Portugal with their world class players were not able to pick automatic spot in the upcoming Qatar WC 2022 after they were held at their own background by Serbia who remained on top of their game throughout the 90 minutes.
Portugal entered into the fixture level on points with Serbia at 17 and needed a win to book their place in the Fifa world cup but their inconsistencies surfaced once again.
In the opening minutes of the game, Renato Sanches who is not the regular goal scorer broke the deadlock for the game and many believed Serbia were going to be humiliated in Lisbon.
It was a different ball game as the visitors upped their game and faced the hosts squarely. 33 minutes into the first half, Dusan Tadic stunned the host with a sweet equalized for Serbia. Portugal looked dismayed and lost on the pitch with little display.
The first half ended one-all and the second half continued with fireworks. Portugal who was favourites to control the game with majority of possession but it was the otherwise. Serbia came into the fixture to frustrate Portugal and their plan worked to perfection.
As the game seemed to be ending in a draw, Aleksandar Mitrovic who was sleeping in the game since coming on got the most important touch of the game as he lashed in the winner in the 90th minute.
The Serbian who could not jubilate enough took his shirt off to his shirt and was given a yellow card which meant nothing close to the fact that they have urged Portugal at Lisbon to pick an automatic spot in Group A.
Portugal will now wait for a play-off to determine whether they will also pick a spot to participate in the Qatar 2022 Fifa world cup.
I am a young and vibrant sports journalist from Ghana, a member of the Sports Writers’ Association of Ghana(SWAG), and working with Sports Preview Ghana and sports reporting outfit poised to bring all the latest and trending sports news around the globe.
