Cristiano Ronaldo made history as he became the first player to participate in six European Championships, leading Portugal to a 2-1 victory over Czechia to kick off their Euro 2024 campaign.
The legendary forward debuted in Euro 2004 with just seven caps, but arrived at this summer’s tournament boasting a remarkable 207 appearances for his country.
Despite his prolific career milestone, Ronaldo did not score in his 208th cap, as Portugal struggled to secure their 2-1 win over Czechia on Tuesday evening.
Portugal dominated possession early on, with Bruno Fernandes orchestrating from midfield and Rafael Leao posing threats down the left flank.
Ronaldo missed an early header and was thwarted by Czechia goalkeeper Jindrich Stanek with an impressive reaction save, only for replays to show Ronaldo had strayed offside.
Portugal persisted with crosses, delivering nearly 20 into the box before halftime, but struggled to breach Czechia’s solid defense, resulting in a scoreless first half – a rarity at Euro 2024.
In the second half, Portugal intensified their efforts, but fell behind when Lukas Provod curled in a shot from outside the box, setting up a potential upset.
However, Portugal responded swiftly. Nine minutes later, Nuno Mendes’ header rebounded off Stanek into Robin Hranac’s legs, deflecting into the net to equalize.
Portugal thought they had secured a late winner when Diogo Jota tapped in a rebound from Ronaldo’s header, only for VAR to confirm Ronaldo had been marginally offside.
In stoppage time, debutant Francisco Conceicao capitalized on a fortunate deflection to score from close range, clinching victory for Portugal in the 92nd minute.
