Portugal endured a difficult start to life after Cristiano Ronaldo, suffering a 1-4 defeat against Denmark in their UEFA Nations League encounter at Estadio Municipal in Braga on Saturday. Rasmus Hojlund scored twice as the visitors spoiled an evening dedicated to celebrating Ronaldo’s international career.
The match began with emotional tributes to the former Portugal captain, who recently brought his international career to a close. All 11 Portuguese starters wore his iconic No. 7 jersey as a mark of respect, while supporters inside the stadium joined in celebrating his contribution to the national team.
A photograph of Ronaldo appeared on the stadium’s giant screen in the seventh minute, drawing loud applause and chants from the home crowd. However, Denmark soon shifted the focus back to football with an impressive attacking display.
Portugal started brightly, with Vitinha and Pedro Neto testing the Danish defence. Neto came close to opening the scoring around the 20-minute mark, but goalkeeper Mads Hermansen produced an important save. Diogo Dalot also created an opportunity with a dangerous delivery, but Portugal failed to capitalize.
Denmark initially thought they had taken the lead through Hojlund in the 38th minute, only for the effort to be ruled out following a foul by Joachim Andersen in the build-up.
The visitors eventually broke the deadlock just before half-time when Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg converted a penalty in the 43rd minute.
Denmark carried their advantage into the second half and doubled it five minutes after the restart. Mikkel Damsgaard delivered an excellent ball into the Portuguese penalty area, which Hojlund met with a powerful volley to make it 2-0.
The striker completed his brace in the 57th minute, finding space inside the box before calmly finishing past the Portuguese goalkeeper. The goal prompted some Denmark supporters to chant the name of Lionel Messi, Ronaldo’s long-time rival.
Portugal head coach Jorge Jesus attempted to change the momentum by introducing Carlos Forbs, Francisco Trincao and Joao Palhinha in the 63rd minute. Trincao later had an opportunity to pull one back after receiving a pass from Vitinha, but his effort failed to find the target.
Denmark added a fourth in the 75th minute, with Joachim Andersen heading home a cross from Mathias Jensen to further underline the visitors’ dominance.
The defeat did not affect Portugal’s position at the top of Group A in League A, as they have already secured qualification for the quarter-finals. Denmark remain second and need just a point against Norway in their final group-stage fixture on Tuesday to confirm their place in the last eight.
For Portugal, the result marked a disappointing beginning to their post-Ronaldo era, despite an evening that began with celebrations of one of the country’s greatest footballers.
