Lisbon (AFP)

Portugal, the reigning European champion, was held in check by Spain (0-0) in a friendly match Wednesday in Lisbon, before their meeting Sunday against the Blues in the League of Nations.

The 40th Iberian duel between the last two European champions, aligning reshuffled teams but with Cristiano Ronaldo holder on the Portuguese side, did not give rise to the "big show" that Portuguese coach Fernando Santos wanted.

No comparison possible with the intensity of the exceptional last clash of the two selections in the group stage of the 2018 World Cup (3-3), marked by a resounding hat-trick of 'CR7'.

In the first half, the Portuguese struggled to deal with Spain's aggressive pressing and thwarting their possession game.

One player particularly damaged the Portuguese defense, curled up in its half of the field, Leipzig winger Dani Olmo.

Each of his stalls created danger but the Portuguese selection was able to count on a Rui Patricio in great shape, the Wolverhampton goalkeeper multiplying the stops.

First by springing in front of Gerard Moreno launched in the middle of the surface by Olmo (3rd), then by capturing two long distance shots from the same Olmo (12th, 25th) and by perfectly deflecting a difficult shot still from the Spanish N.7 (72nd) , perhaps enough to fold the cards in the hierarchy of Portuguese goalkeepers where the fight with the goalkeeper of Olympique Lyonnais Anthony Lopes is bitter.

It was not until the 26th minute to see the first Portuguese opportunity when Cristiano Ronaldo, until then without balls, served Renato Sanches back at the entrance to the box but the LOSC midfielder sent his strike far above .

Isolated from his teammates in attack, the five-time Golden Ball still managed to snatch a ball from the head in the Spanish area which could have known a better fate if Raphael Guerreiro had not completely missed his recovery with his right foot then that he was alone at the penalty spot (43rd).

- Unlucky Ronaldo -

Returning from the locker room, while the reigning European champions breathed better in particular thanks to the entries of Bernardo Silva and William Carvalho, the Juventus Turin striker believed he scored his 102nd goal in the selection which would have brought him closer to the world record held by Iranian Ali Daei (109) but his powerful left strike crashed into the crossbar before rebounding in front of the goal line guarded by Kepa.

So the captain of the Portuguese selection wanted to turn into a passer by slipping a superb ball from the outside of the foot to Renato Sanches but the Lillois hit the bar (67th), leaving Ronaldo to be replaced by Joao Félix without having been shown decisive (73rd).

Félix even had a golden opportunity to give the victory on the last corner of the game but the Atlético Madrid player did not throw himself quickly enough on the ball to push it into the net (90 + 3 ).

CR7 therefore did not have the opportunity to sign his 100th victory in the jersey of his national team and Fernando Santos equaled the record of matches at the head of the Portuguese selection of the Brazilian Luiz Felipe Scolari (74) without knowing the taste success.

But that did not prevent the 2,500 spectators authorized at the José-Alvalade stadium despite the health crisis, a first for a match in Portugal since the start of the coronavirus pandemic in March, from vibrating at times before focusing on the France team in the Nations League.

© 2020 AFP