Portugal win on Ronaldos return to Old Trafford Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo both featured in the first half with Manchester United’s Angel Di Maria and Nani also on opposing sides as Portugal defeated Argentina 1-0 in an international friendly at Old Trafford. Di Maria came close to giving the game an early goal when his shot crept narrowly wide after Messi touched the ball through to him. Messi was almost on the scoresheet himself when attempting to squeeze home from a tight angle but his shot flicked off the near post and sped across the face of goal. There was another injury scare for the watching Louis van Gaal when Di Maria was chopped down by United colleague Nani, who is on loan at Sporting Lisbon. The Reds fans in the crowd held their breath as the record signing received lengthy treatment but he was able to continue. Javier Pastores header was kept out by Portugal goalkeeper Beto while Ronaldo almost gave the fans the moment they craved, twisting and turning to fashion a left-foot shot that whistled over the bar. Messi had another attempt, firing a free-kick over, but both men were withdrawn at the break, much to everybodys disappointment. At least Di Maria stayed on for another 15 minutes to provide width to the South Americans attack and his final involvement was to offer a dipping drive that was too hot for Naheul Guzman to hold but the keeper gathered comfortably at the second attempt. Nani took over the captaincy of Portugal and showed flashes of skill but, aside from jeering Carlos Tevez on his arrival, the spectators indulged in a prolonged Mexican wave as the action on the pitch become almost secondary midway through the second period. The match petered out long before the end as the two much-changed sides were unable to create any noteworthy chances until there was a sting in the tail provided by the Portuguese with the match a minute into stoppage time. The ball broke kindly off Eder towards Ricardo Quaresma on the right flank and he supplied the perfect centre for fellow substitute Raphael Guerreiro to dive and head in the winner. It rewarded the fans who had an opportunity to witness some of the stars of the world game parading their talents at the Theatre of Dreams with a decent crowd estimated to be in excess of 40,000 turning up for the occasion. After the game, Argentina coach Gerardo Martino confirmed Di Maria would be evaluated and added: We dont think it was anything serious but it was quite a tough blow.
Posted on: Wed, 19 Nov 2014 13:25:03 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015