15 November 2006, by Tom Kundert

Simao double sees Portugal back on track

Portugal 3-0 Kazakhstan

A new-look Portugal beat Kazakhstan 3-0 in Coimbra tonight to get their Euro 2008 qualification campaign back on track. Two goals from man-of-the-match Simao Sabrosa and another stunning Cristiano Ronaldo strike ensured a comfortable win for Luiz Filipe Scolari’s team.

Following the poor performance against Poland last month Scolari rang the changes, dropping Ricardo Rocha, Nuno Valente, Costinha, Petit and Maniche, and giving full international debuts to Porto’s Raul Meireles and Sporting’s Tonel.

Match reaction: "I liked the attitude of the team tonight" - Scolari

Portugal went on the attack from the off and Simao immediately caused problems for the Asian team with some neat dribbling on the left flank. But it was from the opposite side of the pitch that the Benfica man opened the scoring in the 8th minute, rifling a shot past goalkeeper Loriya from a tight angle after being played in by Deco.

Five minutes later a superb pass by Tiago set up Nuno Gomes in acres of space with just the keeper to beat but the Portugal captain shot wide. Loriya then produced a good stop from Gomes followed by an excellent diving tip over the bar from a wonderful Ronaldo snapshot.

Loriya was again called into action, blocking a Simao effort from close range but the impressive stopper could do nothing against the next effort as Cristiano Ronaldo added to his collection of spectacular goals.

Ronaldo beauty

Picking the ball up deep in his own half on the left wing, Ronaldo showed a typical rocket-fuelled burst of pace to leave two markers in his wake before unleashing a venomous shot that flew past the outstretched arm of the diving Loriya before smacking against the inside of the post and nestling in the back of the net.

Nuno Gomes contrived to miss his second one-on-one of the night soon after when his powerful shot ricocheted of Loriya’s head and deflected for a corner. The goalkeeper then dived full length to deny Ronaldo again from a powerfully struck free-kick.

The half-time whistle blew with the capacity crowd roaring their approval of a vibrant first 45 minutes in which Portugal completely outclassed their opponents.

The second half was somewhat of a let-down in comparison, with too much individualism spoiling what had been a cohesive team display by Scolari’s men up until the break.

Even so, only a handful of fine saves from Loriya denied Portugal from increasing their lead until the 83rd minute. From Portugal’s 16th corner Ricardo Carvalho headed towards goal from close range, Loriya produced a reaction stop, and Simao was on hand to hook the loose ball into the net.

A satisfactory night for Portugal, with Raul Meireles, Tonel and second-half substitute Quaresma all doing enough to suggest they can become permanent fixtures in the starting eleven.

To cap a happy evening for all concerned, Jorge Andrade came on for the last 15 minutes after his 7-month injury nightmare that forced him out of the summer World Cup.

PortuGOAL man of the match: Simao Sabrosa
Simao was the only player to come out of the Poland debacle with any distinction and he carried on his fine international form with an excellent all-round display and two opportunist goals.

Portugal:
Ricardo, Miguel, Ricardo Carvalho, Tonel (Jorge Andrade, 75), Paulo Ferreira, Tiago, Raul Meireles, Deco (Carlos Martins, 62), Ronaldo (Quaresma, 59), Nuno Gomes, Simao
Yellow Cards: Simao (49)

Kazakhstan:
David Loriya, Kuchma, Zhalmagambetov, Smakov, Azovskiy, Travin, Sergiyenko (Larin, 72), Baltiyev, Kholkhov, Byakov, Zhumaskaliyev
Yellow Cards: Travin (64)

Goals:
[1-0] Simao, 8
[2-0] Cristiano Ronaldo, 30
[3-0] Simao, 83