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Republic of Ireland goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu has revealed what helped him while stopping Cristiano Ronaldo's penalty on Wednesday night. The 19-year-old denied Ronaldo the opening goal during Republic of Ireland's 2-1 defeat to Portugal in the World Cup qualifiers at Estadio Algarve.
Bazunu was at fault for conceding the penalty in the first place though. The Manchester City custodian, who is currently on loan at Portsmouth, produced a weak pass while playing out from the back that allowed Bruno Fernandes to pounce on the ball.
In a desperate attempt to prevent Portugal from capitalizing on the opening, Jeff Hendrick ended up bringing Fernandes down inside the penalty area. The referee awarded the spot-kick to Portugal after a lengthy consultation with VAR and Cristiano Ronaldo stepped up to take it.
However, the Portuguese captain was denied from the spot as Bazunu produced an excellent save. The Republic of Ireland eventually took the lead through John Egan just before half-time, but Cristiano Ronaldo netted a late brace to help Portugal secure a comeback win.
Despite ultimately losing the game, Bazunu hogged the limelight for his penalty save, which received rave reviews from across the globe. Speaking after the World Cup qualifier clash, Bazunu stated:
"The first emotion was just disappointment at giving it away, it was my fault for the penalty, but I just tried to stay calm."
"There was a lot of time between the penalty being awarded and being taken so I just tried to stay relaxed and trust my gut."
Bazunu also admitted that he had seen clips of Cristiano Ronaldo earlier and it helped him judge the penalty precisely.
"I wasn't thinking about that (going up against Ronaldo) too much, I was just focusing on - from the clips I had watched - what he was going to do and just stick to the side I was going to."
Cristiano Ronaldo becomes highest international goalscorer
Although he missed an early penalty, Cristiano Ronaldo ultimately surpassed Ali Daei's record for most number of goals in international football. The 36-year-old planted two majestic headers past Bazunu in the dying embers of the game to break Irish hearts.
En route to sealing a dramatic late win, Cristiano Ronaldo took his goal tally to 111 in 180 international matches for Portugal. The Manchester United forward celebrated the late goals in style after etching his name into the history books yet again.
