Portugal earned a dramatic 2-1 victory over the Czech Republic, with substitute Francisco Conceicao scoring the winning goal in stoppage time just minutes after coming on in Leipzig.
Roberto Martinez’s team seemed poised for a surprising defeat when Lukas Provod netted a sublime finish against the run of play midway through the second half. However, an own goal by Robin Hranac soon leveled the score.
Despite the Czech Republic’s brave defense against a relentless Portuguese onslaught, they were ultimately undone when Conceicao, making his competitive debut, lashed the ball home to secure the win.
Bruno Fernandes had Portugal’s first real chance midway through the first half, sending a left-footed rocket narrowly over the crossbar as Martinez’s side dominated possession early on. Moments later, Rafael Leao was inches away from connecting with a low cross from Fernandes that zipped across the goal.
Cristiano Ronaldo had a golden opportunity to open the scoring just past the half-hour mark when Fernandes set him up with a fine through-ball. However, Czech goalkeeper Jindrich Stanek reacted quickly, racing out to block the attempt.
Conceicao’s debut goal was celebrated with jubilation, especially by Captain Ronaldo.
The Czech goal came just after the hour mark and was completely against the flow of play. Vladimir Coufal regained possession after Portugal failed to clear a cross from the left, passing it to the unmarked Provod. Before the Portuguese defense could react, Provod unleashed an unstoppable shot into Diogo Costa’s far corner.
Portugal’s equalizer came in the 69th minute. Stanek tried to parry away a header across the goal from Nuno Mendes but only managed to deflect it against Hranac’s shin, resulting in an own goal.
Diogo Jota thought he had clinched the victory with an 87th-minute header, but VAR ruled it out for offside against Ronaldo. Finally, Conceicao sealed the win with his last-minute strike, securing a memorable victory for Portugal.
