Goalkeepers were the protagonists, in regulation time and in the penalty shootout.
Night of dreams, cups and goalkeepers in that of Frankfurtwhere the protagonists were the goalkeepers of a Portugal-Slovenia that seemed unbalanced and instead gave us the first penalty shootout of the tournament. In fact, both the Portugal that the Slovenia they were able to count, compared to many of the teams seen in these Europeansalready from the groups on a football idea and a well-defined block of men. Martinez He abandoned the 3-man defence experiment from the disappointing first match against the Czech Republic and had already played against Turkey, opting for a 4-2-3-1 with Straw to cover the backs of Little Vitinha in midfield. After the massive turnover carried out with the Georgiathis is again the chosen lineup. Kek he is instead faithful to his solid and square 4-4-2, with School e Tracks to divide up the tasks going forward and Stojanovic e Mlakar to work in their support on the wings. The only change is Balkovec in the role of left back in place of the suspended player Janza.
In the first half of Portugal-Slovenia, the lively runs of the team dominated Rafael Leaomuch more involved than the previous releases even at the expense of Bernardo Silva on the other hand, and above all the playing field of the Deutsche Bank Parkevidently affected by the bad weather of these days. Portugal attacks persistently despite some very imaginative bounces of the ball, but they are unable to create clear-cut chances. On the other side, Slovenia sets up counterattacks with the weapons they have at their disposal, that is mainly some runs by the midfielders (Elsnik perhaps one of the nicest surprises of the competition) and the one against all of Schoolwho has the size to withstand physical duels and the speed to create problems for the Portuguese defensive duo.
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The second half starts more or less along the same lines as the first. Portugal attacks with a little more conviction and finally manages to light up on the right, breaking the monopoly of the duo Leo-Nuno Mendes (his performance was excellent). The best chance was created by Sesko, who beat Pepe on the run but then hit badly with his left foot. The insertion of Diogo Jota for Vitinha it is a clear signal from Martinez, who wants his players to raise the pace and follow the action more. In fact, the Portuguese attempts at crossing have often ended up at the bottom, with only Cristiano Ronaldo waiting for the ball. Ten minutes later, Kek redesigns Slovenia with the move of Elsnik to the outside in place of Mlakar and Stankovic in the middle of the field, while Cellar replaces a Sporar drained of all energy. A fate that also awaits Leao, replaced by Conception after a lackluster thirty minutes or so.
Despite the attempts, in the 90′ the game ends without any sensational jolts, but in the extra time the bank completely breaks. Portugal is tired, but does not give up on keeping the defensive line very high. The Slovenians often end up offside but do not give up on the sacred principle of the restart. The result is a very exciting pinball machine, even if not always technically excellent, which has its peak of tension at 105′. Drkusicin difficulty when he is aimed and has to retreat, Diogo Jota knocks out in the penalty area. From the spot, obviously, he presents himself Cristiano Ronaldoso yet another match is underway in which he seems to be constantly fighting against himself and against the world obsessed with goals and who knows what record. In the meantime, you who are watching are wondering if Portugal, with Goncalo Ramos e Joao Felix to rot on the bench, not be a helpless victim of his totem. However, Ronaldo takes the penalty and misses it, stopped by a sensational Oblak who anticipates the movement to his left and parries it. From the deeds of its captain, Slovenia draws enormous strength. Kek’s men restart with even more conviction, while in defense Biol confirms itself as an insurmountable wall. At 115′ there is the appointment with history: a Pepe exhausted by the endless war with Sesko loses a bad ball at 30 meters and rolls out the red carpet right to the Leipzig center forward, who flies towards the goal, but then kicks right at Diogo Costa. In fact, it is the definitive sliding door. In fact, it goes to penalty kicks, and here the number 1 of the Porto definitely steals the scene from his Slovenian opposite. The ’99 class in fact makes 3 are 3first opposing Ilicicthen to Balkovec and finally to VerbicOn the other side, everyone scores, first Ronaldo to chase away the ghosts, then Bruno Fernandes and Bernardo Silva, all with perfect executions.
The impression is that for Slovenia the penalty shootout was the ideal scenario, but then technical limitations and a bit of fear took over. There were opportunities to do something incredible and unexpected. It would have been nice to tell the story of the rebirth of Ilicic or the young Sesko who has already been consecrated as a national hero. The boys of Matjaz Cake but they have very little to reproach themselves for the tactical organization and the pride shown on the field in the four matches played, and in the end they can say they returned home undefeated in the 90 minutes. On the other hand, it is difficult to make clear evaluations about Portugal. What is evident is that, beyond the good performance with the TürkiyeMartinez’s team he struggles terribly to score and even produce clear goal-scoring opportunities in relation to the talent available. Cristiano Ronaldo is the elephant in the room, but at this point he is unlikely to be replaced. Paradoxically, the quarter-final clash with France pits two big favorites against each other but also two teams with similar problems. The two coaches have the task of finding a solution quickly.
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2024-07-01 22:34:05
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