UEFA World Cup Qualification: Portugal vs North Macedonia Player Ratings as Portugal stride into the World Cup with a 2-0 victory
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Portugal vs North Macedonia: Portugal faced North Macedonia in the 2nd Round Finals of the UEFA World Cup Qualification at the Estadio do Dragao, Porto, Portugal.
Portugal had the majority of the possession in the first half. Bruno Fernandes opened the scoring for Portugal on the back of a Stefan Ristovski error and gave them the lead before half time. He scored again in the second half to double the home side’s lead. Portugal proved too strong for the giant-killing North Macedonia as they could not come back into the game.
Let’s look at the player ratings for the match: –
Portugal vs North Macedonia Player Ratings
Portugal
Diogo Costa (6.5/10): Costa did not face a single shot on target the whole match and did not have much to do.
Joao Cancelo (7.8/10): Cancelo had a decent match at the right back position, although he gave away a couple of loose balls and got booked for losing his cool.
Danilo Pereira (7.6/10): Pereira played as center back, out of his usual defending midfielder position. He filled the new role pretty well.
Pepe (7.7/10): The veteran completed the most passes in the game. His experience was evident as he marshalled the back line well.
Nuno Mendes (8/10): Mendes was vital on the left flank. His crosses and passing was instrumental in the victory.
Joao Moutinho (7.5/10): Moutinho distributed the ball well and his passing was pin perfect going forward.
Bernardo Silva (7/10): Silva was creative with the ball at his feet and made some crucial passes. He was replaced late in the second half.
Bruno Fernandes (9.1/10): Fernandes was the hero of the match as he netted twice in the all-important match to take Portugal into the World Cup.
Otavio (8.1/10): Otavio was the most fouled player on the pitch and he also won the most duels (15) in the match.
Diogo Jota (7.6/10): Jota was active in the front and also assisted Portugal’s second goal. He was replaced by Rafael Leao in the second half.
Cristiano Ronaldo (7.4/10): Ronaldo’s footballing skills were on full display as he showcased his range of skillful passing and tricks, he registered an assist for Fernandes’ first goal.
Substitutes:
William Carvalho (NA)
Rafael Leao (NA)
Matheus Nunes (NA)
Joao Felix (NA)
Vitinha (NA)
North Macedonia
Stole Dimitrievski (5/10): North Macedonia goalie could save only 1 out of the 3 shots he faced on target, letting 2 go by which resulted in their defeat.
Stefan Ristovski (5.8/10): Ristovski made an error which led to Portugal’s first goal. His confidence was down after that and he could not perform well.
Visar Musliu (7.2/10): Musliu was good at the back as he made some crucial last-minute challenges and blocks.
Darko Velkovski (6.1/10): Velkovski could have been better as he was not able to stop Portugal’s forwards.
Ezgjan Alioski (5.9/10): The left back was always looking for trouble as he made dangerous tackles. He was finally booked late in the second half.
Eljif Elmas (5.7/10): Elmas had a forgettable match. He made only a single key pass and had 0 shots on target.
Enis Bardhi (6/10): Bardhi distributed the ball decently, but his presence in the midfield was not notable.
Arijan Ademi (6/10): Ademi could not impose himself into the match and was not effective during the passage of play.
Aleksandar Trajkovski (6.4/10): Trajkovski did not attempt any shots and was not impactful. He was replaced early in the second half.
Milan Ristovski (6/10): Ristovski looked completely ineffective in the match as he had just 10 touches in the whole first half and thus was subbed off at half time.
Tihomir Kostadinov (6.2/10): Kostadinov had a poor game as he could not create any chances or take any shots.
Substitutes:
Bojan Miovski (6/10): Miovski’s indulgence in the game had no effect on the result.
Darko Churlinov (6.1/10): Churlinov was involved in a couple of counter attacks, but apart from that had no real impact.
Stefan Askovski (NA)
Boban Nikolov (NA)
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Aditi Srinivas
(657 Articles Published)