Cristiano Ronaldo tried a bicycle kick from the penalty area during Portugal's match in the UEFA Nations League. To his dismay, though, the ball went wide right and, because of the high boot, it also ended up being a free kick.
Cristiano Ronaldo nearly scores an INSANE bicycle kick volley! Misses the post only by a few inches! 🤯🔥 pic.twitter.com/NfFjUwGzp6
— AFAQ AHMED (KB) (@KB_INSIGHTS_7) October 15, 2024
Scotland held a frustrated Portugal to an embarrassing 0-0 draw at Hampden Park, marking their first win in UEFA Nations League Group A. Even though the visitors, who prevailed in their last three games in the competition, controlled the ball the entire time, their opponents managed to create some good shooting opportunities, as chances from Ryan Christie and Scott McTominay were saved.
In contrast, Roberto Martinez's team found it difficult to create many opportunities against a strong defense, with Diogo Jota shooting too near to Craig Gordon and Cristiano Ronaldo going uncharacteristically off target.
Following the half, both Ronaldo and Francisco Conceicao squandered fantastic opportunities by lifting over the bar while in good positions but going unmarked. However, they had very few clear-cut opportunities. Bruno Fernandes had the final one, but Gordon stopped him. Scotland defended valiantly, and Portugal was mostly kept at bay.
Spain book their place in UEFA Nations League knock-out stage
Spain defeated toothless Serbia 3-0 in a fierce match to secure their spot during the UEFA Nations League quarterfinals. Even though Spain controlled the game, particularly when Aymeric Laporte headed the first goal five minutes in, victory wasn't certain until much later in the second half, when Alvaro Morata scored the second goal to make up for a missed penalty.
After Stahinja Pavlovic's yellow card was upgraded by VAR, Serbia collapsed in the last quarter and ended the match with 10 men, just seconds after Aleksandar Mitrovic failed to capitalize on a fantastic opportunity to tie the score. Alex Baena's brilliant free kick completed a well-earned win for La Roja, who now join Germany to advance to the Nations League quarter final stages after he fouled Mikel Oyarzabal barely outside the penalty area.