European Championship round of 16 against Slovenia – Ronaldo and Portugal: First tears, then victory in penalty thriller – Sport

• Portugal defeats Slovenia 3-0 on penalties in the round of 16 at the EURO in Frankfurt.
• After 120 minutes the score was 0-0, also because Cristiano Ronaldo (104th) missed a penalty.
• Portugal will face France, which beat Belgium 1-0, in the quarter-finals on Friday.

For over 100 minutes, the round of 16 match between Portugal and Slovenia on the battered Frankfurt pitch was a meager affair. Then the match turned into a drama.

Referee Daniele Orsato awarded a strict penalty to the Portuguese (Diogo Jota had run into Vanja Drkusic after a beautiful solo). Cristiano Ronaldo, however, did not become a hero, but rather the tragic figure of the evening.

Ronaldo cries – but can laugh in the end

The 39-year-old saw his penalty saved by Slovenia’s goalkeeper Jan Oblak. Ronaldo cried bitter tears during the break in extra time. However, a substitution was out of the question. And of course Ronaldo was the first Portuguese shooter in the penalty shootout – and this time he was successful.

Portugal’s goalkeeper Diogo Costa subsequently saved two more penalties after having already saved Josip Ilicic’s first attempt. The Lusitanians won the final match 3-0.

Ronaldo apologized to the fans and was able to thank goalie Costa in particular. The Rothrist-born goalkeeper had already thwarted Benjamin Sesko’s big chance in the 115th minute. The 41-year-old Pepe wasted the ball as the last man and, like Ronaldo, could have become the loser of the evening.

Slovenia lurks – Portugal hesitates

The defensively-minded Slovenians, who had made it to the round of 16 without a win, were almost rewarded for their counter-attacking tactics. The Portuguese will have to improve significantly after a largely disappointing performance if they want to reach the semi-finals.

The debate about Ronaldo, who is desperately trying to score his first goal of the tournament, is likely to flare up again. But it would be too easy to blame everything on Ronaldo. The other Portuguese attackers hardly posed any danger. The best chance fell to number six Joao Palhinha. Immediately before the half-time whistle, the Fulham professional hit the outside post. There was not much more to it.

This is how it continues

Portugal will face France in the second quarter-final of the tournament in Hamburg on Friday. The match will be broadcast live on SRF two from 8:30 p.m. (kick-off: 9:00 p.m.).