The 2024 Nations League final at the Allianz Arena (Munich, Germany) brought an exciting score chase. Spain took the lead twice, but Cristiano Ronaldo and his teammates had the answers to win the final after a nerve-wracking "shootout".
Twice led, twice equalized
Spain opened the scoring in the 21st minute through Martín Zubimendi after clever play from Lamine Yamal and Mikel Oyarzabal. However, just five minutes later, Nuno Mendes equalised for Portugal with a decisive cross-angle shot after Ronaldo's assist.
Before the end of the first half, Pedri made a delicate pass for Oyarzabal - the hero of the EURO 2023 final - to run down and finish, raising the score to 2-1 for Spain.
However, Portugal was not shaken. In the 61st minute, from a somewhat chaotic ball in the penalty area, Ronaldo cleverly escaped Marc Cucurella's marking, finished close to the goal to equalize 2-2. This was CR7's 138th goal in the national team shirt, continuing to extend his record.
Tension reaches its peak and the decisive battle
The second half and two extra periods witnessed a tense match, in which Diogo Costa made a miraculous save after Isco's shot, while the efforts of Pedro Porro and Cucurella on the Spanish side were not enough to make a difference.
So nervous that after leaving the field, Ronaldo had to turn away and hide behind the coaching staff when his teammates entered the penalty shootout.
On the 11-meter mark, Gonçalo Ramos, Vitinha, Bruno Fernandes, Nuno Mendes and Ruben Neves all successfully converted for Portugal. Meanwhile, Álvaro Morata's shot was blocked by goalkeeper Diogo Costa, causing Spain to drop the trophy right in front of them.
At the end of the match, Ronaldo burst into tears of joy. He wiped away his tears, hugged his teammates and then walked up to the podium to receive the trophy amid applause and a shower of colored paper at the Allianz Arena. This could also be the last major title in the great international career of the 40-year-old superstar.
The confrontation of two generations
This final is also expected to be a symbolic match between the “past” and the “future”: Cristiano Ronaldo vs. Lamine Yamal.
But while CR7 shone with an important equalizer, Yamal - a young star expected to win the Ballon d'Or in the near future - was dim, being "pocketed" by Nuno Mendes throughout the match and had to leave the field in extra time without leaving any mark.
Spain beat France 5-4 in the semi-finals and extended their unbeaten run since March 2023. However, the defeat in Munich showed they still have a lot of work to do if they want to win the World Cup.
“It’s a shame and it hurts, but maybe we’ll look back on this game in a more positive light. We lost steam in the second half, the substitutions helped Portugal get stronger. But we’re proud of this team and we’ll keep fighting for other titles,” Oyarzabal said after the game.
Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/the-thao/bo-dao-nha-danh-bai-tay-ban-nha-tren-cham-luan-luu-lan-thu-hai-vo-dich-nations-league-141287.html
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