La Roja enjoyed their Wednesday evening; they beat Slovakia 5-0 at La Cartuja in Seville. Immediately afterwards, two of their major rivals for Euro 2020 duked it out at the Puskas Arena in Budapest, with Portugal drawing 2-2 with France.
Cristiano Ronaldo, formerly of Real Madrid, opened the scoring in the 31st minute, only for Karim Benzema, currently of Madrid, to equalise on the stroke of half-time. Benzema then put France in the lead just after the restart, only for Cristiano to hit back on the hour to make it 2-2.
Both goals were penalties; Cristiano displayed a cold-blooded ability to thrive in the high-pressure moments that’s as rare as it is useful. Followers of Spanish football won’t be surprised; the Portuguese has built his name on moments like that.
Given Germany drew 2-2 with Hungary in the other game in Group F, France finished the group phase top of the table with five points. Germany finished second with four, while Portugal finished third with four, losing out on the head-to-head. Hungary finished bottom with just two points.
It was a thrilling game that showed the best of international football. Portugal will face Belgium next at La Cartuja in the last 16 on Sunday evening, while France will play Switzerland at the National Arena in Bucharest.
