Ronaldo fails to score on Portugal's big win

Portugal Captain Ronaldo was silent, but thanks to Bernardo Silva and Bruno Fernandes, Portugal still defeated Bosnia & Herzegovina 3-0 in the Euro 2024 qualifiers.

Goals: Bernardo Silva 44', Fernandes 77' & 90'+3

Cristiano Ronaldo played the entire match at home at Da Luz on June 17. However, the Al Nassr striker did not perform as well as in the previous two matches against Luxembourg and Liechtenstein. In the 23rd minute, Ronaldo headed the ball into the net of Bosnia & Herzegovina. However, the referee caught an offside and did not recognize the shot.

Ronaldo (right) remained silent in front of the Bosnia & Herzegovina defense in the match on the evening of June 17. Photo: EPA — Ronaldo (right) remained silent in front of the Bosnia & Herzegovina defense during the match at Da Luz Stadium, Lisbon on June 17. Photo: *EPA*

Facing Bosnia & Herzegovina's defensive counter-attacking style, Portugal encountered many difficulties. At the end of the first half, the away team almost opened the score. Edin Dzeko escaped, but could not beat goalkeeper Diogo Costa.

In the 44th minute, when the first half was about to end with the score 0-0, Portugal suddenly scored. Bernardo Silva received a pass from Bruno Fernandes, then simply finished past the rushing goalkeeper Ibrahim Sehic.

Portugal continued to take the initiative in the second half. The ball was almost exclusively on Bosnia's half. However, the home team still had difficulty getting close to goalkeeper Sehic's goal. It wasn't until the 77th minute that Portugal scored their second goal. Substitute Ruben Neves crossed for Fernandes to head past Sehic.

Not satisfied with the two-goal gap, Portugal continued to put pressure until the end of the match. In the third minute of injury time, Fernandes completed his double. The Man Utd midfielder volleyed beautifully into the top right corner of the goal, sealing a 3-0 victory.

Bruno Fernandes celebrates scoring the 3-0 goal at the end of the match. Photo: LUSA — Bruno Fernandes celebrates scoring the 3-0 goal at the end of the match. Photo: *LUSA*

Portugal have won all three of their opening Group J matches in Euro 2024 qualifying, beating Luxembourg 6-0 and Liechtenstein 4-0 in their previous two matches. Portugal lead the group with nine points, two ahead of second-placed Slovakia and five ahead of third-placed Luxembourg. They play their final first-leg match away to Iceland on June 20.

The top two teams in each Euro qualifying group will advance to the finals. With the current gap, Portugal are fully capable of qualifying without playing all 10 matches.

Thanh Quy

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