HAMBURG, Germany: France converted all their kicks in a shootout to edge Portugal 5-3 on penalties after a goalless stalemate in their European Championship quarter-final on Friday, likely bringing the curtain down on Cristiano Ronaldo’s international career.
Theo Hernandez stroked home the winning kick for a perfect sequence after Joao Felix’s effort, the third for Portugal, hit the post. France will now play Spain in the semifinals on Tuesday in Munich.
Defeat for Portugal is set to spell the end of the 21-year international career of 39-year-old Ronaldo, who converted their first kick in the shootout but was also responsible for one of the night’s many glaring misses.
Success for France makes up for shootout heartbreak at the last Euros, when they were eliminated by Switzerland in the round of 16, and in the 2022 World Cup final against Argentina.
Ousmane Dembele, Youssouf Fofana, Jules Kounde and Bradley Barcola all netted their spot kicks for victorious France.
A game that was slow in firing up ended with a myriad of missed opportunities at either end, with clear chances for both sides in 90 minutes as well as the half hour of extra time.
France now find themselves in the semis without scoring in open play at the tournament, having benefitted from two own goals and a penalty in their previous four games.
But the French have also not conceded in open play at Euro 2024 with goalkeeper Mike Maignan making two key saves in Friday’s match that proved key for his side.
Both teams started cautiously, intent on keeping possession and avoiding mistakes. The play was therefore often pedestrian with periodic bursts of action.
It took 16 minutes before the first shot was fired off in anger – Bruno Fernandes’ effort hitting Hernandez and deflected away for a corner.
Soon after the second half kicked off, the contest rose from its slumber.
A rare contribution from the masked Kylian Mbappe was a clever combination with N’Golo Kante that produced a rapid fire shot, swallowed up by goalkeeper Diogo Costa. France’s captain Mbappe had another off night in attack.
Within minutes, Hernandez’s square ball from the left beat the Portuguese defense as it went invitingly across goal, crying out for a tap-in but with no one to meet it.
Maignan then made two crucial saves in the space of three minutes – a stiff arm reaction to deny Fernandes on the hour, followed by a point blank stop from Vitinha after another of Rafael Leao’s probing runs.
“We knew it was going to be a tough game but we were solid in defense and we had a lot of mental strength and kept our cool during the shootout, that’s what made the difference,” Maignan said.
In the 67th minute, a quick break from Randal Kolo Muani, in tandem with Kounde, had the striker in on goal but Ruben Dias made a goal-saving tackle.
France’s profligacy continued straight afterwards when substitute Dembele’s trickery teed up Eduardo Camavinga but the young midfielder inexplicably spurned the chance from close range.
The worst miss, however, belonged to Ronaldo three minutes into extra time as Francisco Conceicao’s enterprise saw him cut in on the byline and pull the ball back for his captain to deliver a fairytale finish but the forward fluffed his lines, having done little hitherto.
Ronaldo’s future with Portugal after 212 caps and 130 goals now looks at an end, as does the international career of 41-year-old center back Pepe.
“Football is cruel ... and sadness is part of it. We were aiming to win for our country and bring joy to our people,” said Pepe, who made some outstanding tackles. “Five days ago we won on penalties and now we’ve lost on penalties.” 

DUESSELDORF, Germany: England will play Switzerland in the quarterfinals of the European Championship on Saturday. England manager Gareth Southgate says his team looks “in a different place mentally” after struggling to an extra-time win over Slovakia.
Jude Bellingham is available after avoiding a ban for an offensive gesture.
Switzerland exceeded expectations by knocking out defending champion Italy.
The winner will play the Netherlands or Turkiye in the semifinals.
England will play their fourth quarterfinal at a major tournament under manager Gareth Southgate and have won two of the previous three. Southgate’s cautious tactics have brought hefty criticism from England fans, some of whom threw plastic cups at him in the group stage.
Bellingham’s last-minute overhead kick to send England’s last-16 game with Slovakia to extra time has been one of the most dramatic moments of Euro 2024.
Defender John Stones said that surviving that brush with elimination gave the team new confidence.
Meanwhile, Switzerland coach Murat Yakin has won a reputation for smart tactics at Euro 2024, especially by outclassing an Italy team packed with more famous names in the round of 16.
England are playing two days after a general election ended 14 years of rule by the Conservative Party. It didn’t make waves in the England camp, which Stones called a “politics-free zone.”
Bellingham is available after he avoided an immediate ban from UEFA, which investigated an allegedly crude gesture he made during the Slovakia game. He was fined 30,000 euros ($32,500) and given a one-game ban that only takes effect if he breaks the rules again during a one-year probationary period.
He has denied he was mocking Slovakia when he seemed to gesture toward his crotch.
Southgate has refused to rule out switching to a back five against Switzerland.
“We’re always considering the best way to approach a game,” he said on Friday when asked about the prospect.
Defender Marc Guéhi is suspended after picking up a second booking against Slovakia. Ezri Konsa, who came off the bench in extra time in that game, is the favorite to replace him in the center of defense alongside Stones.
The latter wore heavy strapping on his right knee in training Wednesday but said Thursday he’s fit to play.
Bellingham, forward Phil Foden and full back Kieran Trippier are among five England players who would miss the semifinals if booked against Switzerland. Captain Granit Xhaka is one of four Swiss players in the same situation.
He is fit after training individually earlier this week, Yakin said on Friday.
Southgate is marking his 100th game in charge and it could be his last. His contract expires after the tournament.
Switzerland haven’t beaten England for 43 years. Harry Kane scored the winning goal when England had a comeback 2-1 win the last time they played in a 2022 friendly.
It’s only the third time the Swiss team are playing in the quarterfinals of a major tournament. They have yet to reach a semifinal. A penalty-shootout loss to Spain in the quarterfinals of Euro 2020 was their best European Championship showing.
“Every team wants to excite, every team wants to score goals. We’ve played opponents who’ve made it very, very difficult for us. ... There’s been a lot of expectation on the team in the early part of the tournament, especially. I feel that the team, even in training now, look in a different place mentally. They look more fluid and I’m expecting us to play well tomorrow,” said Southgate.
Defender Stones said: “The other night, I thought we were going home after 60 minutes of the game. To change the mindset of us all and keep that belief and faith, it’s got a lot of power behind that for ourselves, other teams. Everyone watching at home knows that we’re there to do it right until the last minute, literally. And, I think we should take great confidence from that.”
“No matter how they played, they are in the quarterfinals, so no one is interested how they played in the group stage and in the games before that. They have a lot of quality and any time they can hurt their opponents, so we need to be prepared for that,” Switzerland defender Fabian Schär warns against underestimating England.