Wasteful finishing and an outstanding display by Bulgarian goalkeeper Stoyanov combined to condemn Portugal to defeat in Leiria tonight.
Poor defending by Vieirinha and Pepe allowed Marcelinho to bundle the ball past Anthony Lopes in the 20th minute, but before and after the goal the Seleção contrived to spurn a hatful of chances to score.
On the evidence of tonight, of the 17 Portugal players Santos used, it was Braga forward Rafa who gave his chances of securing a berth in the Euro 2016 team the biggest boost.
This is an interesting time to be a fan of the Portuguese national football team. With the exception of goalkeeper Rui Patrício, defenders Pepe and Fábio Coentrão, midfielder João Moutinho and captain Cristiano Ronaldo, all the other 6 positions in the team are arguably up for grabs.
Coach Fernando Santos faces the task of hitting upon the right combination from an array of tried and trusted veterans and an exciting bunch of emerging talents.
Santos opted to start with Sporting's midfield trio of William Carvalho, Adrien and João Mário, no doubt hoping to take advantage of the routines between the threesome, while Rafa, Nani and Cristiano Ronaldo had licence to roam fluidly in the final third. At the back Santos went for experience, with Pepe and Bruno Alves at the heart of the defence, Vieirinha and Eliseu the full backs, and between the sticks Anthony Lopes was given a rare start.
Portugal started in encouraging fashion, sending wave after wave of attacks towards the Bulgarian goal in the opening 15 minutes. In just the 2nd minute Nani latched onto a long Pepe passed, controlled the ball well and shot towards goal, forcing Stoyanov into a fine reflex save to deflect the ball over the bar. The hosts had eight shots in the opening 10 minutes, and the normally lethal Ronaldo must still be wondering how he lifted his left-footed effort from ten yards over the bar with Stoyanov out of the picture.
Bulgaria at last stemmed Portugal's attacking momentum in the 17th minute, Lopes diving to his left to push away a dangerous Popov free kick. But one minute later the visitors took the lead, the Brazilian-born Marcelinho taking advantage of some lackadaisical defending by Pepe especially and poking the ball past Lopes from close range.
Stoyanov frustrates Ronaldo
Although less dominant than in the opening period, Portugal continued to create chances, Ronaldo's free kick forcing Stoyanov into a spectacular diving save and João Mário's deflected shot from the edge of the box fizzing inches wide.
Bulgaria's attacks were few and far between, but only a superb last-ditch interception by Pepe prevented the away side from doubling their lead.
The Leiria crowd continued to give the national team their full support as the one-way traffic continued in the second half, albeit with chances not coming at such frequency. The lively Rafa came close after an excellent dribble in the box, but his firm shot was too close to Stoyanov.
But the story of the second half was the duel between Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo and Bulgaria's inspired goalkeeper Stoyanov. Four times in the second 45 minutes the Real Madrid man was close to scoring, only to be thwarted on each occasion by the Ludogorets shot-stopper, including a penalty save.
"In attacking terms, this was one of our best games," said Portugal coach Fernando Santos after the match. Missing endless chances is an age-old failing of the Seleção, and one which Portugal must put right if they are going to thrive at Euro 2016.
Next up is a test against the No1 ranked team in the world, Belgium, at the same venue on Tuesday night.
by Tom Kundert
Portugal: Anthony Lopes, Vieirinha, Bruno Alves, Pepe, Eliseu (Raphael Guerreiro), William (Danilo), João Mário (Renato Sanches), Adrien (Danny), Nani (Éder), Cristiano Ronaldo, Rafa (Ricardo Quaresma)
