Portugal started Euro 2024 as one of the teams with a strong desire to win the competition, so they hardly needed the huge helping hand that Turkey gave them in Dortmund.
Bernardo Silva’s goal midway through the first half put Portugal in control, but this match will surely be remembered for its second match, when a calamitous mix-up in the Turkish defense led to an own goal from Samet Akaydin, giving the 2016 champions a 2-0 lead.
Turkey never seemed to recover from the setback and Bruno Fernandes added a third in the second half after being unselfishly set up by Cristiano Ronaldo.
Portugal are Group F winners, joining Germany and Spain in the round of 16 after two matches. Turkey are still in a strong position to reach the round of 16 and will finish second if they avoid defeat against the Czech Republic in their final group match.
Tim Spiers and Jacob Whitehead break down the game’s main talking points.
The (own goal) of the tournament so far?
When Altay Bayindir woke up Saturday morning, he must have felt as if the world was bathed in a warm technicolor glow. The sun was out in Dortmund for the first time this week. He plays in the Premier League for Manchester United. And he started in goal for his country, replaced by Mert Gunok.
In the 21st minute, he conceded against Bernardo. Never mind. It’s part of being a goalkeeper.
But in the 28th minute, he conceded the kind of goal that turns your world gray. Joao Cancelo broke through the Turkish defense and played a forward pass expecting Ronaldo to go one way, but his captain went the other and all danger seemed to have eased.
Turkish central defender Akaydin had time; he would now exchange his riches to return. His back pass was played as if he expected Bayindir to be on his line – but the goalkeeper had run forward to collect the ball himself. He slid two meters to his right, rolling towards the center of the goal.
Bayindir and right-back Zeki Celik sprinted back, but the defender’s clearance came 5cm too late. Both were entangled in the Turkish net, sandwiched between the reality in front of them and the noise of the madness of the Portuguese fans behind them.
(Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images)
(Ozan Kose/AFP via Getty Images)
(Kenzo Tribouillard/AFP via Getty Images)
Jacob Whitehead
Portugal scored three goals but Ronaldo only saw one…
It’s pretty annoying to miss a goal in a football match, but sometimes it’s completely understandable. Maybe you’re at the bar ordering a pint, or maybe you had to rush to the toilet, or maybe an annoying person stood up in front of you. Irritating, but these things happen.
Or if you’re Ronaldo, you were rolling theatrically on the ground after losing your balance in the penalty area when Nuno Mendes’ shot was diverted out of your path due to a deflection, so you missed Bernardo scoring his first goal in a major tournament. tournament (in his 15th participation, still no assists).
Then, seven minutes later, you were too busy throwing a tantrum, waving your arms and berating Cancelo’s misplaced pass, so you missed the fact that Akaydin and Bayindir had managed to concede the sixth goal against his side of this tournament and one of the funniest of the tournament. the history of the European Championship.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Joao Cancelo were all smiles seconds after Ronaldo got angry with his teammate (Friso Gentsch/Picture Alliance via Getty Images)
Watch the highlights on YouTube, Ronny.
Ronaldo must have been so excited to see a Portugal goal scored that he clashed with Fernandes when he was in goal for the third. There is no other reasonable explanation for his act of unusual altruism.
Tim Spiers
A pitch invader problem for UEFA
There’s always a circus following Ronaldo and, yes, he’s one of the best and most famous footballers of all time, so you’d expect that, but the cult group of selfie pitch invaders desperately hoping a photo of their hero hit a low point.
Two people managed to enter the field in the second half.
One of them was a child and Ronaldo happily welcomed him with open arms and posed for a photo.
Another, a grown man, almost grabbed the Portuguese striker with his arm around his neck, which Ronaldo then pulled back. The guy had a cup thrown at him while he was being carried. It’s not really worth it, is it?
Cristiano Ronaldo grew increasingly frustrated as the invaders continued to arrive (Rico Brouwer/Soccrates/Getty Images)
At full time, the situation became serious when a number of people came at Ronaldo from all angles while the stewards failed miserably to prevent them from gaining access to the pitch.
One of them, who was wearing a Turkish jersey, was arrested well before reaching Ronaldo.
When the Portuguese captain spotted the next one, as the players slowly walked onto the pitch applauding the fans, he held out his arm in frustration and stood still, hoping the stewards would reach him first. They did so, but not without one of the stewards sliding into Goncalo Ramos, who was cleanly taken out and then limped to his feet.
There were seven pitch invaders in total, all trying to take a selfie with Ronaldo.
This is a situation that UEFA really needs to take control of as the safety of Ronaldo and his teammates is under threat.
Tim Spiers
Is Portugal living up to pre-tournament expectations?
Portugal were baffled and haphazard in their fortunate win over the Czech Republic, with manager Roberto Martinez using an unusual formation and selecting players in unfamiliar roles.
Here, it was quite the opposite. With Martinez returning to the 4-3-3, playing Cancelo at right-back and bringing on Joao Palhinha in defensive midfield, they looked balanced, fluid, confident and in control.
Fernandes and Bernardo were lively and creative, Pepe, 41, was imperious at the back, Cancelo and Mendes provided piercing width and, in the ultimate indication that they are playing as a team, Ronaldo produced this moment of selflessness for the third goal. .
Ronaldo and Rafael Leao even dropped back more than usual in what was a match full of positives for Martinez, who was able to replace the reserved players at half-time and not weaken the XI. Their strength in depth is perhaps deeper than that of any nation.
They weren’t perfect – Turkey couldn’t take advantage of a few sloppy passes at the back – but they were much better than their last game, which bodes well for what Martinez is trying to create.
By winning the group, they will now face a team placed third in Group A, B or C (currently Scotland, Albania and Slovenia) in the round of 16. In this form, their ambitions for the tournament should extend much further than that.
Tim Spiers
Turkey makes noise, Ronaldo feels its strength
With 25,000 Turkish fans in the south stand at Signal Iduna Park – usually Borussia Dortmund’s yellow wall, now dark red – decibels have become an invention. It was the kind of noise that reaches the terminal aurality and just buzzes – not bone conduction but bone destruction.
Around 2.9 million people in Germany have either a Turkish passport or Turkish roots, making up the largest population of Turks outside of Turkey itself. Their presence in the first match, a 3-1 victory over Georgia, led to one of the tournament’s games. But here, in the form of Portugal’s Ronaldo, there was a focal point of their anger, as well as their support.
GO FURTHER
For Germany’s 2.8 million Turks, football comes home
There were fewer Turks here than on Tuesday, with Portugal hosting more fans than Georgia, but they still made their presence felt.
When Ronaldo’s 14-year-old son came out of his dressing room for a photo, Turkish fans stood up to boo him. The worst was reserved for the man himself: as his number 7 was read before the match, the stadium announcer was drowned out by howls, growls, meows and anything else that makes noise.
The fact that they managed to silence them with two goals in the first half was a mark of Portugal’s quality. There was a quiet lull after Turkey’s disastrous own goal until the team was booed at half-time.
Jacob Whitehead
What future for Turkey?
Wednesday June 26: vs Czech Republic, Hamburg, 8 p.m. UK, 3 p.m. ET
What future for Portugal?
Wednesday June 26: against Georgia, Gelsenkirchen, 8 p.m. UK, 3 p.m. ET
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(Top photo: Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images)