Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes featured for 45 minutes as Portugal beаt Finland 4-2 in a friendly clаsh at Estádio José Alvalade in Lisbon.
Fernandes initially started on the bench as Roberto Martinez gave the nod to a midfield trio of Joao Neves (Benfica), Joao Palhinha (Fulham) and Vitinga (Paris Saint-Germain).
Portugal raced to a two-goal lead within the opening 45 minutes, with Ruben Dias and Diogo Jota finding the back of the net. The latter’s goal came from the penalty spot.
Martinez brought on Fernandes during the interval and the playmaker did not disappoint as he pulled the strings from his favoured number 10 position in the middle of the park.
Fernandes scored the Selecao’s third of the match just 10 minutes into the second half in brilliant fashion. He produced a sublime shot from the edge of the box that Lukas Hradecky simply had no chance of keeping out.
Finland threatened to cause an upset as they scored two quick goals in the space of five minutes. However, any hopes they harboured of staging a comeback were thwarted by Fernandes, who did well as he slotted the ball into the right-bottom corner.
The 29-year-old registered 60 touches of the ball during the time he was on the pitch.
He tried to ping three long balls and found his intended target in all three instances. He also made two key passes.
Fernandes delved into four ground duels. He won two of them. He was not required to contest any challenges in the air. He drew two fouls and made one clearance.
It was certainly a superb display from him and a peep into what he can offer during Euro 2024.
Like Fernandes, Diogo Dalot was also tҺrust into proceedings during half-time. Dalot put in three tackles and won six of the 10 ground duels he engaged in.
Dalot delivered all 32 of the passes he attempted, managing a 100% individual pass completion rate. Like his United captain, he also completed 100% of the long balls he tried to connect with.
The right-back embarked on five dribbles and completed three of them.
Portugal’s next games are against Croatia on Saturday, Ireland three days later, and Czechia on June 18, when they begin their Euro 2024 campaign.
