A CRISTIANO Ronaldo strike with less than three minutes of regulation time remaining tonight denied Scotland a gutsy draw against Portugal which would have done much to restore pride in the national team after their Euro 2024 failure in the summer.
The 39-year-old global football superstar turned in a Nuno Mendes cross from a few yards out in the Estadio da Luz to secure a hard-fought 2-1 victory for his country in the Nations League match.
Steve Clarke’s men, who had taken the lead early on through Scott McTominay and competed ferociously thereafter until allowing Bruno Fernandes to level in the second half, have now gone a full year without winning a competitive fixture.
However, their performance here is Lisbon gave their supporters, who were despondent after their early exit in Germany back in June, much to be optimistic about. They were applauded off the park by the Tartan Army at the end despite the reverse.
Here are five talking points from another Scottish heartbreak.
Vast improvement
Clarke stuck with the same starting line-up which had taken to the field in midweek against Poland at Hampden.
Many fans had been eager to see Lawrence Shankland or even Tommy Conway receive the nod up front, Ben Doak and Ryan Gauld handed a chance to show what they could do in the final third from the start and Connor Barron given his first cap in midfield.
But you could understand the manager’s reluctance to experiment and desire to put his faith in his more experienced campaigners given the calibre of the opposition. His charges justified his loyalty by forging in front and successfully repelling repeated Portugal attacks thereafter.
Scotland broke the deadlock with a goal which came straight off the training ground. Captain Andy Robertson laid the ball back to Kenny McLean and his team mate curled a first-time cross into the six yard box. McTominay ghosted in and nodded beyond Diogo Costa to stun the crowd into silence.
Apart from, that is, the travelling supporters high in the stand at the other end of the ground. The Tartan Army had travelled to Lisbon in their thousands in the hope their heroes could get back to their best. They were not disappointed by what they witnessed.
Scotland’s preparations for this outing were far from ideal. Their flight out of Glasgow was delayed by a baggage carousel problem. They then had a two hour bus journey after they landed at an airport that was over 100 miles away from their destination. But they rose to the occasion in stunning fashion this evening.
It was not perfect by any means and the final scoreline was obviously a sickener – but it was a step in the right direction.
Sir Scott of McTominay
What more is there left to say about that man McTominay? The Napoli new boy became a hero in his adopted homeland when he netted no fewer than seven times in Euro 2024 qualifying last year, including a double in a historic win over eventual champions Spain at Hampden. But he has not let up any since.
The 27-year-old was on target for the second time in four days after making a perfectly-timed back post run. He was comfortably onside. He took his international tally to 11 with his latest goal and moved alongside Colin Stein and Alan Gilzean in the all-time Scotland scoring charts. You would not bet against him adding to his haul.
The former Manchester United midfielder was deployed in an advanced role just off Lyndon Dykes and caused the Portugal defence all kinds of problems with his powerful forward runs. He was unfortunate not to add a second when he tested Costa from distance.
Gunn grit
Scotland were always going to have to withstand periods of intense pressure and ride their luck a little against Portugal. But they defended manfully throughout and frustrated their feted adversaries repeatedly.
Grant Hanley and Scott McKenna were excellent in the centre of the rearguard. Angus Gunn, the Norwich City goalkeeper who has come in for criticism for fans and pundits for some of his recent displays, also did well.
He pushed a Rafael Leao attempt that was destined to finish in the bottom right corner of his goal past the post, palmed a Diogo Jota header wide and punched a Fernandes cross to safety.
The Norwich City man could and should have done better at the equaliser. But he redeemed himself by denying Joao Felix twice, first after the Chelsea player had been put through by a cheeky Ronaldo back heel and then when the forward got a header on target. He could do nothing about the winner.
CR7 class
Ronaldo, who scored his 131st international goal in his 213th appearance for his country in the 2-1 triumph over Croatia on Thursday night, may have been left on the bench this evening.
But Roberto Martinez has the luxury of being able to rest the five-time Ballon d’Or winner. He is not exactly short of options. He fielded a front three which comprised Leao of AC Milan, Jota of Liverpool and Pedro Neto of Chelsea. It was a £125m forward line.
Their rivals played Dykes, who moved to League One outfit Birmingham City for £1m last month, in attack.
When Neto cut in from the right flank and played a defence-splitting through ball in to Jota in just the second minute you feared the worst for the visitors. But the hosts, seeking to recover from their disappointing Euros, struggled to break them down.
Ronaldo came on for Neto to a huge ovation from the home supporters in the 65,000 capacity arena at the start of the second half as Ruben Neves took over from Joao Palhinha. His presence appeared to lift those around him. He hit the post and then grabbed the winner in typical fashion.
Canny Clarke
The Scotland manager was savaged by supporters after his team lost to Hungary in their final Euro 2024 game and failed to go through to the last 16. His tactics were branded overly negative and many disgruntled fans demanded he be sacked by the SFA.
However, the former Newcastle United, Chelsea and Liverpool assistant got his team and his game plan spot on tonight. What is more, his charges showed they are firmly behind him by executing his instructions to the letter and running from kick-off to the final whistle.
He showed he is not afraid to bring new faces in to the fray by putting on Gauld for McLean, Conway for Dykes and Lewis Morgan for Ryan Christie in the closing stages. This vastly-improved showing augurs well for the future.
