Skip to content

Defending Euro champ Portugal loses opening World Cup qualifier

Reuters

Portugal's 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign got off to an inauspicious start Tuesday, as the reigning European champion fell 2-0 to Switzerland.

Playing without Cristiano Ronaldo - the talismanic captain continues to recover from a knee injury suffered in the Euro 2016 final - Portugal still managed to pepper Yann Sommer's goal, firing 27 shots towards the Swiss shot-stopper.

Only two hit the target, however, as Ronaldo's decisiveness in front of goal was noticeably missed.

Switzerland, playing in front of the St. Jakob-Park faithful, had no such issues; a Breel Embolo goal in the 23rd minute gave the host nation the lead, and Admir Mehmedi doubled the advantage seven minutes later with a fine curling effort into the top corner.

Nani, wearing the captain's armband and leading the attacking line in lieu of Ronaldo, spurned a gilt-edged chance in the second half, as Portugal dug itself an early hole in Group B.

Then again, the Selecao also started their 2016 European Championship qualifying campaign with a loss, and things worked out rather well in the end.

Daily Newsletter

Get the latest trending sports news daily in your inbox