National stadium
Spectators: 10300 (Terracing: 7725,
Seating: 2369, VIP seats: 206) The field was rather wet after several days of rain when Antonello Panza took the kick off in the first half of the match. Daniele Cagnetta made a fantastic save in the 6th minute, when Afonso Antunes sent off a good shot on target. Rui Patrício showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Flavio Sisti in the 11th minute of the match. An unexpectedly hard shot by Antonello Panza in the 13th minute of play forced Portugal's goalkeeper Rui Patrício to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. 13 minutes into the game, Antonello Panza cracked a shot to the right of the goalkeeper, 0-1. Rui Patrício was not in position, and could only watch the ball fly in. 18 minutes into the match, Hernán Crespo notched a goal, 0-2, to the right of Portugal's Rui Patrício. Rui Patrício was clearly disgusted with the effort of the defense and let the defenders know about it. In the 23rd minute of the match Ferdinando Mazzetti sent off a long shot with destination to the right of the goalkeeper, but Rui Patrício skillfully saved the ball. Thanks to some nice foot action and superb ball handling Hernán Crespo in the 24th minute a chance for a shot on goal. With an extended leg and a bit of luck Rui Patrício prevented the ball from getting in the gole. After 31 minutes of play, Italy's Ferdinando Mazzetti made it 0-3 when he simply outclassed the defender marking him and hit a curling shot into the right side of the net. Rui Patrício was left in no man's land by his defense there! Paulo Setúbal hit a great freekick 33 minutes into the match. In the 36th minute Hernán Crespo shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Rui Patrício saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Italy's Daniele Cagnetta proved his good apprehension of play when he, in the 37th minute of the match, managed to save Italy from getting a goal against them. The audience thought a goal was coming when Júlio Lopes got free with Daniele Cagnetta in the 39th minute, but the goalkeeper managed to catch the ball with a huge effort. Rui Patrício took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Antonello Panza, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. After a rather tough play, Portugal's Rodrigo Teixeira got a free kick in the 41st minute. Portugal's Rui Patrício played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Hernán Crespo in the 42nd minute of play. Portugal made a substitution. Joaquim Melo replaced Tạ Queto. Paulo Setúbal kicked well hit freekick during the 49th minute of the match. Luck had favoured the away team in the first, and they walked off with a 0-3 lead.
The players of the away team seemed most concentrated when Pedro Flores stepped up to make the kick off in the second half. After 56 minutes, Flavio Sisti mouthed his way into the referee's book. The tension between the Italy and the Portugal players grew even worse after the yellow card. The supporters of Portugal booed when Italy was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 56 match minutes in a wonderful position. Flavio Sisti didn't get a good kick on the ball. Júlio Lopes, 56 minutes into the match, dribbled the ball up the side of the field and decided to take a long shot at the goal. Unfortunately, the ball was poorly hit and landed closer to the corner than to the goal. Rui Patrício made an important save on a dangerous shot by Hernán Crespo in the 61st minute. Portugal's Bruno Fernandes quite brazenly broke a throw-in by Alvise Campana, made in the 64th minute of the game. If Pedro Flores had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 66th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. An unexpectedly hard shot by Júlio Lopes in the 69th minute of play forced Italy's goalkeeper Daniele Cagnetta to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. Daniele Cagnetta showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Pedro Flores, who was totally free with the ball in the 70th minute. Portugal's Pedro Flores got a good chance for a goal in the 72nd minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. Italy's Gheorghe Hagi was substituted for Antonello Panza. 74 minutes into the match, Portugal's goal looked a bit too open when Gheorghe Hagi came free, but Rui Patrício reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. Daniele Cagnetta showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Pedro Flores in the 77th minute of the match. In the 79th minute, Flavio Sisti hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. Italy made a substitution. Franco Baresi replaced Flavio Sisti. In the 80th minute, Flavio Sisti hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. Daniele Cagnetta showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Pedro Flores, who was totally free with the ball in the 82nd minute. In the 84th minute Pedro Flores shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Daniele Cagnetta saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Ferdinando Mazzetti made in the 89th minute of the game a throw-in that took a bad bounce and was taken care of by Portugal's Joaquim Melo. The audience was convinced that Gheorghe Hagi's extremely hard shot when he got free in front of the goal was going in, but Rui Patrício was relentless in the 91st minute of the game. Portugal's Joaquim Melo managed, thanks to a brazen rush, stole the ball on a throw-in made by Alvise Campana in the 93 minute of the game. Rui Patrício was in the perfect position, and the defense had done a good job marking him, but Gheorghe Hagi showcased his skills and made a perfect shot to score 0-4 in the 98 minute of play. When the final whistle was heard the away supporters stood up and showed their joy. Italy had managed to secure a win in what was a close match throughout.
Change language
