Carrying the heavy responsibility of becoming the first team to defend the Nations League title, Spain "transformed" into a different version, timid, lacking ambition and not determined enough for the final match of the UEFA Nations League at Allianz Arena in the early morning of June 9.
Lamine Yamal's performance was not as expected.
Right after the opening whistle, both teams increased their speed, continuously organizing attacks on the opponent's field. Spain had the advantage in ball control, stronger with wing attacks thanks to the "wings" Lamine Yamal - Nico Williams, causing the Portuguese defense to falter many times.
In the 21st minute, Yamal crossed the ball deep into the middle, creating a chaotic situation in front of the Portuguese goal. Seizing the opportunity very quickly, Zubimendi finished close to the goal, opening the score for Spain.
Martin Zubimendi opened the scoring
The joy of "La Roja" did not last long because just 5 minutes later, Nuno Mendes coordinated with Pedro Neto on the left wing before accelerating and unleashing a powerful shot, defeating goalkeeper Unai Simon in the Spanish goal, equalizing 1-1.
Nuno Mendes (25) after a beautiful equalizer for Portugal
It seemed like both sides would leave the field at halftime with a draw, but in the 45th minute, Pedri made a pass for Mikel Oyarzabal to raise the score to 2-1 for Spain.
Mikel Oyarzabal (21) increased the score to 2-1 for Spain
In the second half, coach Roberto Martinez made strong adjustments in personnel and tactics to help Portugal regain control of the game.
They put the ball into the Spanish net in the 48th minute thanks to Bruno Fernandes but the goal was disallowed due to offside.
However, in the 61st minute, Ronaldo shone at the right time with a close-range tap-in to equalize 2-2, starting from a pass from Nuno Mendes.
Ronaldo scores 138th goal for Portugal
The tense match continued until the end of the 90 minutes and into both extra periods. Entering the nerve-wracking "shootout", only Alvaro Morata missed a shot for Spain while all five Portuguese players including Goncalo Ramos, Vitinha, Bruno Fernandes, Nuno Mendes and Ruben Neves made good shots.
Goalkeeper Diogo Costa saves Alvaro Morata's shot
Ruben Neves wins the decisive shot
Portugal steps up to the highest podium
In the end, Portugal won 5-3 to become the champion of the 2024-2025 UEFA Nations League, becoming the first team to be crowned twice in this arena.
Ronaldo has glorious title at the age of 40
Portugal won the Nations League for the second time
Source: https://nld.com.vn/thang-tay-ban-nha-loat-luan-luu-nghet-tho-bo-dao-nha-vo-dich-nations-league-196250609061014048.htm
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