"Portugal secured qualification for the 2026 World Cup in style as Bruno Fernandes and Joao Neves both scored hat-tricks in a 9-1 rout of Armenia in Porto. Cristiano Ronaldo was suspended following his red card in Thursday's 2-0 defeat to the Republic of Ireland, a result that made the Selecao wait to clinch top spot in Group F. But Roberto Martinez's team coped well without their talisman on Sunday, hitting five goals before half-time."
"Renato Veiga nodded in the opener after Fernandes saw a curling free-kick parried onto the post by Henri Avagyan, though Armenia briefly got back on level terms when captain Eduard Spertsyan bundled home following good work from Grant-Leon Ranos. However, Portugal shook off that setback as Goncalo Ramos intercepted Artur Serobyan's loose back pass to make it 2-1, before Neves struck with a low drive and an inch-perfect free-kick off the underside of the crossbar."
Portugal qualified for the 2026 World Cup after a 9-1 victory over Armenia in Porto. Bruno Fernandes and Joao Neves each scored hat-tricks; Goncalo Ramos and Renato Veiga also scored. Cristiano Ronaldo was suspended after a red card against the Republic of Ireland, but the team scored five goals before half-time. Fernandes converted two penalties and added goals from open play and a curled finish; Neves scored from a low drive and a precise free-kick. The win, coupled with Hungary's defeat to the Republic of Ireland, secured Portugal top spot in Group F and a seventh straight World Cup qualification.
Read at Soccer News
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]