In a game that is twice more a brawl than a soccer match, Belgium prevailed against Portugal. Thorgan Hazard scores the goal of the day.
A spectacular long-range shot from Dortmund’s Thorgan Hazard destroyed Portugal’s dreams of defending their title and brought Belgium to the quarter-finals. The Red Devils celebrated a 1-0 (1-0) victory over Portugal in the round of 16 in Seville on Sunday – Cristiano Ronaldo was also powerless against the defensively strong and aggressively elegant-efficient Belgians in front of 11,504 spectators at the Estadio La Cartuja. Hazard scored in the 42nd minute for head coach Roberto Martínez’s team, who will play against Italy on Friday in Munich for the semi-finals. However, the quarter-finalist has to fear the use of director Kevin De Bruyne, who left the pitch injured two minutes after the break.
The Seleção had previously reached at least the quarter-finals in all of their European Championship participations. Only Spain have successfully defended their title so far. The 36-year-old Ronaldo was rarely able to help his team against the Fifa world number one after five goals in the group games. Even for his 66-year-old coach Fernando Santos, the EM ended in disappointment.
Seville’s picturesque city center was bathed in red during the day by the many Portuguese and Belgian fans. The two teams had never before played against each other in the finals of a major tournament. Belgium coach Martínez had a very special premiere: the native Catalan had never played a competitive game in Spain as a coach.
In Belgium’s midfield, Thorgan Hazard was allowed to play again from the start, alongside his Dortmund club colleague Axel Witsel. Portugal started very cautiously and seemed to be on the counterattack at just under 30 degrees. A very quick pass from the strong Renato Sanches to Diogo Jota caused danger, but the Liverpool professional finished hastily (6th).
After 25 minutes, Ronaldo got into his free-kick position with his legs apart for the first time. Thibaut Courtois was able to fend off the ball from around 20 meters. The Belgium goalkeeper later earned applause from his fans when he let out Portugal’s captain. Just no unnecessary risk – that was still the motto. Martinez had emphasized before the game that a lot depends on who scores the first goal. Dortmund’s veteran Thomas Meunier almost managed to do that with a flick of the outside instep (37th).
Referee Brych is facing an intense final phase
Thorgan Hazard showed even better shooting art with his opening goal when he pulled from 20 meters and the crooked trajectory of the ball also astonished Portugal goalkeeper Rui Patricio. The Belgians had to rearrange the Belgians after De Bruyne’s failure. In the 58th minute, Ronaldo suddenly shone as an energetic and precise preparer for Jota, who did not hit the goal again.
In the intense final phase, the Munich referee Felix Brych had a lot of trouble to calm the heated emotions on both sides. BVB professional Raphael Guerreiro hit the post for Ronaldo’s desperate team.