Portugal triumphs again in Nations League Twice as victorious

After two thrilling semi-finals of the Nations League held in Germany, Portugal and Spain delivered an equally gripping – even epic – final in the "Final Four" stage. A final that will be remembered above all as Cristiano Ronaldo’s swan song. And what a song it was!

Cristiano, already a living legend, capped his 221st appearance for the national team with his 138th goal – and though he didn't take part in the penalty shootout, his team triumphed. With this victory, Portugal became the first-ever two-time champions of the Nations League.

Let me remind you that the inaugural edition of the tournament in 2019 — which many at the time dismissed as unnecessary — ended with a victory for none other than Portugal. Back then, Cristiano’s team defeated the Netherlands 1–0 in the final.

In the 2021 final, France edged out Spain 2–1, while in 2023, Spain redeemed themselves in their second consecutive final by beating Croatia (0–0 in regular time, 5–4 in the penalty shootout).

And now, having reached the final for a third time in a row, Spain were seen as clear favourites — already, as they say, measuring themselves for gold medals. But as I noted in my previous article, there was one thing that could stand in their way (and did!): the Ronaldo factor — even at 40, he still has the instinct to be in the right place at the right time.

And that’s precisely what the captain did — twice — as Portugal fought back during the match. He scored in the 61st minute after a deflection to level the score at 2–2. With that goal, the footballing world witnessed a truly historic moment. I doubt anyone will ever match this feat — to smash the ball into the net in a final of this calibre at the age of 40! Even if, hypothetically, the greatest of all time, Lionel Messi, were to lead Argentina to another World Cup final next year and score — he’d still be “only” 39.

Interestingly, this final echoed the events of nine years ago, when Portugal won the European Championship but Ronaldo couldn’t finish the match due to injury. And now, once again, he left the pitch at Munich’s Allianz Arena before extra time (in the 88th minute) and the penalty shootout. Unlike in 2016 under Fernando Santos, he remained relatively quiet on the bench this time, fully entrusting team leadership to Portugal’s head coach, Roberto Martínez.

As for Martínez, he has every reason to be proud. After winning the bronze medal at the 2018 World Cup with Belgium, he has now achieved success with Portugal — defeating his fellow countrymen in the final, no less.

Luis de la Fuente’s men have only themselves to blame for the defeat. Once again — just like in the semi-final — they started on a high note and ended in disappointment. While their strong opening was enough to overcome France (5–4) in that previous match, it wasn’t sufficient this time. After Ronaldo’s goal, the team visibly lost momentum. Even Lamine Yamal looked a shadow of his usual self — and the fact that the young prodigy failed to score in the final speaks volumes. The final blow came when team captain Álvaro Morata failed to beat Portuguese goalkeeper Diogo Costa in the decisive penalty shootout.

And so, the downfall of one captain turned into the triumph of another — Cristiano Ronaldo secured his third major trophy with the national team. Remarkably, all three victories — one at the Euros and two in the Nations League — are the only major titles Portugal has ever won since the team was founded back in 1921.
And yet they say one man can't make a difference…

By Vugar Vugarli, exclusively for Caliber.Az