without testing Gianluigi Buffon – playing his sixth qualifying campaign – with Beram Kayal shooting wildly off target.

The hosts' profligacy was duly punished in the 31st minute as Candreva smashed his penalty hard to David Goresh's left after Bonaventura was tripped by Ben Bitton in the area.

Israel were quickly back in the match thanks to a piece of ingenuity from Ben Haim, though, the forward pouncing on a loose ball and aiming a glorious chip over Buffon from outside the box.

Goresh then ensured the score stayed at 2-1 at half-time with a superb point-blank save from Pelle's downward header.

Italy went close to restoring their two-goal advantage just two minutes after the restart, Eder racing on to a long ball by Leonardo Bonucci but lifting his shot wide.
Buffon was then fully extended by Nir Bitton, the veteran goalkeeper diving low to his left to keep out the midfielder's long-range drive.

Chiellini appeared unsettled all game and he was dismissed after 54 minutes, earning a second yellow for bringing down Hemed off the ball, having earlier been booked for clattering Ben Haim.

Israel were pushing hard for an equaliser and Buffon fumbled Kayal's speculative effort, only to make amends with a stunning stop from Eren Zahavi's rebound strike.

Italy had been hanging on but Ventura's men secured the points with seven minutes to go, Immobile racing on to Pelle's flick-on to hammer in a drive across the helpless Goresh.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Wales 4-0 Moldova: Bale leads Chris Coleman's men to victory

A Gareth Bale brace and further goals from Sam Vokes and Joe Allen helped Wales ease to a comfortable 4-0 win over Moldova in their opening World Cup 2018 qualifier at the Cardiff City Stadium.

Vokes headed the hosts in front from a fine Bale cross after 38 minutes before Allen capitalised on a goalkeeping error to make it 2-0 six minutes later.

Ivan Jardan's ill-advised backpass then gifted Bale his first of the night after 50 minutes and the Real Madrid star added another from the penalty spot - his 24th international goal - deep into stoppage time.

Moldova, who came into the game 154 places below Wales in the FIFA rankings, never looked capable of avoiding defeat and barely mustered a meaningful attack over the course of the 90 minutes.

Chris Coleman's men, meanwhile, were a little slow out of the blocks, but effectively had the Group D game sewn up by half-time and could easily have won by an even more emphatic scoreline. The result extended Wales' unbeaten home run in competitive internationals that dates back to September 2013.

The opening quarter was decidedly light on goalmouth incident, although it was Wales who looked the more purposeful with Bale firing a long-range free-kick over and Joe Ledley drawing a regulation save from Ilie Cebanu with a low shot.Wales continued to dominate possession as the half wore on and eventually found a way through Moldova's dogged defence seven minutes before the interval.

Bale provided the inswinging cross from the right and Vokes planted a firm, downward header past Cebanu.

And the home side then doubled their advantage just before the break as Allen swept home the loose ball after Cebanu's weak attempt to punch away a Ledley corner. Neil Taylor could have made it 3-0 in first-half stoppage-time, but the Swansea man blazed over when well placed.

That reprieve proved a very temporary one for Moldova as five minutes into the second half, Bale did grab his side's third.

Jardan's backpass turned into a throughball for Bale and he raced clear to calmly find the bottom corner of the net.

Bale then had the final say in the 95th minute after he was bundled over in the box by Adrian Cascaval, stepping up to fire home from the spot.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Verratti proved himself in Italy win - Ventura

Marco Verratti "proved himself" capable of playing in a more advanced playmaker role during Italy's 3-1 World Cup qualifying win in Israel, says head coach Giampiero Ventura.

Ventura's competitive reign as Azzurri coach started on a winning note in Group G despite playing over 35 minutes with 10 men following a red card for Giorgio Chiellini.

Paris Saint-Germain star Verratti played a key role in setting up Graziano Pelle for the opening goal and Ventura singled out the midfielder for particular praise.

"People said Verratti couldn't play in that role, but he proved himself a player of great value. He was out for a long time due to injury and proved how important he is to this team," he told Rai Sport."Clearly being down to 10 men in a World Cup qualifier is difficult. We had a 10-minute blackout after Chiellini’s dismissal, but that was about it."

Italy appeared to be coasting to three points following Pelle's opener and Antonio Candreva's penalty, but a sublime finish from Tel Ben Haim before the break and Chiellini's second-half red card ensured a tense finish.

Ciro Immobile's counter-attacking goal 10 minutes from the end calmed any nerves, but Ventura – whose first match in charge ended in a 3-1 friendly defeat to France – concedes there is work to be done."If we are convinced that we are a team in all arenas, we must show courage always," he added.

"I won't say our performance was perfect, as we conceded that goal similar to the one we let in against France. We worked as a team, suffered as a team and won as a team.

Italy face Spain at home in October in their next qualifier - resuming their rivalry after Italy knocked Spain out of Euro 2016 - and Ventura wants to see an improved performance from his side.

"I hope in a month against Spain that we'll be in better shape physically and can therefore play better than tonight," he said.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Netherlands coach Blind adamant he will not resign

Netherlands boss Danny Blind has stressed he will not offer his resignation if his side fail to beat Sweden in Tuesday's opening World Cup 2018 qualifier.

Blind has received his fair share of criticism ever since replacing Guus Hiddink as national team coach, but the Dutch Football Association (KNVB) stood by their man even after they failed to qualify for Euro 2016.The 55-year-old remains under pressure, though, and reports from Netherlands suggest he could be on his way out if the Dutch fail to defeat Sweden.

Blind is not thinking about losing his job, however, and is adamant he will not step down himself."I am not the only one who decides whether I will still be Netherlands coach after the match against Sweden. But I will not resign," Blind said at a news conference.

"There is always a bit of tension when it really matters. But I don't feel pressure. I think I can cope with this situation pretty well. I know what I am doing, what I am capable of and what I have to do. That's all I can do. It's gone well a few times over the past few months, but it didn't work out against Greece [a 2-1 defeat on Thursday]."Our preparation has not been perfect, but we have to focus and I think we are ready.

"We came here to win. That's the goal. If we cannot win, we have to make sure we don't lose. Maybe a draw will be a fine result. It all depends on the way the match goes."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Spain 8-0 Liechtenstein: La Roja ease to victory

Spain made a fantastic start to their 2018 World Cup qualification campaign as Diego Costa, Alvaro Morata and David Silva all scored twice in a 8-0 hammering of Liechtenstein.

The 2010 world champions beat Belgium 2-0 last Thursday in their first match under new coach Julen Lopetegui – who replaced Vicente del Bosque after Euro 2016 – and they made it two out of two with a devastating display on Monday.

Costa hit out at what he perceived to be the Spanish media's negative attitude towards him following an impressive display against Belgium that earned him the nod up front for the Group G opener.

The Chelsea striker backed up his remarks with only his second goal for Spain to open the scoring in the 10th minute, before adding another midway through the second half to triple his tally for the national team.

Sergi Roberto, Silva and Vitolo all found the net in between Costa's double as Liechtenstein failed to cope with Spain's attacking threat in the second half after a strong defensive performance in the opening 45 minutes.

Two goals in just over a minute from Real Madrid striker Morata and a second in stoppage time from Silva rounded off the rout, which should give Lopetegui plenty of reason for confidence ahead of next month's qualifiers with Italy and Albania.Spain dominated from the start and were rewarded when Costa beat his marker to head home from Koke's left-wing free-kick.

Liechtenstein initially did well to keep things tight at the back, but Koke was unfortunate to see a strike cleared off the line by Michele Polverino, before Costa headed just wide after some good work from Vitolo down the right.

Koke hit the crossbar with a free-kick shortly after the break and Spain finally doubled their lead in the 55th minute as Roberto poked beyond goalkeeper Peter Jehle following a sublime throughball from substitute Nolito.

Vitolo set up Silva to tap in and make it 3-0 four minutes later, and the Manchester City playmaker returned the favour 65 seconds later as the Sevilla winger capped a fine performance with an easy finish.

Liechtenstein were simply unable to contain the Spain attack and Costa piled further misery on the away side when he nodded a fifth goal past Jehle after seeing his initial shot kept out the beleaguered goalkeeper.

Morata showed his class with a late brace, squirming in a near-post effort before hitting home from the edge of the area, with Silva's injury-time strike applying the finishing touches to a dominant display in Lopetegui's first competitive game in charge.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Congratulations Spain!

Well played

VAMOS ESPANA​

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Costa proved he is a great player - Lopetegui

Spain coach Julen Lopetegui has taken the time to praise Diego Costa in the wake of Monday's 8-0 World Cup qualification win over Liechtenstein.

Costa has been struggling to find his best form while playing for the national team and had scored just once for Spain heading into the match in Leon.The Chelsea striker netted twice to help his country to victory in Group G, though, and Lopetegui hailed his performance.

"In the end, the players are all master of their own destiny," Lopetegui said at a news conference. "We try to help the players, but Diego is a great player and he showed as much today [Monday].

"Of course, attackers are judged on so much more than goals, but we are happy for Diego - and for Alvaro - that he scored two goals."

Costa took aim at the Spanish press for their harsh attitude toward him after last week's friendly win over Belgium, but he was in a significantly better mood on Monday after taking his Spain tally to three.

"Not just the coach, but my team-mates always support me as well," Costa said.
"I can only thank my team-mates. They never let me down and always support me.

"Things are going well for me at the moment."Sometimes bad things happen and an attacker needs goals. I got involved more and I knew the goals would come."

 

[mysterious boy]

bump +

 

[Alucard_SxE]

Spain 8-0 Liechtenstein: La Roja ease to victory

Everybody beats Liechtenstein like 4 or + goals to nil.
They are one of the worst national teams in europe. Haven't won a game in a year.

But a good thing geeting costa back. He'll produce goal this season at chelsea

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Xavi: Mahrez is good enough for Barcelona

Former Barcelona midfielder Xavi believes Riyad Mahrez is good enough to play for the Liga champions.

After being named the PFA Player of the Year for 2015-16, the Algeria international was linked with a move to Camp Nou as well as Arsenal.But the winger instead opted to stay at Leicester City and sign a new long-term contract with the Premier League champions.

And though Xavi admits he was happy to see the 25-year-old remain at the King Power Stadium he feels he has the ability to go to the next level."Mahrez is good enough to play for Barcelona, but I am pleased he decided to stay with Leicester," he told Shortlist.

"He clearly must have had options, but if Leicester had lost their best player after such a big achievement it would have been a shame. "It will be interesting to see how him and Leicester perform in Europe this season."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Morata relishing 'luxury' rivarly with Diego Costa

Alvaro Morata says he is relishing the “luxury” rivalry between him and Diego Costa as both fight to lead the line for Spain.Morata, 23, was La Roja's undisputed main striker at Euro 2016 after Costa was omitted from erstwhile head coach Vicente del Bosque's 23-man squad.

However, Costa has been brought back in from the cold by new boss Julen Lopetegui, who started the Chelsea man in Spain's recent double header against Belgium and Lichtenstein.

And Costa has looked a revitalised figure after scoring two goals and registering one assist in the two matches, with Morata having to come off the bench to make an impact against Lichtenstein.But Morata - who also scored a double in Spain's 8-0 thrashing of minnows Lichtenstein - insists he has a good relationship with his rival for the No.9 shirt.

"My rivalry with Costa is a luxury,” Morata told Goal. “They [critics] said the strikers didn't score and now we have scored four between us both.“Costa has dedicated his goals to me, so imagine the relationship I have with him. I have no anxiety to score".

Lopetegui, who coached Spain's U19, U20 and U21 sides in the past, pipped a number of high-profile names to succeed Del Bosque and has made a dream start to life in charge of the senior team.

And Morata, who worked with the ex-Porto boss in the U19 side, says the whole Spain squad are united behind Lopetegui and believe he is the man who can take them back to the pinnacle of world football.He added: "Lichtenstein was a great game. There are reasons to continue believing in this team. And there are still players who have been left out, such as Isco or Andres Iniesta.

“With all of them, I think we can succeed. It is difficult. We should be happy, regardless of the result, for the goals, the way the team played. We believe in this new coach, who knows the young players as well.

“The champions are still here, always hungry, always play well, but we think we can place the bar very high as well, and the coach knows it.”

 

[Wolverine GTR]

'I'll never forget what he did for me' - Terry pays tribute to Sir Alex Ferguson

John Terry has hailed former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson with a throwback photo on Instagram.

The Chelsea skipper has previously revealed how he was a United supporter as a youngster but changed his allegiances upon joining the Blues over 20 years ago.

United approached Terry as a youngster, having trained with the club during the school holidays, adding in an interview with The Guardian in 2006 that Ferguson's presence at the time was "really special".

Now Terry has paid tribute to the legendary manager and acknowledged his achievements with Chelsea.

"Who would have thought I would go on to win four Premier Leagues and five FA Cups," Terry wrote."I have so much respect for Sir Alex Ferguson and will never forget what he done [sic] for me and my family."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

'I do not fear Muller,' says Howedes

Schalke defender Benedikt Howedes is adamant that he does not fear Thomas Muller ahead of Friday's Bundesliga encounter with Bayern Munich.

Muller endured a difficult Euro 2016 campaign as he failed to find the net but he demonstrated his ability in his country's 3-0 win over Norway, scoring twice and setting up his side's other goal.

Nevertheless, Howedes says that his Germany team-mate's return to form does not give him sleepless nights."I do not fear Muller," Howedes told Bild. "It's not like I am playing against him by myself.

"But we all know Bayern are the best team in Germany. We have to put in a much better performance than against Eintracht Frankfurt."Muller, meanwhile, has promised that Howedes he is in for a difficult game on Friday.

"Benedikt and I have been exchanging plenty of words over the past few days," the forward added. "I can only say that we have big plans for Friday. It will not be easy for him.

"I never doubted my finishing skills. There are always moments where things don't work out but I am calm and confident again."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

OFFICIAL: Eriksen signs new Tottenham contract

Christian Eriksen has committed his future to Tottenham, signing a four year contract with the Premier League side.

The 24-year-old Denmark international is a key figure for Spurs, having helped Mauricio Pochettino's team to mount a genuine challenge for the Premier League title last season, ultimately finishing third behind Leicester City and runners-up Arsenal.Eriksen's previous deal had been set to expire at the end of next season, but will now remain at White Hart Lane until June 2020.

"There is a great future at this place and I wouldn't have signed if I didn't see that," he said in a video posted on the club's Twitter account.

"It's a very good group, players who connect with each other, staff who connect with the players."We all have an idea of where we want to end, and hopefully we'll achieve that."It's always been the plan to sign a new deal and now it's happened I'm relieved and very happy."

Eriksen, who has started all three of Spurs' Premier League matches so far this season, netted six goals in 35 league appearances last season, supplying 13 assists, second only to Arsenal's Mesut Ozil.

He moved to Tottenham from Ajax in August 2013.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Rashford nets hat-trick on Under-21 debut as Allardyce looks on

Manchester United youngster Marcus Rashford gave England coach Sam Allardyce a reminder of his talents by scoring a hat-trick on debut for his country's Under-21 side on Tuesday.

Rashford was part of England's travelling party for Euro 2016 but missed out on Allardyce's maiden senior squad for Sunday's last-gasp 1-0 win in Slovakia, having failed to break into the United starting line-up under Jose Mourinho.

But, on his first Premier League appearance of the season, Rashford came off the bench to net a stoppage-time winner at Hull City as Mourinho's men made it three wins out of three in the top flight.

And the 18-year-old offered another demonstration of his goal-scoring instincts against Norway's youngsters at Colchester.

Streaming clear of a static backline, Rashford slotted home a composed finish to break the deadlock after 29 minutes, meaning he has now scored on his professional, Premier League, full England and Under-21 debuts.

Rashford netted twice in the second half to put Gareth Southgate's team 5-0 ahead and keep them on track to qualify for next year's European Championship.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Belarus 0-0 France: Griezmann & Giroud draw a blank for Les Bleus

France made a stuttering start to their 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign as they were held to a 0-0 draw by Belarus in Borisov.Olivier Giroud, Antoine Griezmann and Raphael Varane all went close to finding the net for Didier Deschamps' men, who were widely expected to make short work of a side sitting 63 places below them in the FIFA rankings.

But they were ultimately unable to secure what would have been their 16th win in the last 19 games as they failed to unlock a dogged home defence.

France's starting side contained only five of the team that began the Euro 2016 final against Portugal and although they did apply some concerted late pressure, they struggled to recapture the fluency that they showed at times during the tournament on home soil.

While rarely troubling the French defence, Aleksandr Khatskevich's men produced a battling display, having been written off by many as makeweights in a tough group also containing Bulgaria, Netherlands and Sweden.

The clean sheet was their seventh in the last nine games and the result means they have now lost only one game in the last nine.During a hard-fought but largely uneventful first half, Belarus were content to concede possession and sit deep, successfully keeping France at arm's length.

The hosts' goalkeeper Andrey Gorbunov was untroubled by tame, long-range efforts from Griezmann and Paul Pogba, while Anthony Martial dragged his low shot wide after beating two defenders on the edge of the box.

And it was the hosts who came closest to breaking the deadlock during the opening period as Nikolai Signevich just failed to get a meaningful touch on Timofei Kalachev's superb cross from the right.

France did manage to respond by creating a decent chance of their own on 35 minutes, but Giroud completely miscued his attempted volley, having been picked out by a raking long ball from skipper Varane.

Roared on by a vociferous home crowd, Belarus enjoyed their first period of sustained pressure at the start of the second half but were almost downed by a sucker-punch on 53 minutes.

Griezmann's clever backheel put Giroud through on goal, only for the Arsenal man to again fluff his lines as he pulled his shot across the face of Gorbunov's goal and wide of the post.

Moments later, Gorbunov was called into action to parry a well-struck Griezmann free-kick over the bar and from the resulting corner, Varane rattled the crossbar with a header.

Gorbunov denied Griezmann again on 68 minutes, this time from almost point-blank range and Varane then also went close, heading a corner from substitute Dimitri Payet wide of the post.

France continued to lay siege to the hosts' goal right to the final whistle, but Khatskevich's men hung on to claim an impressive and morale-boosting point.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Sweden 1-1 Netherlands: Sneijder earns draw for Blind's men

Wesley Sneijder reduced the pressure on Netherlands coach Danny Blind by salvaging a 1-1 draw for his side in Sweden in their opening World Cup qualifier in Group A.

Netherlands trailed at Solna's Friends Arena but battled back and the captain's goal spared the blushes of Blind, whose side failed to qualify for Euro 2016 and suffered a shock 2-1 friendly loss at home to Greece on Thursday.

The visitors had numerous chances in the first half but Davy Klaassen wasted two excellent opportunities and Netherlands fell behind just before half-time to a stunning goal.

Kevin Strootman was guilty of giving away possession in a dangerous area but Marcus Berg's finish was glorious, lifting the ball over the head of goalkeeper Jeroen Zoet from the edge of the box.

Sweden had appeared comfortable at the back but the Netherlands pressure eventually told, Sneijder finishing on the rebound after Robin Olsen saved from Daryl Janmaat.Netherlands then looked to have snatched the points late on, only for referee Daniele Orasto to chalk Bas Dost's effort off for a foul.

Blind's men have a home double-header against Belarus and France next month, while Janne Andersson's Sweden travel to Luxembourg before hosting Belarus.

Netherlands were immediately on the front foot and almost took the lead in the sixth minute, Olsen denying Klaassen from close range after Strootman's superb chipped pass.

Klaassen had his side's next chance too, when a well-worked move created space for Janmaat on the right, but the unmarked midfielder planted his header straight at Olsen.

Zoet dived to his left to keep out a sharp Emil Forsberg drive from outside the box after 17 minutes as Sweden responded to the Dutch pressure, before the hosts' captain Andreas Granqvist blocked Vincent Janssen's goalbound volley.

Janssen's ambitious effort was then beaten away by Olsen and Sneijder saw a shot deflect narrowly wide with the goalkeeper helpless, and Netherlands' profligacy proved costly as Sweden went ahead against the run of play after 42 minutes.Strootman dallied on the edge of his own area despite having multiple options and Berg robbed him before producing a sublime instinctive lofted finish over Zoet's head and in off the crossbar.

Klaassen had another opening shortly after the restart, this time from Quincy Promes' cross, but Olsen palmed away the header.

Olsen saved from Virgil van Dijk's header as Netherlands continued to carve Sweden apart, and Sneijder wasted another good opportunity by blazing over the crossbar.But when the next chance fell to the Netherlands skipper after 66 minutes, he made no mistake.

Janmaat drove inside and tested Olsen with a firm shot from the edge of the area and the goalkeeper could only parry out for Sneijder to tuck a smart finish into the bottom-left corner.

Substitute Dost missed a fantastic chance with six minutes to go and Olsen saved Sniejder's drive as Blind's men threatened to score a winner, and they had the ball in the net as the clock struck 90.

Dost headed in a right-wing cross but Orsato felt the striker had fouled Victor Lindelof to get his head on the ball, denying the Dutch a morale-boosting turnaround.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Switzerland 2-0 Portugal: Euro 2016 winners slump to opening defeat


Fernando Santos suffered his first competitive defeat as Portugal coach, with the European champions beginning their 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign with a 2-0 loss to Group B rivals Switzerland, who ended the match with 10 men.

Since taking over from Paulo Bento in September 2014, Santos had navigated Portugal through 14 non-friendly matches without loss, winning Euro 2016 in the process, but that run came to an end at St Jakob-Park on Tuesday.

After a bright start the European champions fell behind in the 23rd minute when goalkeeper Rui Patricio pushed Ricardo Rodriguez's free-kick straight to Breel Embolo, who responded to being selected in place of the injured Xherdan Shaqiri by heading home his second international goal and first since October 2015.

It quickly got worse for Portugal as Admir Mehmedi finished off a rapid break by majestically picking out the top-right corner, sending Vladimir Petkovic's team into half-time with a two-goal advantage.

Having made the most of the few attempts that came their way, Switzerland played in a more defensive manner after the restart and stifled Portugal, who hit the post through captain Nani, wearing the armband due to Cristiano Ronaldo's knee injury, eight minutes from time.

Granit Xhaka was dismissed following two yellow cards in quick succession in second-half stoppage time, but Switzerland had done enough to secure three points against their main rivals for top spot in Group B.

Bernardo Silva was rewarded with a starting berth by Santos after coming off the bench to score and supply two assists in the 5-0 friendly victory over Gibraltar, and he produced a fifth-minute effort that bounced comfortably into Switzerland keeper Yann Sommer's hands.Portugal continued to apply the early pressure but found themselves behind midway through the half.

Patricio stepped the wrong way when anticipating where Rodriguez would place his 25-yard free-kick, and, despite adjusting to make the save, he was beaten by Embolo's follow-up header.Switzerland made it two following a swift counter-attacking move seven minutes later.

Blerim Dzemaili led the charge before Mehmedi released Haris Seferovic on the right-hand side of the box and the striker's return pass found the Bayer Leverkusen forward with space to take a touch and curl an exquisite finish into the top corner, with Patricio rooted to the spot.

Raphael Guerreiro responded positively to the setback but was unsuccessful with a pair of attempts before half-time, while Mehmedi was booked for simulation after going down on the edge of the box despite appearing to be caught on the foot by Pepe.

Santos replaced the disappointing Eder and William Carvalho with Andre Silva and Joao Mario for the second half in attempt to spark life into his side, but Switzerland maintained their discipline and proved difficult to break down.

Portugal's final substitution saw Ricardo Quaresma replace Joao Moutinho in the 68th minute, but the result would have been beyond doubt had Dzemaili not skewed narrowly wide from 10 yards three minutes later.

Nani hit the upright with a back-post header off a Quaresma cross in the 82nd minute but Portugal were unable to get on the scoresheet, with the only blemish on the result for Switzerland being the senseless red card for Xhaka before the final whistle.