Portugal survive late scare to defeat Turkey and advance to the World Cup playoff final
Portugal secured a 3-1 victory over Turkey in Porto to take them one step away from reaching this year’s World Cup in Qatar.
With a starting lineup that sprung a couple of surprises - including a competitive debut for Diogo Costa in goal and no recognisable defensive midfielder in the team, with Danilo Pereira playing at centreback in place of Pepe - Portugal produced a mixed performance against the side many tipped as dark horses at Euro 2020.
Starting brightly, Portugal could have easily found themselves ahead when Diogo Jota inexplicably poked his effort over from a superb Bruno Fernandes delivery. They didn’t have to wait too long until they took the lead though, some excellent play from Portugal leading to Bernardo Silva striking the post from range before Otavio hit home on the rebound.
Portugal then weathered a resurgent storm from Turkey, who began to press Portugal much higher, which saw Portugal hand over possession in their own half on a handful of occasions. Diogo Costa was also forced into an excellent stop to his left-hand side to maintain Portugal’s lead.
And after battling hard to withstand Turkey’s pressure, Portugal eventually regained control of the match towards the end of the half, and doubled their advantage before the break through a stunning Diogo Jota header from a great Otavio delivery.
Fernando Santos’ side therefore went into the break with a comfortable lead, and looked set to see out the match quite comfortably, particularly after looking so assured across the first 15 minutes of the second half too.
However, a moment of inspiration from Turkey saw them unlock Portugal’s backline for the first time on the night, and the experienced Yilmaz eventually poked home to get his side back into contention.
And it looked like Portugal’s worst fears were to come true with just 5 minutes remaining after the referee, upon a VAR review, awarded Turkey a penalty after Jose Fonte was late to a clearance and instead kicked his man in the area. Yilmaz stepped up to bag a brace and complete the comeback - but blazed over, much to the joy of the onlooking home crowd.
Portugal managed to not only see out the match, but put it to bed in stoppage time after substitutes Rafael Leao and Matheus Nunes linked up expertly to make it 3-1 late on.
Portugal will face North Macedonia in a one-legged affair for a place at the winter World Cup after the North Macedonians stunned heavy favourites Italy with a last-gasp winner in Palermo to see the European champions dumped out of the competition. Portugal will host the match this Tuesday.
