In their final warmup before they take on Cote d'Ivoire on the June 15th, Portugal beat Mozambique 3-0 largely due to their second-half subs.
Hugo Almeida scored twice; first in the 74' on an assist by Deco. The goal was the result of the keeper overcommitting, leaving the goal wide open. His second goal occured in the 82' after Cristiano launched a rocket at the keeper, who parried right into the path of the rebounding Almeida.
The first half was played equally by both, with both teams wasting great opportunities to score. Danny was by far the most aggressive player and it paid off just after the half when he received a great pass in the 52' from Deco to make it 1-0. Cristiano was subbed on for Simao in the 62'. He was full of tricks, but had little to no impact (except for the setup for the second Almeida goal). He still hasn't scored for the team in almost a year and a half.
If Mozambique would have had better finishing, this score could have been wildly different. Their goalkeeper did an excellent job, especially in the first half. Two of the goals in the second were not his fault, but his lazy defenders.
It was nice to see Pepe on the pitch after his long injury hiatus. I almost didn't recognize him...with hair!!! Second that for Bruno Alves. I'm really liking his new do...less mess...as for CR's hair...well...after he added water on it before entering the pitch it could only be described as the "Brontosaurus" look. It's not really a mohawk or a fauxhawk...more of a "dinohawk."
Speaking of heads, this Portuguese team still has me scratching mine. They will face far better opposition in their group and the news today that they've lost a key player only heightens the worry for Carlos Queiroz' squad.
Nani is out of the WC. Apparently he was practicing a bicycle kick in training a few days ago and "bruised" his collarbone. Treatments have not helped and a sub from Portugal has been called in to replace him, with Nani set to return home. This is a major blow to the team. Nani has continued his superb form from the end of Manchester United's campaign. He teams well with Cristiano, and now his spark and experience will be missed.
I'm not sure what spin to put on this. Most would say that it was irresponsible of him to be grandstanding in training and that it shows a lack of maturity. But if you know Nani, he is one of the most athletic and acrobatic players around. You only have to look at his goal celebrations for United to understand that...backflips.
It's unfortunate for the team but they have no choice but to perservere after the loss. Cote d'Ivoire are also in a quandary after the injury to their leading scorer, Didier Drogba. Their match should be very interesting.
One hilarious moment for me occured when Cristiano came on in the 62'. I was watching the match on Al-Jazeera and the commentators were not speaking English. After Ronny stepped on to the pitch the announcers were obviously talking about him...all I could understand was "[Arabic] Manchester United [Arabic........] Manchester United [Arabic]! hehe Ironically I never heard anything about Real Madrid. It shows the global appeal of our Red Devils!!!!!
He will need to play better to keep this smile on his face!
Warming up
Simao Sabrosa just sends one wide
My "Get Well" card to Nani!!!
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