"It's the first time Portugal have won in Russia and I think the team played very well. We played against a team that pressured us but we were better”, Cristiano Ronaldo told ESPN after winning the group match of Confederations Cup against Russia.
Ronaldo scored the only goal of the game with a first-half header to send the European champions to the top of Group A and all but secure a place in next week's semifinals.
Ronaldo, making his 141st appearance, needed eight minutes to make his mark, although the opening goal was far from all his own work.
With Russia attempting to sit deep and deny Portugal space in midfield, Raphaël Guerreiro found room on the left flank and delivered an inviting cross to the far post, where Ronaldo made the most of defender Fedor Kudriashov’s misjudgment to head home.
Ronaldo proved the main threat throughout the first half as the hosts offered little going forward, and he tested Akinfeev with a 25th-minute free-kick before forcing the keeper to block with his legs seven minutes later.
Russia might have been level as the half-time whistle approached but the striker Fedor Smolov could not adjust his feet in time to steer Aleksandr Golovin’s cross on target.
Akinfeev kept Russia in it when he clawed away Silva’s 50th-minute header from close range, and he was in the right place at the right time to repel Cédric Soares’ long-range effort nine minutes later.
Russia, who beat New Zealand 2-0 in their opening fixture, belatedly launched their push and might have been level just after the hour when Alexander Samedov’s teasing cross was only fractionally too high for Smolov in the middle.
Ronaldo passed up a glorious opportunity to extend his side’s lead just past the hour when he headed wide from Andre Gomes’ cross as Portugal broke at pace.
It was Russia who finished strongly with Aleksandr Bukharov appealing in vain for a last-gasp penalty after going down in the box, before the defender Georgy Dzhikya headed inches over Rui Patricio’s crossbar deep into injury time.
BDST: 1020 HRS, JUN 22, 2017
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