At the National Football Stadium in Bratislava on Friday, Portugal defeated Slovakia 1-0 to advance to the European Championship 2024. Bruno Fernandes scored the game-winning goal.
Bruno Fernandes' goal gave Portugal a 1-0 victory over Slovakia on Friday in Bratislava, giving them their fifth straight victory in Euro 2024 qualification.
With 15 goals scored and no goals allowed in Group J, Roberto Martinez's team leads its rival, which is in second place after suffering its first defeat, by five points.
Due to the injury of seasoned defender Pepe, 40, the Portugal coach chose to pair Ruben Dias with 19-year-old Antonio Silva at the centre of defence.
At the age of 38 and playing for Portugal in his 201st match, Cristiano Ronaldo, who has a record 850 goals in his career, scored against Slovakia in a 2005 World Cup qualifier but was unable to add to the total this time.
The former Manchester United and Real Madrid forward made his international debut for Portugal in 2003, and he currently leads all players in both goals and appearances with 123.
After a defensive blunder by Slovakia, Fernandes shot instead of passing, and Martin Dubravka blocked the midfielder's low attempt, Ronaldo raised his arms in agony.
It was one of the few opportunities in a cagey first half in which Slovakia kept things close, but the hosts might have taken the lead when Lukas Haraslin's powerful drive kissed the outside of the near post.
Soon after, Fernandes gave Portugal the lead with a close-range goal into the far corner, his third of the qualifying round, giving the visitors the lead going into halftime.
After an hour, Ronaldo missed a chance to extend Portugal's lead, and as he attempted to score the loose ball, he slid in on Dubravka and was given a yellow card.
With 15 minutes left, the striker squandered another excellent opportunity when well-positioned, but Portugal held on to win. Dubravka comfortably stopped his shot at the near post.
In the upcoming qualifying match, the victor of Euro 2016 will host Luxembourg while Slovakia will host Liechtenstein.
