Smart play by the hosts now, as they retain possession deep in Belgium’s half, winding the clock down as we enter three minutes of stoppage time...
87'
Danny enters the game and replaces Danilo Pereira.
And that yellow card will be the final action of the game for Pereira, who goes off to make way for Danny.
86'
D. Boyata enters the game and replaces J. Denayer.
A substitution now for Belgium, as current Manchester City loanee Jason Denayer is replaced by the former City defender Dedryck Boyata.
85'
M. Dembélé gets yellow.
Danilo Pereira gets yellow.
A bit of a flashpoint now, and an unneeded one at that, as Dembele and Pereira tussle over a loose ball, with the Tottenham man conceding a free-kick. The Portuguese midfielder charges up to his Belgian counter-part, and duly receives a yellow card for his reaction.
As for Dembélé, he also recives a yellow card for his part in the scuffle.
83'
MISS! That’s really poor from Quaresma! The Besiktas winger was played in in a perfect position on the edge of Belgium’s area following a swift counter-attack from the hosts, but he can only shank his strike wide off the outside of his right-boot. It was certainly an audacious effort, but he may have been better served to go for power rather than placement.
81'
CLOSE! What an effort from Nainggolan! The former Cagliari midfielder finds himself free in possession 30 yards out from Portugal’s goal. Lukaku and Batshuayi are both offering options to either side, but instead he elects to strike at goal, and he is desperately unlucky that the shot just evades the upright and goes out for a goal-kick.
79'
M. Dembélé enters the game and replaces M. Fellaini.
Another change now, as Mousa Dembele replaces Marouane Fellaini.
78'
More neat, crisp play from the visitors, who have really looked to get into their stride since Lukaku’s goal. Their switch to 4-4-2 has, however, allowed more space for Portugal in midfield, and Carvalho uses that to his advantage to power forward - Yaya Toure-like - towards the edge of the Belgium area before turning it into the path of Guerreiro, but his strike is hit well-off target.
75'
William Carvalho enters the game and replaces André Gomes.
Anotehr change now for Portugal, as André Gomes - who hasn't been as effective since the interval - makes way for William Carvalho.
73'
CLOSE! That’s desperatley unlucky for Guerreiro, as the full-back tries his luck with a curling effort from a free-kick just over 20 yards from Belgium’s goal. For a moment, it appears as though it may nestle in the top-left corner, but the strike whistles just over the crossbar.
Minute
Description
70'
A bit more composure now from Portugal, who are at real risk of throwing this game away. They finally manage to retain some possession in the opposition half, but without the expertise of Ronaldo and Nani, they look rather toothless compared to their performance in the first half.
67'
M. Batshuayi enters the game and replaces D. Mertens.
A second substitution now for Belgium, as Wilmots throws on Michy Batshuayi - the in-form Marseille striker - in place of Dries Mertens, and switches to a more attacking 4-4-2 system. The Belgian coach obviously feels this game is there for the taking!
65'
CHANCE! Almost a leveller for Belgium, as Fellaini brings the ball down in the box and manages to get a shot on target, but Pepe is again well-placed to make the block.
62'
R. Lukaku has scored a goal for Belgium! Assist by J. Lukaku.
GOOOOOAAAAALLLLL!!! What a story this is! On just his second appearance for Belgium, Jordan Lukaku drives down the left at pace and drills in an inch-perfect cross into the six-yard box, and who else is there to meet it and head home brilliantly other than his older brother Romelu! The Everton striker immediately peels over to his sibling immediately. What a moment for their family, and that goal has well and truly put Belgium well back in this game!
He has only been on the pitch a matter of minutes, and he is playing mainly as an auxiliary winger rather than a full-back, but it was a sublime delivery by Jordan Lukaku, who set it up perfectly for his older sibling to head in from close range.
61'
Éder enters the game and replaces Nani.
The second change in quick-succession for Portugal, as Nani makes way for Eder.
60'
Ricardo Quaresma enters the game and replaces Cristiano Ronaldo.
And there will be another glut of changes now for the hosts, as Santos choses to take both of his goalscorers off at the same time. First, Cristiano Ronaldo is replaced by his former Sporting Lisbon teammate Ricardo Quaresma.
59'
J. Lukaku enters the game and replaces G. Gillet.
A great moment now for the Lukaku family, as Gillet - who has struggled all night up against the pace and trickery of Nani and Ronaldo - makes way for Romelu’s younger brother, 21-year-old Jordan, who plies his trade as a left-back for Oostende.
58'
Belgium have stepped up the pace of their attacks somewhat since the interval, but Lukaku is still cutting an isolated figure up front, and Portugal - or more specifically Ronaldo and Nani - are still looking extremely dangerous on the break.
56'
GREAT SAVE! Patricio has not had much to do so far this evening, but he reacted expertly then to parry away Nainggolan’s swerving free-kick after the Roma midfielder had hammered a dipping strike on target from 25-yards out.
53'
A chance at the other end, now, as Mertens gets on the end of Chadli’s flat cross from the right wing. The Napoli man attempts to nudge his header on target, but it skews off his forehead at an awkward angle and trickles harmlessly out of play.
51'
WHAT A MISS! HOW HAS HE PUT THAT WIDE!? Terrible play once again from Gillet, whose heavy touch on the edge of Belgium’s area falls straight to Ronaldo. The Portuguese skipper has just Courtois to beat, but he somehow drills his effort high and wide from close range.
50'
More tricks once again from Ronaldo, as he uses his excellent footwork to get the better of Witsel on the half-way line, winning a free-kick in the process.
48'
The second half has continued just as the first half finished, with the hosts on the front foot and looking for the third goal to truly close the contest and wrap up the victory. Belgium eventually manage a foray forward, with Nainggolan drifting wide to thread in a pass towards Chadli, who attempts to find Lukaku with a cut-back only for his cross to be prevented at source by Fonte.
46'
Bernardo Silva enters the game and replaces João Mário.
Renato Sanches enters the game and replaces Adrien Silva.
The first of those changes sees Joao Mario, who provided the assist for Ronado’s goal, make way for playmaker Bernardo Silva, who starred in the U21 European Championships last season and has enjoyed a great campaign in Ligue 1 with Monaco.
Second-half! We are back up and running in Leiria, with Portugal getting the game restarted follwoing the interval. There have been two changes for the hosts at the break...
The second change sees Renato Sanches come on in place of Adrien Silva. There have been no substitutions by Belgium.
45'
Dreadful! A final chance of the half for Belgium after Mertens is fouled 30 yards from goal. The Napoli winger has to temporarily leave the field to receive treatment, with Chadli taking the free-kick in his teammate’s absence, but the former FC Twente man can only direct a tame strike straight into the Portugal wall.
43'
CLOSE! Ronaldo should have scored! What a chance that was for the Real Madrid star, who normally slots those opportunities away. Gomes did excellently to hold onto possession before sliding a lovely pass into the path of the Portugal captain, who could not keep his first-time effort on target.
42'
CHANCE!!! Wiesel really should have done better there! Martens again did well to beat his man and loft in a cross. The Zenit midfielder latches onto it on the volley, but he can only thump his close-range strike straight into Pepe, and the chance goes amiss.
40'
Cristiano Ronaldo has scored a goal for Portugal! Assist by João Mário.
GOOOOOOOAAAAAAALLLL!!!! RONALDO DOUBLES PORTUGAL’S LEAD! Well, that was dreadful from Belgium. Mario was allowed so much time and space on the left flank, with Gillet in no man’s land. The Sporting Lisbon winger duly floated in a looping cross, which no defender went towards, and that was all the invitation that Ronaldo needed as he leapt high to nod powerfully into the right-hand corner and make it 2-0!
It was a great cross from Mario, but he was left in acres of space down on the left by Belgium's ram-shackle defence, and duly made the visitors pay.
38'
Without the figures of Kompany, Vertonghen and Alderweireld in their defence, it has to be said that the world’s top-ranked side look extremely vulnerable when Portugal attack. That is not to take away from the attacking talents of the hosts, or of course their talisman Ronaldo, but the visitors are certainly looking shaky and lacklustre.
36'
Good play! That’s better from Belgium, as the visitors manage to string a decent attack together down the left, which eventually results in Mertens cutting inside and driving at goal with a low, right-footed strike, but Patricio gets down quickly to make a comfortable save.
34'
After the poor showing from his players on Friday, Santos is sure to be much happier with his side’s performance so far. They are restricting Belgium mainly to pot-shots from range, while - on the counter - looking extremely dangerous and much more likely to get the next goal than their depleted visitors.
31'
What a chance for Portugal! Again, the visitors are caught clean on the counter-attack following a poor free-kick from Mertens. Ronaldo leads the charge after being played through by Nani. He elects to play in Mario rather than go for glory himself, but the youngster is unable to get his shot off before being hounded out of possession by Courtois.
29'
GOOD DEFENDING! That’s top-quality marking from Pereira, who uses his large frame and strength to prevent Fellaini getting a clean strike on goal from the cusp of Portugal’s penalty area after the Manchester United midfielder had shirked free of Adrien Silva.
27'
You feel that Belgium are rather playing into Portugal’s hands somewhat so far, with the hosts content to sit back when they are not in possession before countering at pace as soon as they win the ball back, and they then have the expertise and experience of Ronaldo, Nani and Gomes to retain the ball in the final third. Santos’s gameplan is working perfectly at the moment!
25'
Unlucky! Good play once again from Lukaku, who holds up a drilled pass into him before attempting to get a shot off from the edge of the area, but Pepe is out quickly to smother the effort and make the block. Belgium really need to get the likes of Fellaini, Chadli and Mertens closer to Lukaku if they are to break down this Portugal defence and haul themselves level.
23'
Well, despite a fast start from Belgium, it has been Portugal who have done most of the attacking in the last 10 minutes or so, and as such Santos’s side are well worthy of their lead. Nani and Ronaldo are constantly doubling up on Gillet and Denayer down the right side of the Belgium defence, and Wilmots may well look to address that issue at half-time.
20'
Nani has scored a goal for Portugal! Assist by André Gomes.
GOOOOOOAAAALLLLL!!! PORTUGAL TAKE THE LEAD!! What a well-worked goal that was, as Gomes slips a neat throughball inside from the left to find Nani, who had made a really clever run from out-to-in to get behind Belgium’s defence and drive at pace into the box before slotting home coolly past Courtois. Portugal 1-0 Belgium!
It was a superbly-worked move from the hosts, with Gomes drifting out to the left wing to allow Nani the space to run in-behind, and duly teeing up the ex-Manchester United winger for the opening goal.
18'
WASTE! Another chance for Portugal, as Pereira is felled by Fellaini 30 yards from goal, slightly to the left. Ronaldo steps up to hammer an effort towards goal, but he can only direct the strike straight into the wall. The rebound falls back out to Gomes, but he can only shoot way off-target.
16'
Well, what a breathtaking few minutes of football that was. Some of these international friendlies - which come at a time in the season when the top players and clubs are playing so many games - tend to be rather slow affairs, but straight from kick-off this clash has been played at a really quick pace. However, thanks mainly to some top-class goalkeeping from Courtois, it is still goalless in Leiria.
13'
TWO AMAZING SAVES FROM COURTOIS! First, the former Atletcio Madrid goalkeeper does brilliantly to react instinctively to Nani’s powerful header, parrying it wide. Then, from the resulting corner, the 23-year-old somehow manages to prevent Pereira's headed effort finding the top-left corner, diving across to tip it expertly onto the crossbar. Super stuff from the Belgium goalkeeper!
11'
CLOSE! Almost for Lukaku! Belgium race up the other end from the resulting counter-attack, with Mertens weaving down the right flank before lofting in a cross towards his frontman, but Lukaku is just unable to latch onto the delivery for what would have been a tap-in!
10'
DOUBLE CHANCE! Superb play from Ronaldo! At his best, the 31-year-old is always a pleasure to watch, and he performed an immense piece of skill there to nutmeg Denayer and find Mario with a back-heeled pass. The Sporting Lisbon midfielder powers an effort goalwards from ana acute angle, which Courtois does well to parry out. The rebound falls to Adrien Silva, who tries his luck with a first time strike, but again the Chelsea shot-stopper is equal to it and makes the save.
9'
Finally, Portugal manager to forge a foray forward into the visitors’ territory, with Nani driving down the left at pace. The Fenerbahce winger is eventually forced to go back to Adrien Silva, who spreads the play and keeps the move ticking over…
7'
The game has settled into an early rhythm now, with Belgium dominating possession with ease. Lombaerts floats a long pass forward into Lukaku, who once again uses his strength excellently to shirk off his marker and slip a pass into Chadli. The Tottenham winger drives forward into the area, before attempting to slip in a throughball to the aforementioned Belgium striker, but Pepe and Fonte combine to cut out the danger.
5'
Straight from the off in Leiria, the visitors have looked to get on the front foot by feeding the ball into Lukaku early. This time it is Mertens who slides through a neat pass into the burly striker, whose attempted cross to the back post is blocked away by Fonte - who got across excellently to cover.
3'
As mentioned, Belgium are shorn of some of their most prolific talents for this evening’s clash, but Wilmots is still able to name an extremely strong line-up especially going forward. Their exciting attack is spearheaded by the in-form Romelu Lukaku, who has netted 25 times this season for Everton - his most recent goals coming against former club Chelsea in the FA Cup quarter-finals. The 22-year-old’s fine form has been said to have attracted interest from some of the continent’s biggest clubs, and he has been joined in the squad for this game by his younger brother Jordan, who is on the bench.
1'
KICK-OFF! We are underway here in Leiria, as Belgium, donning a grey and black away strip, get proceedings up and running in the first half!
Hello and welcome, football fans, and welcome to this LIVE text commentary of this international friendly between Portugal and Belgium! This clash was initially meant to take place at the King Baudouin Stadium, but due to the terror attacks in Brussels that have overshadowed the build-up to this match, it has been switched from the Belgian capital to Leiria’s Estádio Dr. Magalhães Pessoa. Stick right here for all the action as it happens in what promises to be an entertaining encounter.
While, as a result of the tragic events in Brussels, Belgium’s friendly with Spain - planned for Friday - did not take place, Portugal did play at the weekend, slumping to a surprise 1-0 defeat against Bulgaria - a game in which Cristiano Ronaldo missed a penalty. There had been some rumours that the Real Madrid star would not feature in tonight’s fixture, but the winger does indeed start for Fernando Santos’s side this evening.
On the other hand, the world’s number one side Belgium - whose coach Marc Wilmots has claimed that this match is one which his side “might not be able to learn a lot” from - have lost just one of their last nine internationals - that defeat coming in Wales last June. However, the Red Devils have not managed to claim a victory over Portugal since 1989, though the two nations have only come up against each other on three occasions in that 27-year period.
The team news is in now from Portugal, and, having being hit by a raft of injuries to players such as Eden Hazard, Kevin De Bruyne and Vincent Kompany, Wilmots has named a much changed starting XI to the one that started against Italy back in November, but it is a side that still boasts plenty of attacking talent. As for the hosts, Santos has made wholesale changes to the side that started against Bulgaria, with only Luis Nani, Joao Mario, Adrien Silva, Pepe and the aforementioned Ronaldo retaining their places. Let’s check on the full line-ups...
The teams are out on the pitch now, as the national anthems blare out over the sound system - first that of Belgium, followed by that of the hosts. It is a near full house on a calm, sunny evening in Leiria, in a stadium which holds just over 20,000.
We are just moments away from kick-off now, but first, their is a minute’s silence in remembrance of the victims of the Brussel’s attacks, which is of course impeccably observed.
HALF TIME! It’s Portugal 2-0 Belgium at the interval in Leiria, then, with goals from Luis Nani and Cristiano Ronaldo putting the hosts into a commanding position. The visitors made a bright start, with Dries Mertens and Romelu Lukaku both looking lively, but - after a string of fine saves from Thibaut Courtois had kept the scores level, the former Manchester United duo twice capitalised on poor defending from the Belgians to put Fernando Santos’s side well ahead.
While Belgium’s defending has been by no means up to par - or anywhere near par, for that matter - credit also has to go to Portugal’s attacking players for their movement and precise passing, especially on the counter. Their first goal was wonderfully crafted, with Nani latching onto a neat pass from Gomes before powering home past Courtois, before Ronaldo took advantage of poor marking to head in from close range after latching onto Mario’s pinpoint cross. There is certainly work to do for Wilmots at half time, while Santos will just be demanding more of the same from his players.
FULL-TIME!!! It’s all over in Leiria, where it has finished Portugal 2-1 Belgium. Goals from Luis Nani and Cristiano Ronaldo put the hosts ahead in the first half, and though the visitors responded courtesy of Romelu Lukaku’s header, they were unable to mount a comeback.
It was a superb display from Portugal in the first half, who will have delighted their coach with some solid, composed defending and quick-fire play on the counter-attack. Belgium were such improved after the restart, and only moments after coming on as a substitute, Jordan Lukaku set up his older brother with an inviting cross. But that was all the Belgain’s could muster as they slipped to their first defeat since last June.
Well, that's all from Leiria for tonight. It has been a real pleasure to bring you all the action from what was a fast-paced, full-throttle affair between Portugal and Belgium, with the hosts triumphing in the end courtesy of Cristiano Ronaldo's winner. Until next time, thank you and goodbye!
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