DORTMUND: Portugal swept into the last 16 of Euro 2024 on Saturday after comfortably seeing off Turkiye 3-0 and guaranteeing first place in Group F.
Bernardo Silva’s fine finish in the 21st minute, a comical Samet Akaydin own goal shortly afterwards and Bruno Fernandes’s second-half tap-in gave Portugal a straightforward win in front of swathes of passionate Turkish fans in Dortmund.
Portugal looked every inch a team aiming to win their second European Championship after triumphing in 2016, their star-studded line-up easily dealing with Vincenzo Montella’s enthusiastic but limited Turkiye team.
Cristiano Ronaldo will have at least two more tries to become the oldest goalscorer at a European Championship as Martinez said on Friday that the 39-year-old is in the right shape to play every four days.
It was Ronaldo who unselfishly set up Fernandes for a simple goal in the 56th minute after springing through Turkiye’s offside trap, and he then had time to pose for a selfie with a child fan who invaded the pitch midway through the second half.
Martinez’s side, on a perfect six points, will face one of the four best third-place finishers in the next round and go into their final group game against Georgia without any pressure for a result.
The same cannot be said for Turkiye who need a draw against the Czech Republic on Wednesday to ensure second place.
Turkiye’s passionate support again flocked to the Westfalenstadion in huge numbers, with long tailbacks on the roads leading to the ground several hours before the 6:00 p.m. (1600 GMT) kick-off.
Some fans sat on the top of cars leading chants among the thousands of supporters who crawled toward their destination.
Once inside what was effectively a home crowd let out a deafening chorus of whistles and jeers when Portugal jogged out for their pre-match warm-up.
However, once the match got underway there was a clear gap in class between the two sides and Portugal went deservedly ahead through Silva as the Manchester City midfielder confidently smashed in Nuno Mendes’s deflected low cross.
Soon after, Akaydin gifted Portugal a two-goal lead with his sloppy backpass which turned into an own goal as Zeki Celik and goalkeeper Altay Bayindir tried in vain to prevent the ball crossing the line.
Those two goals and the dominance of the Portuguese players quietened down the partisan crowd and the result was sealed when Fernandes stroked home his former Manchester United teammate Ronaldo’s present of a pass.
The Portugal fans then turned up the volume to celebrate their country reaching the last 16.
And cheers then rang around the ground from both sets of supporters as a pint-sized fan ran onto the pitch midway through the second half, just as the game was stopped to allow Nelson Semedo to replace Joao Cancelo for Portugal.
The youngster was cool enough to grab an amused Ronaldo for a photo and then dashed off on a mazy run his hero would have been proud of, dropping his shoulder on security staff before eventually being carted away from the pitch.
Ronaldo was less amused when five much larger fans then made copycat bids for selfies, only to be showered with boos and refused a photo before annoyed stewards reached them.
Portugal breeze past Turkiye and into Euro 2024 knockout stage
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Portugal breeze past Turkiye and into Euro 2024 knockout stage
- Portugal looked every inch a team aiming to win their second European Championship
- Cristiano Ronaldo will have at least two more tries to become the oldest goalscorer at a European Championship
Chelsea overcome Club World Cup weather delay, set up Palmeiras quarter-final
- The London club were grateful to extra-time goals by Christopher Nkunku, Pedro Neto and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall to give them a 4-1 victory over Benfica
PHILADELPHIA: Chelsea beat Benfica in a game which went on for close to five hours at the Club World Cup on Saturday to set up a quarter-final showdown with Brazilian side Palmeiras at the tournament in the United States.
The London club were grateful to extra-time goals by Christopher Nkunku, Pedro Neto and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall to give them a 4-1 victory over Benfica.
Their late burst of scoring settled a last-16 tie which took four hours, 39 minutes to complete at Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium in North Carolina after a near two-hour weather delay.
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca was left satisfied with his team’s victory but slammed the delay that turned the tie into a near five-hour marathon.
“I think it’s a joke, it’s not football,” Maresca said.
“For 85 minutes we were in control of the game. We created enough chances to win the game. Then after the break, the game changed — for me personally, it’s not football.”
Earlier, Chelsea had been seemingly poised for victory after Reece James’ opportunistic second-half free-kick had left them 1-0 up with four minutes of regulation time remaining.
But just as Chelsea began to think about their quarter-final assignment, the arrival of a storm over Charlotte triggered local safety protocols which required the game to be halted.
It marked the sixth occasion during the Club World Cup that a game has been disrupted by a weather warning.
When play resumed just under two hours later, a revitalized Benfica grabbed an injury-time equalizer after Chelsea substitute Malo Gusto was adjudged to have handled in the penalty area following an intervention by the Video Assistant Referee.
Benfica’s Argentine veteran Angel Di Maria stepped up to roll in an ice-cold penalty, sending the game into extra time.
An end-to-end first half of extra time saw Benfica, reduced to 10 men following Gianluca Prestianni’s second yellow card at the end of regulation, threaten to take the lead as they chased an improbable victory.
But instead it was Nkunku who fired Chelsea back in front, the French international bundling in from close range after Moises Caicedo’s low shot squirted underneath Benfica goalkeeper Antoliy Trubin.
As the game opened up, Benfica were increasingly vulnerable on the counter-attack and Chelsea pounced.
Neto made it 3-1 with a nerveless finish after going clean through on goal in the 114th minute, and three minutes later Dewsbury-Hall completed the rout to send Chelsea through to the last eight.
They will now return to Philadelphia, where they played two games in the group stage, to play Palmeiras in the quarter-finals on Friday.
The Brazilian club were grateful to an extra-time winner by substitute Paulinho as they edged domestic rivals Botafogo 1-0 in a battle of attrition earlier Saturday at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
The winger came on at the same time in the second half as Palmeiras coach Abel Ferreira withdrew teenage sensation Estevao Willian, a move that appeared baffling in the moment but ultimately proved inspired.
The tie had reached the 100th minute without a goal when Paulinho collected a pass by Richard Rios on the right flank and was afforded the time and space to come inside into the box before slotting a low shot into the far corner.
That sparked wild celebrations among the Palmeiras fans who made up the vast majority of the 33,657 crowd, and the side from Sao Paulo held on to win the tie despite having captain Gustavo Gomez sent off late on.
“That is why he came, so he could play for long enough to decide a game. He is going to have to stop again after the tournament,” Ferreira said of Paulinho, who has struggled with injury since signing for Palmeiras at the start of the year.
Winners of the Copa Libertadores in 2020 and 2021, Palmeiras will now hope to match the feat of their Brazilian rivals Flamengo, who defeated Chelsea during the group stage.
The last-16 action continues on Sunday when European champions Paris Saint-Germain take on Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami in Atlanta. Later on Bayern Munich face Flamengo in Miami.
PSG Club World Cup reunion with Messi recalls unhappier times
- PSG achieved their crowning glory in their first season after definitively shifting their focus away from signing superstar players to instead allow a brilliant coach to work with a hungry, dynamic young team
ATLANTA: Paris Saint-Germain have come to the Club World Cup as newly crowned champions of Europe, but a meeting with the Inter Miami of Lionel Messi in the last 16 this Sunday brings back memories of unhappier times for the French club.
PSG’s stunning 5-0 demolition of Inter Milan in Munich at the end of last month which allowed them to win the UEFA Champions League for the first time completed an incredible season for the Qatar-backed side under the coaching of Luis Enrique.
It is no coincidence that PSG achieved their crowning glory in their first season after definitively shifting their focus away from signing superstar players to instead allow a brilliant coach to work with a hungry, dynamic young team.
Kylian Mbappe’s move a year ago to Real Madrid followed the departures in 2023 of Neymar, the world’s most expensive signing when he joined in 2017, and Messi, in the same summer Luis Enrique was appointed.
When PSG pounced in August 2021 to sign Messi after a cash-strapped Barcelona were unable to keep him, the French side logically thought the Argentinian could be the man to deliver elusive Champions League glory.
Messi, who was 34 at the time, thought the same thing.
“My dream is to win another Champions League and I think I am in the ideal place to have that chance and to do it,” he said at his unveiling.
Alas, it did not work out that way, either in Messi’s first season in Paris, under compatriot Mauricio Pochettino in 2021/22, or in the next campaign under Christophe Galtier.
PSG had got to the Champions League final and then semifinals in the two seasons prior to Messi’s arrival, so he looked like the final piece in the jigsaw.
Instead they went backwards with him in the side, going out of Europe’s elite club competition in the last 16 two years running.
Having to fit in Messi — with his estimated annual salary of 30 million euros ($35.2 million) after tax — as well as Neymar and Mbappe may have increased the star appeal, but it weakened them as a team.
Towards the end the Barcelona legend was even being jeered by some sections of the PSG support who felt Messi’s commitment to the cause was not what it should have been.
Messi was a PSG player when he inspired Argentina to World Cup glory in Qatar in late 2022, but there were only flashes of his genius at club level in France.
His statistics stand up to any scrutiny, with 32 goals and 35 assists in 75 appearances, and he did win two Ligue 1 titles while helping increase PSG’s value as a brand.
But one memorable quote by a columnist in French sports daily L’Equipe rather summed things up.
“PSG have not been better than they were before because of him...and he seemed to have as much desire to play in Ligue 1 as he did to go to the dentist,” wrote Vincent Duluc.
Fast forward two years and Messi is enjoying the twilight of his career in Major League Soccer with Inter Miami, the team he has helped to qualify for the knockout stage of this Club World Cup.
Fate has therefore thrown up a last-16 showdown with PSG on Sunday in Atlanta, at the same stadium where he scored a marvellous free-kick to secure a 2-1 win over Porto last week.
“All is not forgiven,” said the front page of L’Equipe in France on Friday as it described the feelings of “failure and bitterness” left behind from the Argentine’s spell there.
Miami coach Javier Mascherano, meanwhile, believes the unhappy memory of his time in Paris could spur Messi on.
“It’s clear that for us it’s better if he plays angry, because he’s one of those players who, when he has something on his mind, gives an extra effort,” Mascherano told ESPN.
With Luis Enrique and PSG boasting big ambitions of adding a world title to their European crown, there would be even more bitterness felt if Messi — days after his 38th birthday — managed to knock them out on Sunday.
Palmeiras edge Brazilian rivals Botafogo in extra time at Club World Cup
- Winners of the Copa Libertadores in 2020 and 2021, Palmeiras will now stay in Philadelphia
- All eyes were on Estevao, the 18-year-old winger who will join Chelsea once the tournament is over
PHILADELPHIA: Substitute Paulinho scored an extra-time winner to settle a Brazilian battle of attrition as Palmeiras edged Botafogo 1-0 on Saturday to win through to the Club World Cup quarter-finals.
The winger came on at the same time in the second half as Palmeiras coach Abel Ferreira withdrew teenage sensation Estevao Willian, a move that appeared baffling at the time but ultimately proved inspired.
The tie had reached the 100th minute when Paulinho collected a pass by Richard Rios on the right flank and was afforded the time and space to come inside into the box before slotting a low shot into the far corner.
That sparked wild celebrations among the Palmeiras fans who made up the vast majority of the 33,657 crowd inside Lincoln Financial Field, and the side from Sao Paulo held on to win the last-16 showdown despite having captain Gustavo Gomez sent off late on.
Winners of the Copa Libertadores in 2020 and 2021, Palmeiras will now stay in Philadelphia for a last-eight tie next Friday against either Benfica or Chelsea, who meet later Saturday in Charlotte.
They had been the more dangerous side throughout in this meeting of the top two in last year’s Brazilian league, with almost all of the chances falling the way of the men in green.
Rio de Janeiro side Botafogo pipped Palmeiras to the domestic title and also won the Copa Libertadores for the first time in their history in 2024.
They then lost their coach and several key players, but still managed to beat European champions Paris Saint-Germain during the group stage of the Club World Cup as they qualified for the knockout phase ahead of Atletico Madrid.
Nevertheless Palmeiras were the more lively of the two teams in a game played in warm midday conditions in Philadelphia.
All eyes were on Estevao, the 18-year-old winger who will join Chelsea once the tournament is over and is seen as Brazil’s next big thing.
He found it hard to make an impact in what was for long spells a disappointing game pockmarked by moments of quality.
Colombian midfielder Rios came close to scoring in first-half stoppage time with a thunderous shot from the edge of the box that was deflected onto the roof of the net.
Estevao then came to life after the restart, forcing a good save from Botafogo goalkeeper John Victor and then putting the ball in the net only to be denied by an offside flag.
There was surprise around the stadium when the starlet was taken off just after the hour mark alongside striker Vitor Roque, with Luighi and Paulinho sent into the attack.
A Mauricio header from a Joaquin Piquerez cross was tipped over and Paulinho then blazed high from a good position as normal time ended goalless.
Into the extra half-hour they went, and a Rios piledriver was parried behind before the goal finally arrived thanks to the once-capped Brazil winger who played in the Atletico Mineiro side beaten by Botafogo in last year’s Libertadores final.
The substitute was then promptly substituted, his job done for the day.
Botafogo pushed for an equalizer that would have led to a penalty shoot-out, but could not find it even after Paraguayan center-back Gomez walked for a second booking in the 116th minute for grappling off the ball with Alexander Barboza.
Chelsea's Club World Cup travel plan derailed by group-stage slip-up
- Chelsea will now face Benfica on Saturday at the Bank of America Stadium
- The detour means reorganising bookings and schedules at short notice
MIAMI: Chelsea are facing a logistical headache at the Club World Cup after finishing second in their group, forcing an unexpected trip to Charlotte for their last 16 match instead of staying in Miami, where the club thought they would be based for the knockout stage.
A club source told Reuters that travel, accommodation and training arrangements were all made with the assumption that the West Londoners would top Group D and play their round of 16 match at Hard Rock Stadium.
Instead, after a 3-1 loss to Brazil's Flamengo and only managing second place despite a 3-0 win over Esperance Tunis in their final group stage fixture in Philadelphia, Chelsea will now face Benfica on Saturday at the Bank of America Stadium.
The detour means reorganising bookings and schedules at short notice, but the club still intends to return to its Miami base after the match, adding more miles to an already hectic itinerary.
If Enzo Maresca's side reach the quarter-finals, they will return to Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia to face the winner of the all-Brazilian clash between Palmeiras and Botafogo.
Al-Hilal captain Al-Dawsari out of Club World Cup with hamstring injury
- This means Al-Dawsari will miss Monday’s round of 16 clash against Manchester City
- Al-Dawsari played a pivotal role in Al-Hilal’s campaign in the Club World Cup
Al-Hilal captain Salem Al-Dawsari will miss the remainder of the Club World Cup with a hamstring injury, the Saudi club said on Saturday.
“Medical tests have confirmed that Salem Al-Dawsari has suffered from a hamstring injury. He will be undergoing a treatment and rehabilitation program that will last between four to six weeks,” Al-Hilal said in a statement via X.
This means Al-Dawsari will miss Monday’s round of 16 clash against Manchester City.
Al-Dawsari played a pivotal role in Al-Hilal’s campaign in the Club World Cup, after scoring the opening goal in the team’s 2-0 victory over Pachuca on Friday in the third round of the group stage.
The win against Pachuca secured the four-times Asian champions qualification for the last 16 after they finished second in Group H behind Real Madrid.
