Portugal avoid disaster as Rafa Leão sees red card in rage

Cristiano Ronaldo began his journey toward a sixth World Cup, and his final opportunity to win it, in a friendly against Chile that proved more awkward than expected for both the Portuguese star and Roberto Martínez’s side. Lacking sharpness and rhythm, Portugal fell into the trap laid by Nicolás Córdova’s South Americans. Frustration mounted as Chile, despite its limitations, maximised its strengths and made life difficult for the hosts. A clinical finish from Gonçalo Guedes prevented Portugal from stumbling against the world No. 55, before Bruno Fernandes ultimately secured the victory for a side that continues to show signs of inconsistency.

Portugal urgently needs to find a way to connect the talent of Cristiano Ronaldo, Bernardo Silva and Bruno Fernandes with the PSG contingent. Vitinha, João Neves, Nuno Mendes and Gonçalo Ramos were absent following their Champions League celebrations, and their absence was keenly felt. It was far from Portugal’s most convincing performance and raised fresh questions about their ability to dominate possession against inferior opponents and break down stubborn defensive blocks. That was certainly the case against Chile. In the end, Portugal’s finishing quality bailed them out of more than one difficult situation, although goals of this nature may count for little at the World Cup.

Rafael Leão was the undisputed protagonist of the first half. Charging down the flank with long strides and blistering pace, he constantly threatened the Chilean defence, even if many of his attacks lacked a final product. Besides being Portugal’s standout performer, he also played a central role in the confrontation that brought the first half to a chaotic close. After an exchange of shoves with the young Chilean Román, both players were shown red cards.

The interval brought the usual raft of substitutions, and Cristiano Ronaldo’s evening came to an end. The Madeiran was not at his best against Chile. He tried to impose himself but was repeatedly smothered by the opposition defence. He remains on 973 career goals, 27 short of the historic 1,000 mark. Nigeria, another nation that failed to qualify for the World Cup, will be his next opponent. His replacement, Gonçalo Guedes, made an immediate impact, combining brilliantly with Rúben Neves before opening the scoring with an excellent finish.

Every Portugal performance seems to require a contribution from Bruno Fernandes, and the midfielder once again delivered. Doing what he does best, he struck from distance to make it 2-0, his effort clipping the inside of the post on its way in. The goal appeared to settle Portugal, but that sense of comfort allowed Chile’s Cepeda to pull one back and give Portuguese supporters a late scare.

In the end, it was another underwhelming night for Cristiano Ronaldo and another performance that left doubts about a Portugal side that can look distinctly ordinary when operating below full intensity. If they are to avoid an upset at the World Cup, they will need to find another gear in a group featuring DR Congo, Uzbekistan and Colombia, opponents capable of causing problems just as Chile did here.

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Portugal

• 12 José Sá (45')
• 2 Nelson Semedo (45')
• 3 Rúben Dias (86')
• 13 Renato Veiga (45')
• 20 Cancelo
• 8 Bruno Fernandes
• 17 Rafael Leao
• 10 Bernardo Silva (45')
• 26 Francisco Conceição (75')
• 24 Samuel Costa (45')
• 7 Cristiano (45')
• Substitutes
• 5 Diogo Dalot (45')
• 14 Gonçalo Inácio (45')
• 4 Tomas Araujo (86')
• 1 Diogo Costa
• 11 João Félix (75')
• 18 Pedro Neto (45')
• 21 Ruben Neves (45')
• 19 Gonçalo Guedes (45')
• Ricardo Velho
• 16 Trincão
• 22 Rui Silva (45')

Chile

• Lawrence Vigouroux
• Guillermo Maripán
• Suazo
• Felipe Faúndez (45')
• Iván Román
• Darío Osorio (79')
• Vicente Pizarro (79')
• Maximiliano Gutiérrez (66')
• Felipe Loyola (79')
• Agustín Arce (66')
• Gonzalo Tapia (79')
• Substitutes
• Víctor Méndez (79')
• Francisco Sierralta (45')
• 16 Igor Lichnovsky
• Rodrigo Echeverria (66')
• Clemente Montes
• Iván Morales (79')
• Diego Ulloa
• Lucas Cepeda (66')
• Nils Reichmuth (79')
• Matías Sepúlveda
• Thomas Gillier
• Fabian Hormazabal (79')
• Brayan Cortés
• Lautaro Millán

Substitutions

Rui Silva (45', José Sá), Diogo Dalot (45', Nélson Semedo), Gonçalo Inácio (45', Renato Veiga), Rúben Neves (45', Samú Costa), Pedro Neto (45', Bernardo Silva), Gonçalo Guedes (45', Cristiano Ronaldo), Francisco Sierralta (45', Felipe Faúndez), Lucas Cepeda (66', Agustín Arce), Rodrigo Echeverría (66', Maximiliano Gutiérrez), João Félix (75', Francisco Conceição), Nils Reichmuth (79', Darío Osorio), Felipe Méndez (79', Vicente Pizarro), Iván Morales (79', Gonzalo Tapia), Fabián Hormazábal (79', Felipe Loyola), Tomás Araújo (86', Rúben Dias)

Goals

1-0, 57': Gonçalo Guedes, 2-0, 74': Bruno Fernandes, 2-1, 91': Lucas Cepeda

Cards

Referee: Luca Zufferli
VAR Referee: Rosario Abisso, Federico La Penna
Rafael Leao (46',Red), Iván Román (46',Red)