João Vigario’s goal makes the difference
Portugal’s Under-20 side played the first of their two friendly fixtures in the South of Sydney against one of Africa’s best in the form of CAF U-20 Championship semi-finalists, Ghana. A Seleção had arrived ‘Down Under’ only three days prior, training at Remondis Stadium. That same ground would play host to last night’s encounter between two technically gifted, attractive sides built on fast-paced football.
Local Luso-Australian journalist Mitchell Rua brings you the action from the stands during an electric evening in Woolooware.
Winners in 2009, twice runners-up and recently bronze medallists in Turkey where Portugal fell to them in the Round of 16, Sellas Tetteh’s Ghanaian outfit, more commonly known as the Black Satellites, will be looking to make a splash in New Zealand come June. Making their 7th appearance at the FIFA U-20 World Cup, the West Africans have led their continent at youth level, becoming the first and only African country to win the competition.
Based on these facts alone, and their pedigree both at youth and senior level, Helio Sousa and co. would expect a tight, fiery contest, and that is what they encountered. A sole João Vigario effort in the 71st minute from a defensive lapse sealed a deserved victory in a match that Portugal dominated in periods, but was riddled with its inconsistencies, seen with a lack of proficiency in front of goal, that must be addressed come New Zealand.
A strong start
Sousa’s charges started much the stronger of the two sides, with strong ball retention and transitioning from the defensive to attacking third. This was evident on Portugal’s left-hand side consisting of a Seixal trio: Rebocho, Guzzo and Guedes, where the Portuguese would constantly pin their efforts.
The first half was earmarked by the Benfiquistas’ passing triangles, combining well to open up space, with Rebocho’s overlapping runs and Guedes never far behind in support. After a stellar season at Liga NOS hopefuls GD Chaves, Guzzo’s shuttling runs up and down the pitch in support of attacking and defensive endeavours, covering for Rebocho’s forward forays, underlined the work ethic instilled in Sousa’s men. This was reverberated in Bikel’s performance on the right, although to a lesser extent, and Francisco Ramos’ exploits in the 2nd half, as the dogfight for the coveted no. 8 slot ensues.
But, for all of Portugal’s dominance on the left, their first chance of the half came through the middle in the 6th minute. A lovely lobbed effort from skipper Podstawski in behind the Black Satellites’ defence, his only real contribution going forward in taking his usual anchored role in midfield, found Porto B teammate André Silva in space. The Portista was forced to the edge of the box after good covering from his rival centre-back, with the no. 9 toying with his marker, trying to find space in opening his angle on goal. Silva’s subsequent shot and follow-up header were both parried away, with an effort on the rebound at the edge of the box bearing no fruit either, as Guzzo’s scuffed shot was easily saved.
Silva shows his worth in more ways than one
The Seleção would continue to use the left flank as an outlet when playing out of defence, although, as the half progressed, their attacking intentions shifted to the right-hand side. On the touchline, Tetteh saw the threat, dragging his central midfielders into central defence when needed, morphing a quintessential 4-4-2 to a 5-3-2 at times, with his full backs pinning back and not showing the line as Guedes was forced inwards and narrow.
At the same time, the Ghanaians saw Portugal’s greatest threat as the chink in their armour, favouring their left-side in taking advantage of pockets of space left as a result of Rebocho’s incursions forward, with Guzzo at times stuck in 2 v 1 situations and Nunes looking rather flat-footed and fleeting in central defence.
Sousa’s side opted to use André Silva’s ability to play with his back to goal as a springboard to switch the attacking run of play quickly to the right, whether on the turn or holding up the ball, as Bikel and Santos played support to the Tripeiro, feeding Riquicho. This saw a flurry of opportunities stem from that flank, as a pearl of a cross from the latter was met by a tame header from Silva, and a tidy Riquicho, Santos and Bikel combination finished with the Heerenveen midfielder skying high and wide from a tight angle in the 20th minute. Only a minute later, André Silva would terrorise the Ghanaian back four once again, this time taking the ball on his chest upon entering the box before unleashing an effort that was expertly saved by Baah.
Although stemming the flow of chances on Rebocho’s flank, Ghana still found opportunities, especially through the middle. There was a scare in the 26th minute, where a Black Satellite striker was left one-on-one with Portuguese keeper Andre Moreira after poor cover from the flat footed Nunes and Duarte, who led the line extremely well for the 90 minutes, barring this occasion. This foreshadowed the latter part of the second half as the Ghanaians continued to grow in stature, with two more efforts, one a ferocious shot that ricocheted off the base of the right post after and another leaving Moreira in the dirt after acutely smothering the ball from his rival.
Minhoto shows the Big Three how it’s done
After the break, Portugal regained the composure and zest that had seen them dominate the majority of the first half. In the 58th minute fine build-up play on the left from substitute Ivo Rodrigues would lead to a teasing ball played into the box for André Silva, who simulated his effort. On the edge of the box was the awaiting Benfica forward Nuno Santos, who struck the ball agonisingly wide, much to the dismay of Sousa’s bench.
Ten minutes later, another tantalising effort came close to breaking the stalemate, with an audacious back heel from André Silva culminating in a first-time effort from Ivo that struck the left post. For all of Portugal’s efforts in possession, labouring and pegging back their rivals with perceptive running and an array of passing combinations, the deadlock was finally broken from sheer grit and determination.
An unfamiliar name before his winning goal; Vitoria de Guimaraes’ João Viagário was clinical in running down his rival defender after a somewhat wayward pass. The centre back was inauspicious in his attempt to receive it, allowing the Minhoto to snatch the ball from under his nose. One-on-one with the goalkeeper, Viagário slowed his pace, opening his body to place the ball in the top right-hand corner, much to the delight of the modest Portuguese contingent present.
Portugal's winning goal:
A spring in their step and the wind in their sails, Portugal continued to muster opportunities, with substitutes Rony and Gelson terrorising the right-hand side with fine combinations and one-twos, and Viagário buying a couple of tickets to the lottery with a couple of bold attempts to beat substitute keeper Saidu.
The last ten minutes had no real tales to tell, with the Portuguese looking more than content to settle for the win as the Ghanaians waited until the last minute of play to pose their greatest threat, finding themselves clean through on goal before being pulled back for offside.
Positive signs aplenty
After quite a strong showing, taking into account a substantial reshuffle on the team-sheet and the flurry of substitutions throughout the fixture, Sousa and his technical staff will have a lot to smile about.
Proven campaigners under Sousa and U-19 European runners-up Riquicho, Duarte, Rebocho and André Silva all attested themselves with strong showings. Congruently, captain Tomas Podstawski had a positive showing coming off a tough season at FC Porto B. Although lacking in the creative department, the modest Northerner of Polish heritage was pivotal in the centre of the park as Portugal’s midfield lynchpin and anchor, exemplified in Estrela’s struggle and lack of composure when called open to replace him.
Other stand-out performers included Raphael Guzzo, and his replacement Francisco Ramos, who, coupled together with the fresh-faced Bikel, make-up a heated battle for the coveted no. 8 spot upon Lopes, who also shone at times alongside Gelson during his short cameo, finding full fitness ahead of this summer’s tournament.
The Seleção das Quinas will now take on Brazil on the 24th at 3pm local time (6am Lisbon time) at Kogarah Park, Sydney before making the trip to the ‘Shaky Isles’ on the 27th.
Portugal: André Moreira; Mauro Riquicho, João Nunes (Dinis Almeida 60), Domingos Duarte, Pedro Rebocho (Rafa 45); Tomas Podstawski (Estrela 60), Raphael Guzzo (Francisco Ramos 45), Janio Bikel (Rony Lopes 69); Nuno Santos (João Viagário 60), Gonçalo Guedes (Ivo Rodrigues 45), André Silva (Gelson Martins 69)
Unused Substitutes: Tiago Sa & Guilherme Oliveira
Yellow Cards: Janio Bikel 21, Domingos Duarte 46, Estrela 84
Goals:
[1-0] João Viagário 71
By Mitchell Rua
For more on Mitchell (twitter: @Tripeiro87) and check out PortugalFutbol.net
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