Thank you very much for joining me.
Here is the match report.
They really weren’t.
@Will_Unwin
— Anand R (@anandstg) June 15, 2021
Hungary are playing much better in the 2nd half. But your commentary doesn't show any of that. Your Guardian bias is coming in the way it seems #HUNPOR
And a decent third one.
That is 𝐬𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥! 🐐@Cristiano's 106th international goal is one we won't be forgetting for a very long time 🤯#POR | #ITVFootball | #Euro2020 pic.twitter.com/ilICgXL4q0
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 15, 2021
Here are the first two goals.
Guerreiro.
GOOOOOAL!
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 15, 2021
Guerreiro puts #POR in front!#ITVFootball | #Euro2020 pic.twitter.com/TA2tMysUe0
Ronaldo penalty.
🌟 @CRISTIANO RONALDO BECOMES THE ALL-TIME TOP EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP GOALSCORER 🌟
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 15, 2021
Yet another record for one of the best to 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 play the game 🐐#POR | #ITVFootball | #Euro2020 pic.twitter.com/tvcQrcmIdG
Full-time: Hungary 0-3 Portugal
Portugal dominated from start to finish but it took them 84 minutes to break the deadlock. Ronaldo added plenty of gloss to the result but it was certainly a deserved win.
GOAL! Hungary 0-3 Portugal (Ronaldo, 90+2)
WHAT A GOAL! Ronaldo completes the move after some dazzling footwork and a few one-twos with his teammates.
Updated
90 mins: Five minutes added on.
89 mins: Kudos to Hungary for keeping Portugal out for so long but they deserve nothing from this game.
GOAL! Hungary 0-2 Portugal (Ronaldo, pen, 87)
The Juventus forward sends the goalkeeper the wrong way to become the top scorer in European Championships history.
Updated
86 mins: Rafa Silva is pulled down in the box by Orban. The referee gives a penalty, which is the right decision.
GOAL! Hungary 0-1 Portugal (Guerreiro, 84)
Finally Portugal find a way through. The ball is worked into the box to Rafa Silva, who pulls it back to the edge of the box for Guerreiro to let fly, his shot hits a defender, deceiving the goalkeeper and it ends up in the bottom corner. Portugal do deserve it.
Updated
82 mins: Hungary are holding on with relatively ease now.
80 mins: NO GOAL! Schon, fresh off the bench, is slipped through but he looks a good yard offside. Play continues and he whacks a shot beyond Rui Patricio to send the crowd wild. Sadly, the flag then goes up and the goal is rightly ruled out.
77 mins: A pass is chipped over the top for Ronaldo, who chest it down onto the hand of Fiola but he was very close by. The referee and VAR are not interested, despite Ronaldo’s fury.
Nego goes down under pressure from Danilo and decides to stay down to waste some time.
Updated
75 mins: Sallai is fouled by Pepe after some nice footwork, much to the enjoyment of the 60,000 home fans.
Adam Szalai tries a volley from 35 yards out. He really wants to win this with a spectacular goal and immediately retire a hero.
73 mins: Hungary break on Portugal and get the ball into the box but after a bit of a scramble, it is cleared. Another dangerous cross is produced but Rui Patricio claims.
71 mins: Fernandes is not having a great day. He gets the ball inside the box, spins before sending a shot a good 15 yards wide.
One Silva is replaced by another as Rafa comes on for Bernardo.
The commentator has just described Viktor Orban as ‘divisive’. Good cowardice.
69 mins: Fernandes receives the ball 30 yards from goal, gets it out of his feet and hits a low drive which Gulacsi does well to palm wide.
I did say they were well organised before.
@Will_Unwin Please give Hungary some credit .. POR are one of the best teams around, we are very much the underdog here!
— Balazs F. (@vja11) June 15, 2021
67 mins: Fernandes and Bernardo Silva play a dismal short corner which ends up on the halfway line. Carvalho belatedly pings it into the box but the ball goes out of play off Dias.
65 mins: This is just attack v defence in training now. Hungary have eight men on the edge of the box while Portugal try to find a gap.
63 mins: Very much like Spain last night, Portugal have made roughly 383, 303 passes without scoring. Hungary have made roughly 19 passes.
61 mins: Semedo whips in a low cross from the right which Gulacsi claims at the second attempt.
59 mins: Adam Szalai just keeps shouting at Ruben Dias about something or other. The Hungary captain is just desperate to wind up the defender as he is on a booking. I think they call it gamesmanship.
57 mins: Ronaldo gets a slight nudge in the back in the box, so throws himself down. Can everyone please stop diving!
Adam Szalai tries to get the crowd going, as he realises he will never play in another major championship in front of a home crowd.
55 mins: Sallai runs into Ruben Dias and goes down like a proper shithouse in another desperate attempt to get the Portuguese defender in trouble. Hungary really are the worst.
53 mins: To be fair to Hungary, they are well organised, making it very hard for Portugal to break the lines. Sadly, however, they are dreadful to watch.
Fernandes is cleaned out by Attila Szalai and Portugal are belatedly given a free-kick.
Updated
51 mins: Adam Szalai finds himself in a bit of space 30 yards from goal and he lets fly but it is directed straight at Rui Patricio. It is a shot on target at least. I think that makes two for Hungary.
49 mins: This is very much like the first half, with Portugal utterly dominant and Hungary slowly chasing the ball around.
47 mins: Semedo whacks a cross into a defender’s face to earn a corner. Fernandes pings it into the box and onto Pepe’s header but Gulacsi reacts quickly to dive down to his right and stop it.
Second-half
Here we go again!
That’s a bad miss.
A true in head in hands moment 🙈@Cristiano has scored 104 goals for #POR - but he somehow diverted this delicious Bruno Fernandes cross over the bar 😲#ITVFootball | #Euro2020 pic.twitter.com/NtrJ1blVLz
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 15, 2021
Get ready for the later game.
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Updated
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Half-time! Hungary 0-0 Portugal
Portugal are very much the better side and should be ahead. Ronaldo will be going into the break wondering how on earth he missed that chance.
45 mins: One minute added on.
44 mins: Fernandes rifles in a low cross for Ronaldo to attack but he somehow sends the ball over from six yards with no one around him. How did he miss that? What a chance.
Updated
42 mins: Portugal are huffing and puffing.
40 mins: Semedo drives into the box, pulling back a cross for Jota who spins on a six pence and fires a low shot but Gulasci is equal to it.
Bring it back.
@Will_Unwin our best kit was the white one with blue pieces. A piece of art pic.twitter.com/Twfxh6Pfu5
— Miguel Barreira (@Aftaminas) June 15, 2021
38 mins: The subsequent free-kick is sent into the box, where Adam Szalai is waiting to flick it on but he sends it straight at Rui Patricio. Hungary could be dangerous from set-pieces, which is more reason not to commit silly fouls.
Ruben Dias is booked for getting the ball first before the Hungarian. The referee has not been at his best today.
36 mins: Portugal, despite being on top, are doing some very thick things. First Pepe plays a lazy pass and gives the ball away, allowing Hungary to take it upfield, only for their attack to end when Chief Clogger Adam Szalai is needlessly fouled by Bernardo Silva.
34 mins: Hungary break on Portugal, it’s three-on-three but instead they decide to go back, with the ball ending up with their centre-back. Liquid football.
32 mins: It only seems like a matter of time until Portugal create the opening goal. They are probing in and around the box without creating a great opportunity. Hungary are offering absolutely nothing to the match.
They are ruddy awful.
@Will_Unwin surely Hungary are the most limited cloggers in the tournament so far?
— Grimes, Paul R. (@RutegerSmythe) June 15, 2021
30 mins: Portugal are very much on top here, earning another corner on the right. Fernandes sends another outswinger into the box, but it again comes to nothing.
Matt Burtz emails: “Portugal’s kit makes them look like Celtic are playing with green cummerbunds. Not a fan.”
I would certainly not buy this kit.
28 mins: Bernardo Silva fizzes in a wicked cross from the right but it just has too much on it for Ronaldo to reach it, instead going out for a goal-kick.
Kári Tulinius says: “Having seen how Hungary relied on Dominic Szoboszlai to beat Iceland in the playoff for this tournament, watching this Hungary team play without Szoboszlai feels a bit like being at an Iron Maiden show when Bruce Dickinson was replaced by Blaze Bayley.”
26 mins: Ronaldo does some stepovers for no reason and then gives the ball away. Not his best work.
Updated
24 mins: Portugal have a corner on the right. Fernandes swings it into the box but Hungary stand firm and get the ball away from danger.
Cüneyt Çakır seems far more concerned by the Portuguese indiscretions than those from the home players. He gives Fernandes a good talking to for pulling someone back.
22 mins: Zoltan Gera is on the coaching staff for Hungary. What a great player. I have some cracking memories of his somersault celebrations.
It is a good side, to be fair.
@Will_Unwin Cheers for the MBM! Looking at that Portugal lineup and wondering how I don’t have a tenner on them for a repeat of 2016. Hardly a weak link in the 11, some genuinely world-class players, solid bench—and all without Joao Cancelo...
— Tom Bradstreet (@tomzbradstreet) June 15, 2021
20 mins: Pepe sends a ball over the top for Ronaldo who gets beyond the defence and volleys a shot, which is saved by Gulacsi, even though the flag is up.
A banning order for you.
@Will_Unwin surely if Hungary go one up, the manager needs to bring on and park Dibusz
— Michael Huang (@M_7Huang) June 15, 2021
18 mins: Every time Ronaldo gets the ball, two or three players converge. He certainly is getting special treatment on the pitch and in the stands.
16 mins: Fiola absolutely flies into Semedo, injuring himself in the process. Hungary are just committing a lot of deliberate fouls here.
Mary Waltz corrects me: “Will, you must be kidding. Pepe is at the most 57 years old. 74 is really insulting.”
My apologies to Mary and Pepe.
14 mins: Bruno Fernandes’s first involvement of note is to slip a pass through for Guerreiro but he cannot control the ball in the box and it goes out for a goal-kick.
12 mins: Hungary are just trying to delay the inevitable with aggressive challenges following long passages of possession for Portugal.
Charles Antaki emails: “I know this is hardly news from a Guardian reader, and plenty of people will be thinking much the same thing, but this is the first time that I wanted a team containing either Pepe or Ronaldo to utterly stuff the opposition - and wittingly (or almost certainly) unwittingly send a message about their Government’s educational policies.”
10 mins: Jota scorpion kicks a cross but it goes up in a vertical line rather than towards the net.
Ronaldo’s every touch is being booed by the home fans. I assume as he’s just too good.
8 mins: A long ball is pinged over the top for Sallai to chase but he decides to chuck himself to the ground in the vicinity of Dias in the hope of getting the defender in trouble. A ludicrous dive.
6 mins: Jota has the first shot of the match. The Liverpool forward is slipped in by Bernardo Silva, he turns on the edge of the box and whacks a left-footed effort at goal which is palmed away by Gulasci. Out of shot is a fuming Ronaldo who was in space to Jota’s left when he let fly.
Updated
4 mins: The Hungarians are very much looking to get into the faces of the Portuguese players, with every physical challenge celebrated like a goal by the aggressive home support.
2 mins: Pepe, aged 74, is fouled. He will not be too worried by what Hungary have to offer.
Ruth Purdue says: “ITV really need to change their tune of this game. The full stadium, the video of the team talk in the changing room today (without subtitles) the news today about that country. What are they doing?”
Very much like they have done no research.
Kick-off
Peep! Peep! Peep! Here we go!
Updated
A lot of Hungarian fans in black t-shirts, which is mildly surprising on such a warm day in Budapest. On the other hand, it’s not very surprising.
The cameraman knocked the ball off its little stand. CARNAGE!
Some away fans have sneaked in.
Muito bem.
If my former Portuguese teacher, Rui, is out there, I would like to apologise.
@Will_Unwin as portuguese (speakers), one could describe the Hungarian XI as 11 suggestions for a Wifi password
— Miguel Barreira (@Aftaminas) June 15, 2021
I am currently at my brother’s do I takeover the living room to watch or do this MBM from his basement? Big decision.
Cristiano Ronaldo has 175 caps already for his country, which is frankly obscene.
5 & 39 - Cristiano #Ronaldo today
— OptaPaolo (@OptaPaolo) June 15, 2021
5⃣Becomes the 1st player in European Championships history to appear at 5 different tournaments ('04, '08, '12, '16 & '20).
3⃣9⃣Made his 39th app at a major tournament (EURO & World Cup), an all-time record for a European player.
Icon. pic.twitter.com/HDeeKuXfli
Peter Oh says: “Not only are there two Szalais, one of them is Attila the Hun...garian. Go valiantly into battle!”
My dad was nicked Attila his rugby club. I am not sure they were being nice.
Not what we need.
@Will_Unwin. Hoping for some good use of subs today by the Portugal manager. We could end up with four Silvas on the pitch at the same time. Fingers crossed for a moment of football history.
— David Grey (@davidgrey55) June 15, 2021
Mary Waltz emails about the big talking point: “Was Ronaldo taking a stand against the corporate takeover of football with his Water over Coke statement? Or does he have a multi million euro deal with Pepsi?”
He’s just a healthy guy.
Please find the video evidence below just in case you have not seen this.
'Drink water'
— Guardian sport (@guardian_sport) June 15, 2021
Cristiano Ronaldo removes Coca-Cola bottles at start of #Euro2020 press conference pic.twitter.com/2eBujl9vzk
Something from the great man, Mr Andy Brassell.
Two Szalais and a Sallai. This MBM will not be going well.
Something I wrote on Ruben Dias pre-Champions League final.
Starting lineups
Hungary: Gulácsi, Fiola, Orbán, Attila Szalai, Lovrencsics, Kleinheisler, Nagy, Schäfer, Botka, Sallai, Adam Szalai
Subs: Dibusz, Bogdan, Lang, Kecskés, Cseri, R. Varga, Siger, K Varga, Nikolic, Schon, Bolla
Portugal: Rui Patrício, Semedo, Rúben Dias, Pepe, Guerreiro, Danilo, William, Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva, Cristiano Ronaldo, Diogo Jota
Subs: Lopes, Rui Silva, Fonte, Joao Moutinho, Andre Silva, Rafa Silva, Renato Sanches, Neves, Goncalves, Joao Felix, Oliveira, Mendes
And here is some good stuff on Portugal.
Team guide.
That man Ronaldo.
I will not pretend to be an expect on Hungarian football, so you should read this instead.
Team guide.
Roland Sallai.
Some pre-match reading.
Preamble
Cristiano Ronaldo enters the tournament in Budapest. No one anticipated Portugal winning the Euros five years ago and no one expects them to do so this time around. On the upside, they have a better squad nowadays. The spine of the team is rather impressive with Ruben Dias, Bruno Fernandes and Bernardo Silva alongside the talismanic Ronaldo.
Hungary have 60,000 fans behind them in Budapest, which could make a ruddy huge difference. Admittedly, the reasons behind them being able to have full capacity is rather questionable. On the downside for the hosts, their star man, Dominik Szoboszlai, has been ruled out of the tournament, a massive blow for all Hungarians.
France and Germany play later today in what is a very exciting group, so Portugal will want to make sure they do not slip up against Hungary, as it could be a fatal blow for their ambitions.
Here is to a cracking match!
Kick-off: 5pm BST
