Portugal 2-1 Czech Republic: Francisco Conceicao scores late winner as Portugal win Euros opener
Francisco Conceicao came off the bench to score a predatory stoppage-time winner as Portugal opened their Euro 2024 campaign with a tense 2-1 Group F win over a tenacious but cautious Czech Republic side on Tuesday.
Conceicao, who came on in the 90th minute, capitalised on a mistake by Robin Hranac to score from close range in the third minute of extra time, shortly after Portugal were devastated when Diogo Jota's effort was ruled out by VAR for offside.
"He deserves it. He always works with one eye in front of the goal, he sniffs out goals," Portugal coach Roberto Martinez said of the 21-year-old scorer. "He was the fireworks we needed today."
The Czechs stunned the Portuguese fans packed inside the Leipzig Stadium when they took the lead unexpectedly in the 62nd minute thanks to Lukas Provod's superb curling effort, which threatened to cause a massive upset.
However, unfortunate defender Hranac scored an own goal seven minutes later, setting up a frantic finish in which Portugal claimed the three points, bringing them level in the group with Turkey, who defeated Georgia 3-1 earlier on Tuesday.
With 41-year-old Pepe, the oldest player in Euros history, at centre back and 39-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo up front, Portugal relied on experience to defeat a Czech team with the tournament's youngest squad.
The match was supposed to be a walk in the park for the highly regarded Portuguese, who entered the tournament after a flawless qualifying campaign in which they won all ten games, scoring 36 goals and conceding twice.
However, as is often the case in major tournaments, the script needed a hasty rewrite.
While Portugal dominated the ball, with 70% possession, 19 shots, and 13 corners, the workmanlike Czechs proved an infuriating stumbling block for Martinez's team.
Portugal established camp in Czech territory early on, but they encountered stiff resistance from Ivan Hasek's disciplined side, who kept them mostly at arm's length.
Despite their possession, Portugal's opportunities were limited. Rafael Leao was their most creative outlet, with jinking runs down the left flank, but one theatrical dive earned him a first-half booking.
Ronaldo was predictably at the heart of most of Portugal's attacks, but his largely ineffective performance will do little to quell speculation about whether he should still start for the national team.
He squandered their best chance of the first half, when Bruno Fernandes played him through on goal only to be denied by Jindrich Stanek, and had another shot saved by the keeper just before halftime.
If Ronaldo had scored, he would have become the tournament's oldest scorer, but it was not to be his night, and shortly after his header was deflected over after the restart, Portugal received a hammer blow.
Out of nowhere, the Czechs worked the ball down the pitch, and Vladimir Coufal fed Provod, who curled a stunning finish past keeper Diogo Costa into the net.
The advantage, however, was short-lived, as Portugal drew level thanks to some fortunate circumstances. Nuno Mendes headed a cross to the back post, but Stanek's save ricocheted off Hranac's knee and into his own goal.
Portugal thought they had secured victory when Ronaldo headed against the post and substitute Jota converted the rebound, but VAR quickly ruled Ronaldo was a fraction offside.
It didn't matter because Hranac botched his clearance attempt, and Conceicao nipped in to score 111 seconds after coming on.
"Obviously we are disappointed to concede a goal this late in the game but we need to keep our heads high," Hasek said. "We need to get better because this was not a perfect game for us."
SportsLigue