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Portugal traveled to the Stade de Geneve to take on Switzerland on matchday four of their Nations League Group A2 encounter on Sunday night (June 12).
Playing without their talismanic captain Cristiano Ronaldo, whom Fernando Santos gave a break, Portugal failed to produce their best football and succumbed to a 1-0 defeat in Switzerland. Haris Seferovic scored the only goal of the match.
The loss saw Portugal drop down to second place (seven points) in the Group A2 standings. Spain, who bagged a 2-0 win over the Czech Republic on Sunday night, have leapfrogged Santos’ side to occupy the top spot with eight points.
Having succumbed to a 4-0 defeat in the reverse fixture, the Swiss were eager to produce a more respectable performance at home. They came out of the gates all guns blazing and got themselves on the scoresheet within the first 60 seconds of play.
Silvan Widmer delivered an impeccable cross into the area, and Seferovic headed it with aplomb to put his side 1-0 up. Twelve minutes later, Nuno Mendes’ outstretched hand struck the ball inside the penalty area, but a foul in the build-up saw the VAR rule out the handball-induced penalty.
In the 17th minute, Danilo Pereira lodged Portugal’s first shot on target, but his effort was straight at Swiss keeper Jonas Omlin, who comfortably parried it away. Andre Silva and Bruno Fernandes came close to scoring the equalizer within 11 minutes of the restart, but the ball just would not go in.
Portuguese substitutes Bernardo Silva and Goncalo Guedes also went for goal with powerful efforts, but Omlin once again came to his side’s rescue.
Liverpool ace Diogo Jota lodged Portugal’s last effort on target in the 78th minute, and inevitably, Omlin managed to keep it from creeping over the line. Courtesy of the Swiss keeper’s heroics and unconvincing forward play, Santos’ side succumbed to their first defeat of the 2022-23 Nations League campaign.
Here are five players who were particularly disappointing on Sunday night:
#5 Pepe
Pepe, 39, was the oldest player on the pitch on Sunday night. He was as committed and spirited as ever, but a slow start to the game ultimately proved to be costly.
Despite seeing Widmer lining up a cross on the right, Pepe did not mark Seferovic, who happened to be right behind him. The veteran defender made a tame leap trying to clear the ball. But the cross evaded him and fell nicely to the Swiss forward, who glanced it past Rui Patricio.
Pepe also lost four out of his eight aerial duels and ceded possession eight times.
A disappointing outing from the Porto centre-back.
#4 Vitinha
FC Porto midfielder Vitinha earned his third international cap on Sunday night.
Instead of making the most of the opportunity, the 22-year-old allowed the game to pass him by, rarely doing anything of note during his time on the pitch.
His passing was accurate but rarely threatening, he could not hold his ground in most one-on-one situations, and rarely contributed to the build-up play.
Against Switzerland, Vitinha had no attempts on goal, lost three of his four ground duels, ceded possession thrice, and committed two fouls.
He was taken off for Bernardo Silva in the 62nd minute, who immediately injected creativity into the Portuguese midfield.
#3 Andre Silva
With Cristiano Ronaldo rested for the game, Andre Silva got the opportunity to play as Portugal’s centre-forward.
The RB Leipzig man worked hard and got a shot on target in the 50th minute, which was brilliantly saved by Omlin. Apart from that, however, there was nothing to write home about.
Silva also saw another goal-bound attempt blocked by the Swiss. He completed only 15 passes, could not create any goalscoring opportunities, and lost eight of 12 duels.
Silva was also dispossessed seven times and committed two fouls.
#2 Joao Cancelo
Joao Cancelo was one of Portugal’s best performers in their first three 2022-23 Nations League matches, scoring two goals and providing an assist.
Last night, however, he failed to put his best foot forward, struggling to threaten the opposition as effortlessly as he generally does. He was also beaten in the air by Seferovic for the hosts’ only goal.
Against Switzerland, Cancelo failed to play a key pass, misplaced six of his eight long balls, and lost possession 15 times.
The Manchester City full-back also lost five ground duels and committed two fouls.
His mistimed challenge on Breel Embolo in the second half saw him go down in the referee’s books.
#1 Rafael Leao
AC Milan youngster Rafael Leao started on the left side of the Portuguese attack on Sunday. The 23-year-old, who scored 14 times and provided 12 assists across all games in the 2021-22 campaign, could not make the most of his opportunity.
He rarely made inroads into the penalty box, did not contribute to the build-up play, and also failed to hold his ground.
Over the course of the match, Leao neither took a shot nor played a key pass. He also completed only 11 passes, lost possession seven times, and committed a foul.
He also lost all three of his ground duels and was unsuccessful in his single dribble attempt.
Diogo Jota ultimately replaced him in the 62nd minute.
