France 0-0 Portugal - UEFA Nations League
As European champions took on the World champions, Portugal went toe-to-toe with France, holding the 2018 World Cup winners to a 0-0 draw in Paris.
Returning to the Stade de France for the first time since defeating Didier Deschamps’ side in the Euro 2016 final, it was a big day for Portugal boss Fernando Santos, who became the stand-alone record holder for the number of matches overseen as manager of Portugal, topping the 74-game tally obtained by Luiz Felipe Scolari.
It also marked 6 years to the day since Santos’ first match as Portugal manager - which coincidentally also came against France in the exact same venue - though Portugal lost 2-1 on that occasion.
They were unable to mark the anniversary with a victory though, failing to break through France as two very disciplined defensive performances nullified the exceptional attacking flair that was on offer from both sides.
The first half played out like a chess match, with both sides going through bouts of good possession football followed by resilient defending, and the deadlock was, unsurprisingly, unbroken going into the break.
With the second half did come a more open game though, as both teams became more adventurous, allowing the game to become a little stretched, at least early on. It led to France’s best chance of the game, when Mbappe danced past Danilo Pereira, but failed to beat the outstretched hand of Rui Patricio with a dinked effort.
Portugal did find the back of the net through a powerful Pepe header later on, but the flag rightly went up for offside. Cristiano Ronaldo then very nearly won it for Portugal right at the death, but his powerful effort was pushed out by Hugo Lloris in the French goal, ensuring that the game ended goalless.
It was a fair result on the night, with both sides showing immense respect for their opponent, and both sides seemed content to take a share of the points.
The draw leaves the group in the balance, with Portugal and France joint at the top of the table with 7 points from 3 games, Portugal only ahead on goal difference in the current standings.
