Portugal vs. Argentina: Score, Grades and Reaction from International Friendly

Portugal scored a late winner in injury time to beat World Cup finalists Argentina 1-0 at Old Trafford in Manchester, England. It was a match that had been billed as a battle between stars Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi yet lost all its luster as soon as the two were substituted at half-time.    

Fans were dying to see the two biggest stars in the sport do battle in colours other than those of Real Madrid and Barcelona. It was clear this match was a friendly affair when the two embraced in the tunnel before kick-off, via RMadridHome:

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Cristiano Ronaldo & Lionel Messi before the match. Rivals, not enemies: https://t.co/5cyu2PsKcq

— RMadridHome (@RMadridHome) November 18, 2014"

The Albiceleste had the brighter start of the two teams, with Messi and Angel Di Maria linking up well in the attacking third. The Manchester United man came close to scoring after just seven minutes, hooking his effort inches wide of the post.

Beto displayed excellent awareness inside his own box, snuffing out several solid crosses, but he had no answer for one of Messi's trademark darting runs. While the Portuguese stopper was beat, the Barcelona forward's shot just missed the target. Former England international Gary Lineker was still impressed:

Ronaldo produced his first moment of magic minutes later, isolating Jose Bosingwa with a clever back-heel. The Portugal forward couldn't make up his mind between crossing and shooting, however, and the resulting blast missed all of his team-mates and the goal completely.

Nani brought down Di Maria hard and the forward appeared to be in serious discomfort, to the agony of the Old Trafford crowd. He was able to continue after some treatment, showing no signs of lingering effects with a number of impressive runs down the sidelines.

Facundo Roncaglia then produced a fine cross that was met by Javier Pastore, but Beto refused to be beaten. Portista was impressed with the stopper's performance:

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Beto proved to be quality again. I think he's #Portugal's best keeper.

— Portista (@FCPortoWorld) November 18, 2014"

Ronaldo came close to opening the score after half an hour, turning Roncaglia around with a beautiful piece of skill before firing over the bar. Portugal started overcoming Argentina's hot start, with more possession in the centre of the pitch and a better feed toward the forwards.

Argentina remained dangerous, however, and Messi wouldn't be outdone by his Real Madrid nemesis, curling a free-kick onto the top part of the crossbar. On the other end of the pitch, Ronaldo mistook Cristian Ansaldi for the ball, volleying the defender in the stomach.

The two teams went into the dressing room after an entertaining first half that ultimately saw no goals. The BBC's Andy Brassell expected more:

Ronaldo and Messi were both taken off the pitch during half-time, and with plenty of stars suffering injuries during this injury break, prudence perhaps wasn't such a bad decision.

It did lead to a very slow start to the second half, however, with neither team willing to truly attack. Debutant Tiago Gomes needed to be substituted after 51 minutes with an apparent hamstring injury, the only action of note inside the first 15 minutes.

The crowd was brought back to life when Carlos Tevez replaced Gonzalo Higuain. As a former Manchester City and Manchester United ace, the reception he received was hostile, to say the least. Goal's Ben Hayward also noticed:

Javier Mascherano produced a series of excellent crosses, the first missing Tevez's head by a hair before the second connected with Ansaldi, but his header came off a Portuguese player and just missed the target.

The fans started doing the Mexican wave but it had little to do with the play on the pitch, as the second half quickly spiraled into a slow, drab affair. Argentina had the better of play but failed to turn possession into chances, and Martin Demichelis and Nani provided some late entertainment with a scuffle on the sidelines following a rough challenge from the Portuguese winger.

The match appeared destined to finish in a 0-0 stalemate, but Raphael Guerreiro was the difference. Ricardo Quaresma fired in a beautiful cross toward the unmarked 20-year-old, who finished in the centre of the box with a fantastic diving header. The winner, as shared by Coral:

Match Grades

Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images

Lionel Messi: B

Linking up well with Di Maria throughout the first half, Messi perhaps should have bagged a goal when he darted into the box in the 17th minute. Portugal did everything they could to shut down the Barcelona star, however, and Messi made the most of the limited space he was given.

Cristiano Ronaldo: B

Similar to Messi, Ronaldo was targeted by the Albiceleste defence and made the most of every ball he received. While it was far from a vintage performance for either star, the defensive strategies made it difficult for Messi or Ronaldo to break the match wide open.

Nani: B

Nani's transformation since moving back to Sporting Lisbon has been a sight to behold, and the winger was one of the few players actively involved on Tuesday. Using his pace and energy, he always found himself around the ball and was a threat whenever he ran at the defence.

Post-Match Reaction

Goal's Ben Cullimore was left disappointed with the level of the second half, and he believed the Albiceleste lost the match more than Portugal won it:

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As soon as Ronaldo and Messi were brought off at half-time, the game turned into an incredibly boring one, but somehow Portugal have managed to leave Manchester with a 1-0 win after a great diving header from the substitute left-back Guerreiro with one of the last touches of the evening. They were arguably second best all night long, but Argentina failed to take their chances in front of goal and, as a result, they leave empty-handed.

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Spanish football expert Rafael Hernandez was disappointed with Higuain in Brazil, and the Napoli man didn't show anything on Tuesday to change his mind:

BBC's Andy Brassell didn't enjoy the match, although he came away impressed with Quaresma and his cross that led to the winner:

Portugal's Fernando Santos told reporters he wasn't too happy with his team's performance, but he praised his players' effort, via PortuGOAL's Tom Kundert:

His Argentine counterpart Gerardo Martino confirmed Messi knew he'd only play 45 minutes and that he believed his team dominated the match, per FC Barcelona Fl:

Neither manager will have learned much from this friendly, which quickly turned into a drab affair as soon as Messi and Ronaldo left the pitch. As is so often the case with friendlies at the end of the year, the players appeared to have little interest risking injuries ahead of the busiest part of the club schedule. 

Martino's squad enjoyed almost 70 percent possession, and failing to score a single goal while dominating the ball in such fashion has to be slightly worrying. With an insanely talented group of forwards to choose from, the Albiceleste should be able to score against the very best teams, including Portugal.

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