Ronaldo's 900th Goal Powers Portugal to Nations League Victory

Ronaldo’s 900th Goal Powers Portugal to Nations League Victory

Cristiano Ronaldo etched his name into footballing history on Thursday, scoring his 900th career goal to lead Portugal to a 2-1 victory over Croatia in their Nations League opener.

The 39-year-old superstar reached the milestone in the 34th minute, tapping in from close range after a perfect cross from Nuno Mendes. The goal was a testament to Ronaldo’s enduring brilliance and his ability to find the back of the net even at the twilight of his career.

Portugal had taken an early lead through Diogo Dalot, who fired home in the seventh minute after a clever pass from Bruno Fernandes. However, Dalot’s night took a turn for the worse when he deflected a sliding effort from Borna Sosa into his own net four minutes from the break, giving Croatia a lifeline.

Despite Croatia’s late surge, Portugal held on for a hard-fought victory. The win gives them a strong start to their Nations League campaign, as they look to defend their title.

In the other League A Group 1 game, Poland edged out Scotland 3-2 in a thrilling encounter. The Poles took the lead through Robert Lewandowski, but Scotland fought back to level the scores. However, Poland ultimately prevailed, with goals from Arkadiusz Milik and Krzysztof Piatek securing the victory.

Portugal will host Scotland on Sunday, while Croatia will entertain Poland. Both matches promise to be exciting affairs, as the teams look to make their mark in the Nations League.

Football Team Of Spain

Spain beats Croatia on penalties to lift the Nations League cup

2010 World Cup winners Spain have defeated Croatia in the finals to be crowned the champions of the 2023 UEFA Nations League. The team won in the penalties 5-4 thanks to right back Dani Carvajal’s decisive spot-kick.

This is the second time that Spain has reached the final of the UEFA Nations League, while Luka Modric’s Croatia played their first-ever Nations League Final. Spain lost the 2020/21 finals against France and was looking to finish on the right side of the result this time around.

After the game, Spain manager Luis de La Fuente praised his new-formed side and said that their winning mentality is back within the lads.

Football & Studs

Football & Studs

“These players are used to winning,” de La Fuente told reporters after the game. “They have won so much coming through the ranks and this can continue, I think this competitive streak is back and we can look forward to winning more.”

“I know this generation of players very well and I knew they wouldn’t let me down,” de La Fuente said. “We’ve been very relaxed throughout this week and enjoyed our training sessions. I told them to stay calm because they had done a brilliant job. We would have deserved to win the game earlier, but this makes the win even more epic. I would have been happy even if we hadn’t won tonight, but winning adds the gloss and of course, makes everyone happier,” the manager of Spain added.

In the semi-finals of the Nations League, Croatia defeated the Netherlands 4-2 in an exciting encounter that went down to extra time. Meanwhile, Spain beat Italy 2-1 thanks to an 88th-minute winner from striker Joselu.

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