“It does not matter to us whether it is spectacular or not. Sometimes you play in an unspectacular way and you win. Other times you play very spectacularly and you lose.”
–Fernando Santos, Portugal manager, 2016.
The Euros is a special tournament.
It’s also a competition that seems to welcome the extraordinary and more specifically, the underdog.
1992- Denmark wins after failing to even qualify. 2004- Greece win after being absolutely nobody’s favourite. That same year Porto win the Champions League and Arsenal go invincible. A wild year.
Likewise, 2016 was also a year of surprises. Leicester City win the Premier League. Yes, Leicester.
And Portugal won pretty big themselves.
Okay, I know what some of you may be thinking- Portugal are no underdog nation. Look at the roster. But believe me when I tell you they were not favoured. This was an upset.
Portugal had gone through decades of disappointment. Golden Generations had come and gone. Scandals had been rife in the national team setup. There was disbelief in the system. They only won 2 games in this entire tournament in 90 minutes.
But this?
This is the moment that changed everything. It’s a moment where a striker that doesn’t score scores a goal more important than anyone else to ever wear Portuguese colors. It’s a moment where the man that you’d think this story was written for wasn’t even on the pitch. It’s a moment where the team that was supposed to win tasted defeat.
It’s a moment that should not have happened. But it did.
How?
Buckle up, we’re going deep today.
As a footballing nation, Portugal is blessed. Truly. There’s a reason why they have the second most ballon d’or wins by nation. Of course, it doesn’t help that number 1 is propped up by two people. To be fair, Portugal don’t have much of a leg to stand on here. But I digress.
However, despite all of the talent that this nation has boasted throughout history, they had to wait until the late 2010’s to capture their first piece of Silverware. Why?
A lot of reasons. One of them being that they haven’t always been all that good. And another being, well…bad luck.
Table of Contents
Failure to launch
Though the World Cup and the Euros have been around since 1930 and 1958 respectively, Portugal were a little late to join the party for both competitions.
The first World Cup Ever in 1930 was invite only. And Portugal were not invited. But it was only a 14 team tournament back then and it wasn’t taken all too seriously. Plus, the Egyptians missed their boat, so it was actually a 13-team tournament.
Qualification was introduced in the 1934 edition, but Portugal failed to qualify after losing 11-1 to Spain on aggregate over a two-leg tie. Yes, you heard me correctly. I guess I should mention that Spain won the first leg 9-0 in Madrid and then the second one 2-1 in Lisbon. Home ground advantage, Am I right?
They failed to qualify for the 1938 World Cup too. And since there were bigger things to worry about in the world than football, no World Cups happened until 1950. A tournament which they also failed to qualify for. Because Spain beat them 7-2 on aggregate in the qualifiers. It’s a bit of a trend, you see.
They were handed a lifeline, though. Turkey qualified, but had to pull out because of financial and logistical reasons. The tournament was held in Brazil, as times were understandably tough in Europe as well as well as the whole world following a War.
Portugal were asked to play in their place- however, they refused. I couldn’t find the exact reasoning behind this decision, but I can only imagine that it had something to do with the finances, lack of adequate practice time etc and etc. Problems everyone had.
They didn’t qualify for the 1954, 58 or 62 World Cups either. Even suffering a 9-1 aggregate defeat to Austria in the 54 qualifiers. Tough.
The UEFA Euros was founded in 1958, with the first tournament being held in 1960. But we don’t have to dwell too much on that for now, Portugal never qualified until 1984.
Bursting Onto The Scene
Funnily enough, In between all of this, Portugal experienced their greatest World Cup performance to this very day. 1966- England. A World Cup filled with success that was never before felt and some controversy that’s still debated almost 58 years later.
The group stages saw them drawn against Hungary, Bulgaria and Brazil, the defending champions. It’s quite the introduction. Despite this, they went undefeated through the group stage, beating Bulgaria and Hungary, and drawing to Brazil.
Disaster struck in the quarter finals as North Korea took a 3-0 lead against Selecao within 25 minutes. This is when the Ballon D’or holder at the time, Eusebio, stepped in and worked his magic. A hattrick and an inspired performance led to Portugal running out 5-3 winners. A match that many will not forget.
For the reasons you think and also for reasons a bit more questionable. A lot of people think that England were already predetermined to be the winners of the 66 World Cup. This is apparently due to a plot devised by FIFA, the English FA, The CIA, The Illuminati, Kifflom, you name it. And there may be merit to those claims.
England were the host nation and had made it to the semi-finals with a strong team themselves. Portugal were up next for them. This match was supposed to take place at Goodison Park- the same stadium where Portugal completed their miraculous comeback against North Korea.
However, at the last minute the venue was changed from Goodison Park to Wembley. A 4-hour train journey today, an overnight train journey back in 1966. The rational for this last-minute switch was “commercial reasons”.
Wembley did have about 30000 more seats, so fair enough. But this meant that the Portuguese team spent much of their resting time travelling. It’s worth noting that England played every single one of their matches in Wembley during this World Cup.
Eusebio scored a late goal for Portugal, but it wasn’t enough as England won the match thanks to two wonderfully taken goals by Sir Bobby Charlton.
To make matters worse, two penalty appeals in favour of Portugal were waived off by the referee. To many, this Portugal side were victims of a fix. But they weren’t the only ones.
Argentina’s training ground in Birmingham had no goal posts when they arrived. Before their quarter final match, their accommodation, which was booked through an English travel agent who had said they would put them up in central London. They were placed in Welwyn- about an hour and 20 minutes out.
England scored a goal in the final that has since been proven to not have been a goal just as much as it has been proven to actually have been a goal. Did this cross the line? Controversial is the word I’m looking for.
Anyway, none of that is important, this is Portugal’s story.
They went on to secure 3rd place overall by beating the Soviet Union in the 3rd place playoff.
Eusebio finished this tournament off with 9 goals which, of course, earned him the Golden Boot.
Not bad for Portugal’s first ever World Cup appearance, right?
They only qualified for one World Cup in the 36 years that followed.
Disappointment and Controversy
The World cup may not be Portugal’s competition, which isn’t exactly something to be embarrassed or sad about. It’s literally a competition contested by every single nation.
As I said, the 1966 team was fantastic. They housed not only Eusebio, but other greats of the Portuguese game such as Americo Lopes- a reliable keeper. Alexandre Baptista – the spine of the defense. And Jose Augusto – a highly renowned and sought after midfielder.
Initially, this team wasn’t able to do much on the European stage either. However, in the years after this generation, the entire picture changed. If we laser focus on a continental perspective, we’re met with a bit more of a positive picture.
Since their first appearance in the Euros in 84, they’ve made it past the quarter finals in all but 3 of the editions they’ve qualified for. Which is 8/10 of them.
Which is great stuff, but a lot like every other nation, disappointment and controversy has followed them throughout the years and throughout the competitions.
84 Euros
The 1984 Euros was a special competition for Portugal. Their first appearance in yet another major competition. And just like it was with their first World Cup appearance, they went further than some may have thought they would.
Progressing past a group stage that contained West Germany, Spain and Romania in second place, they got to the semi’s where a Michel Platini led France awaited them.
This match is still described as one of the most exhilarating displays of football in the competition’s history. Tension, nerves and drama were the order of the day. France were the aggressors, but Portugal were dangerous throughout.
After regulation time, the teams went to extra time with a 1-1 scoreline. Portugal drew first blood, but unfortunately France rallied, scoring twice in 5 minutes- minutes 114 and 119. 3-2 to France. At the very least Portugal can take solace in the fact that France went on to win the whole thing.
86 World Cup- Saltillo Affair
After impressing with a fantastic 84 Euros, next up was the 86 World Cup in Mexico. This was only Portugal’s second World Cup appearance, so there were high expectations leading up to this one.
It was expected that they would so quite well here. They did not. Instead, Seleção did not make it out of the group and their whole campaign was marred by leaks and controversy.
This wonderful period in human history, is affectionately known as the Saltillo Affair, after Saltillo, the Mexican City where Portugal were stationed during the tournament.
The tournament was doomed from the start as veteran defender, António Veloso, tested positive for banned substances and was cut from the tournament. To add insult to injury, the test was proven to be false shortly after.
The team trained on inclined surfaces and played practice matches against local barmen and hotel employees because no suitable warm up opponents were prepared.
Players wanted to shop around during their days off but were bombarded by the people of the town and time constraints. Instead, a local politicians grandson volunteered to do the shopping for them while they remained at their hotel.
He disappeared with their money.
Many of the players were invited to private parties in luxury mansions, which I assume happens at every major tournament. The difference here is that word of these players cheating on their wive’s back home-made national headlines in Mexico AND Portugal.
After that, the phones of the Portuguese players, coaches and staff never stopped ringing.
But the most significant event was a strike by the players. They were underpaid. They were paid the lowest of any team at the tournament and none of the money paid from kit and gear sponsors was shared with them.
The federation pocketed the money and never even used it on the team- as evidenced by their poor training conditions and accommodation.
In protest, players trained in inside out shirts or without shirts entirely to hide sponsor logos.
Portugal won their opening game against England, but unfortunately lost to Poland and Morocco, which decreased the validity of their claims that they deserved more money to some people.
But most people, including the media, were on their side. This whole thing led to a standoff between the Portuguese FA and the players, where 8 senior players were banned and actual football took a backseat.
The players union began to grow in strength from then on, but significant damage was done to football in Portugal by this point.
They came into this one in good form, but it would be 10 more years before they qualified for another major competitions.
2000 Euros, 2002 World Cup
By 2000, Portugal were again amongst the world’s elite and were there to stay this time. Rui Costa, Jorge Costa, Pauleta, Vítor Baía and of course, Luis Figo were all regulars in this squad.
They reached the semis in the 2000 Euros, but were again knocked out by France. This was a messy episode, though. A correctly called handball against Portugal in the 117th minute was met with physical protests by 3 Portuguese players- Abel Xavier, Nuno Gomes and Paulo Bento. All three were hit with bans ranging from 6-9 months for throwing insults and shoving the referee.
Again, France went on to win the whole thing.
The 2002 World Cup saw history repeat itself. Like 1986:
- Portugal came in after a great Euro performance
- A player was banned for doping before it all kicked off
- Players were accused of focussing on shopping and not football
- Preparation was subpar.
And to top it all off, Luis Figo, the best player on the planet, was carrying an ankle injury.
Group stage exit.
Plus, there were even more player Protests based on unsatisfactory pay.
And then we have the tournament that Portugal really should’ve won, but did not. The 2004 Euros- hosted in Portugal. This team were the favourites to win it for far more reasons than just being the host.
Just look at this squad. Including some of the players I’ve already mentioned, now we have Paulo Ferreira, Ricardo Carvalho, Deco and a 19 year old Cristiano Ronaldo.
This was their year.
They topped their group to go through, then beat England and the Netherlands on their way to the final. Interestingly, they had only lost one match throughout the entire tournament. The opening match. Against Greece.
A team that nobody thought twice about when it came to lifting the trophy. They faced Portugal in the final and won.
An incredible defensive display by the Greeks meant the Portuguese, with all their firepower were left with no answers.
People still lament this win to this day. Calling it antifootball, calling it cynical, calling it all sorts of names. And yet, this picture exists. It’s real, they won.
Portuguese press were amongst the first to call Greece out on their defensive football. Which is fair, but extremely ironic. We’ll get into why in a bit.
Mixed
This elimination marked the end of what many believed was Portugal’s greatest Golden Generation. Important players retired, but at the very least Cristiano Ronaldo was shaping up to be more than simply generational.
He wasn’t loved by the English, though. In the 2006 World Cup quarter finals, Wayne Rooney stamped on x and it was correctly called as a foul. I think it wasn’t intentional, but still a foul. Not a red card, though.
However, after Portuguese protest, Rooney was sent off. Ronaldo led the protests. The cameras captured a wink that made English blood boil.
Then he became the best player in the World a year later, playing for an English side and all was forgiven.
Portugal were knocked out in the semi-final in 2006. France. Again
Despite this, Portugal now had a sustained foothold at the top level. Massive credit goes to Luis Scolari, who coached them between 2003 and 2008. He oversaw qualification to every major competition for Selecao. Including a Euros final in 2004, a world cup semi-final in 2006 and a Euros quarter final in 2008.
The next years were very mixed for Portugal. Many highs and lows.
Lows included the 2010 and 2014 World Cups- the tactics were essentially Ronaldo and inshallah.
Highs included qualification to the 2014 World Cup- a two game playoff vs Sweden would decide who would go to the final tournament. An insane Ronaldo hattrick and a Zlatan Ibrahimovic Brace in the second leg provided us with one of the most exciting qualifying match ups of the century. 3-2 to Portugal saw them go through and basically secured the 2014 Ballon D’or for CR7.
By now, Portugal were a strong contender in every competition they entered. But there was still doubt that they would come out on top. They were almost never favourites. Instead, just a good team that can produce magic.
An opinion that wouldn’t change, despite what happened next.
Fernando Santos arrives
Former international, Paulo Bento, had been Portugal manager between 2010 and 2014 and didn’t do much by way of impressing the public. He was sacked to make room for Fernando Santos.
A longtime manager that, coincidentally was managing Greece in his previous job.
In fact, he had split his entire managerial career between Greece and Portugal since the beginning. Managing AEK Athens, Panathanaikos and PAOK dating back to 2001.
He also came into this job with an existing 8 match ban for verbally abusing a linesman during a euros qualifying match.
By this point in his managerial career, the then 60 year old had built up a reputation for being pragmatic and adaptable. Focussing on achieving results over playing pretty football.
His time with Greece stands as testament. Despte winning Euros 2004, Greece was never a strong team. As Otto Rehagel, the previous Greece coach, had done before him, Santos use the tools at his disposal to great effect. Rehagel is best remembered for focussing on tight, frustrating defense, and Santos had that in him too.
But his approach was slightly more varied. His teams knew when to attack and weren’t afraid to push forward.
Greece made it to the knockouts of both the 2014 World Cup and the 2012 Euros. To this date, the only time they’ve ever done so was when they won in 2004.
As Greece manager, he achieved a 26-17-6 record in all competitions, with 2 of those losses coming in friendlies. A very impressive record given the circumstances.
So there was a clear brand of football to reference here.
He created strong bonds with his players in his time with Greece and the country had embraced him. He had also managed all 3 of the biggest Portuguese clubs of all time at different intervals. Now it was time to put that familiarity to good use.
Tactics
Paulo Bento had been sacked after losing his first qualifying match 1-0 to Albania. But after Santos had taken over, Portugal won all 6 of their remaining matches to top their group. Each match was won by a single goal.
These guys weren’t dominant, but they were getting the job done. Even still they needed a little extra before they were Euro ready. Santos did well to provide it.
And this was despite the fact that Danny, Tiago, Bernardo Silva and Fábio Coentrão were all out because of injury.
Here’s how the team looked going into and during the euros.
Firstly, he sured up the defence by encouraging more order and discipline- a back four that did little by way of pushing up the pitch and maintained a solid line at the back. It helped that his defence was filled with experience and maturity to begin with.
Pepe, Jose Fonte, Cedric and the only defender that dared to venture forward- Raphael Guerero.
All players that had the aptitude to be given a plan and stick to it.
The midfield was set up in a 442, that was more often than not a diamond, anchored by William Carvalho or Danilo Perreira. But apart from that, the remaining midfielders rotated their starting positions routinely, based on the opposition and the specific tactics Santos wanted to play.
Joao Moutinho, Adrien Silva and Andre Gomes, naturally forward-thinking players interchanged between 8 and 10, going wide or central as required.
Joao Mario and Renato Sanchez were the all-action midfield aggressors. Renato Sanchez was only 18 at the time, but was making a lot of noise at Benfica. He was key in A LOT of Portugal’s matches in this tournament and was brilliant throughout.
Up top was an interesting choice. Cristiano Ronaldo and Nani, both naturally wingers, both deployed as a striking partnership. Nani played central as a traditional 9 and Ronaldo was given freedom to roam.
Ricardo Quaresma, the genius technical dribbler, was no longer the player he once was and was reserved for the bench, but his impact would not be small.
With this set of players, Portugal entered the Euros as qualifying group winners, yes. But, they were nowhere near the strongest team going into it, based on form.
Did they have what it takes?
The 2016 UEFA Euros
Germany had Joachim Low, France had Didier Deschamps, Italy had Antonio Conte, Spain had Vicente Del Bosque, England had Roy Hodgson and Portugal had a man whose last trophy had been the Greek Football Cup in 2002.
Some big contrasts.
Portugal needed the element of luck, which they most definitely got.
Even with the strength of the individuals, this team failed to win a single one of their group stage matches. Looking back on this record is actually quite remarkable given how things turned out. Don’t get me wrong, matches like their 3-3 draw vs Hungary were all time classics. Some incredible goals here too- a Zoltán Gera thunderbolt, a Ronaldo heel flick and a towering header from a Quaresma cross. A goal made in Sporting almost 2 decades prior.
But a team that was this, let’s be honest, lakclustre… Did they stand a chance? Under the rules of every Euros before this one- no. No they did not.
You see, before the 2016 Euros, only 16 teams participated. The top 2 teams from 4 groups would go through to the first knockout stage- the quarter-finals- and we go from there. This edition saw 24 teams participate, adding an additional knockout stage.
This was made possible as the four best third-ranked sides also progressed, leaving 16 teams going into the new round of 16 knockout phase (ahead of the usual quarter-finals, semi-finals and final), and only eight teams going out after the group stage.
Portugal finished 3rd in their group and were the 3rd best 3rd ranked team overall. Lucky break, but the fortunes were far from over.
The knockouts
In the round of 16, Portugal faced Croatia. This was before Croatia made it to the finals of the 2018 World Cup, but this nation was still seen as a strong darkhorse. Luka Modric, Ivan Rakitic, Ivan Perisic, Mario Mandžukić and more made them a dangerous side.
They were better than Portugal. Simple as. The stats and the eye test confirmed. But Portugal did what they did best this year and frustrated the Croats. It took 117 minutes for the deadlock to be broken, as Ricardo Quaresma scored off a rebounded shot by Ronaldo.
The quarter finals against Poland was much more evenly matched, but all the same, no team was able to win in regular time. Lots of credit needs to be given to Renato Sanches for an inspire midfield performance and for scoring the equaliser that cancelled Robert Lewandowski’s opener for Poland.
It took penalties to decide this one and Portugal had the nerve to see it through.
When you make it to the final 4 of any major competition, you’re entitled to start dreaming. Even if your performances haven’t exactly been convincing.
At this point, this team had made it to the semi-finals of the Euros and was yet to win a single match in regular time.
For those reason, Fernando Santo wasn’t given the credit he probably deserved. Yes, Portugal were lucky in a lot of ways, but to get these levels requires more than just luck.
They had left opponents feeling tired and frustrated, then just seemed to keep pushing on.
It was only after they defeated a Gareth Bale led Wales, that people seemed to start giving the tactics some praise. Nani and Ronaldo caused huge problems to this Wales side, scoring one a piece in a 2-0 win and the defence remained as solid as ever.
It’s worth noting that Belgium were one of the favourites to win this whole thing. Wales defeated them pretty comfortably in the previous round. They were a confident, capable side.
The Final
Portugal played a friendly match in the Stade de France in 2014, just after Santos had taken over. In an interview after the Wales win, Santos said the following:
“I called my players together in the Stade de France and told them that our goal was to be right back here two years later for the final of Euro 2016. Now we have a final to play. And I don’t just want to play it. I want to win it.”
This was already a fairytale, all the same, nobody would’ve blamed you for thinking that it was about to come to a close. In the finals, they faced the hosts- France.
France were monstrous this year. They had been the best team in the competition, scoring the most goals (13), having the best goal difference (+9), fielding the strongest team on paper and in real life.
Just look at this lineup. Paul Pogba when he was actually good and consistent. N’golo Kante fresh of winning the Premier League with Leicester. 2016 Demitri Payet, the streets will never forget. Hugo Llorris while he was in the form of his life. And of course, Mr consistent, Antoinne Griezmann.
This was maybe his best year ever to date, sublime for Atletico, more importantly, sublime for France.
So, France were the host nation, had won both of the previous two tournaments held at home, had this weird thing where they won a Euros every 16 years, dating back to their inaugural win in 1984. And they had the best set of players that the tournament had to offer.
Let’s also not forget that before this, France had face Portugal 3 times in knockout rounds of a World Cup or Euros and had knocked them out each and every time.
But I guess Santos and Portugal decided not to read the odds or something. The lineup was similar to how it had been all tournament long-442. Pepe and William Carvalho had been missing due to injury and suspension, respectively, but were back for the final.
The game was underway.
France were expected to look the better side in this one, so there were no surprises when they did from the getgo. But, Even though Portugal had a plan going in, it didn’t seem to matter anyway, because literal disaster struck a quarter of the way through the match.
Demitri Payet and Ronaldo clashed in the 17th minute, causing Ronaldo very visible discomfort. He tried to go on, but it just wasn’t happening. He had to come off.
The tears from the agony of 2004s loss to Greece was rushing right back. And those tears were replaced with a new set. 12 years later, I’m sure a lot of the people in the Stade De France thought the result would be the same.
The greatest player in the history of his country, the greatest player ever to many- especially back in 2016. In a match where Portugal needed him most, fate would not allow it.
Santos had to rethink everything. This was truly his moment to shine and the reason why he will always deserve respect, regardless of current opinions.
Quaresma came on to replace Ronaldo and Portugal switched to a 451. This packed midfield had answers for every question Didier Deschamp had for them and more. They were willing to defend deep and weren’t in any rush to push forward recklessly.
Ronaldo, resigned to the sidelines, was consistently pictured shouting orders as his teammates. I’m sure there are rules against players doing this. I’m pretty sure the technical area is reserved for coaches.
Then again, this is Cristiano Ronaldo… Who was going to tell this man otherwise? no one is the correct answer.
And then, it happened.
Divine intervention- the most important decision of Fernando Santos’ entire career- some would say life.
The clock hit 77 minutes, France were starting to look threatening, Portugal weren’t much of a threat with Nani as the lone striker. Portugal needed a target man. In stepped Eder He’s forward
Having had a very average career thus far, he was the definition of an unsuspecting hero.
He had played a total of 13 minutes for Portugal in this tournament, all of them in the group stages.
To this day, he has only scored 5 goals at international level and only one of them in a competitive match. Information that doesn’t matter, because one of those counts more than almost any goal any Portuguese player has ever scored for Portugal.
It all came down to extra time-Raphael Guerrero hit the crossbar. Andre Pierre Gignac hit the post, Griezmann missed a fair few chances, Sissoko took so many shots. Anyone could’ve taken it.
A stalemate in regular time- not surprising for Portugal. They had played a whole 60 minutes more of football than the hosts, including 2 penalty shootouts. They were no strangers to long battles.
But as for France- this was the first time that they’d been dragged into waters this deep in that edition. Their concentration was about to be put to a whole new test.
A test that Laurent Koscielny failed. 108 minutes gone, Eder get’s the ball on the left, with his back to goal and wriggles free. He goes right, and all of a sudden is surrounded by Samuel Umtiti, Paul Pogba, Blaise Matuidi as well as Koscielny right behind him. Patrice Evra and Bacary Sagna are blocking any passing lanes out wide.
He was alone.
Yet nobody was closing him down. It’s almost as if they were inviting him to shoot. Which I guess makes sense – this guy doesn’t pose a threat, right?
Well
Ronaldo had completely forgotten he had a bum knee and was jumping for joy.
Portugal not only hold on, but keep attacking, coming close to a 2nd.
After 120 minutes, Portugal had made history.
The Aftermath
In the following years, Portugal have maintained their position as an elite nation. And even won the inaugural 2019 nations league. A competition that not everyone takes seriously. This isn’t the place to debate it, but it seems the players take it seriously, so why not I guess.
Portugal haven’t come close to another final since the 2016 competition and perhaps it will still be some time before they do once more. Fernando Santos went from hero to zero in the space of a few years as Portugal’s results and gameplay dipped in quality. Ask an average Portuguese fan what they think of him on twitter and they will refer to him as a terrorist.
A rift with Cristiano Ronaldo surely couldn’t have helped his case. There was only ever going to be one winner there.
However, don’t get anything twisted, the future of Portuguese football is very bright. Many are still maturing and have a lot to offer. Ronaldo is still kicking- heck, he scored x goals in 2023 at 38 years old.
But taking things back to 2016, none of that matters. History has already been made.
I’m sorry, I keep bringing 2004 up, but the comparisons and similarities are too strong to ignore. France were resigned to the fate of Portugal back in 04, the universe decided to play a good old reverse card.
A host nation. A team in great form. A team with great players. A finals appearance. A 1-0 scoreline. Eliminated.
Add on the fact that Portugal were missing a man that has an airport named after him and what you have is nothing short of a miracle.
And then we have Eder. A lord some might say. Yet, in the aftermath of it all, this trophy is still referred to as Ronaldo’s trophy- which it is. He carried Portugal through dark times for over a decade.
But let’s all show some love for Eder. By the time the trophy was being lifted, he had faded into the background, as the superstars of the team stole the picture show.
And fair enough, he only popped up for a moment. All the same, man oh man, was that a moment.
In a way, Eder is the perfect metaphor for Portugal. An unlikely victor. A dark horse. A threat that nobody considered until it was too late.