FIFA Confederations Cup 2017: Portugal 2-2 Mexico - 5 Talking Points

#4 Defensive errors galore

It’s kind of ironic that Portugal won Euro 2016 with a 1-0 scoreline – this is a nation that for years, has been blessed with some stunning players going forward (Eusebio, Luis Figo, Rui Costa etc), but some distinctly average players at the back. Yes, there have been some legendary centre-backs, but as a unit, Portugal have been historically awful.

Fernando Santos seemed to have solved their problems in the Euros last summer, but this game was a return to type. Fonte and Pepe struggled to bring the ball out of defence in the opening 20 minutes, with plenty of misplaced passes. Of course, the worst moment came from the boot of Raphael Guerreiro, who has not had the best of seasons for Dortmund, with the left-back’s air-kick that set up Mexico’s first goal a clanger he would love to forget.

Cedric’s goal sort of made up for the torrid time the rest of his defensive partner’s faced, only for Fonte to let him down with a misjudged header from the injury-time corner, allowing Mexico to score. Perhaps this is just rustiness after a long club season, as Mexico had their fair share of defensive issues as well, but noth managers have to iron out their defensive issues fast, if they want to progress.