Portugal vs. Norway: Score, Reaction from 2016 International Friendly

Ricardo Quaresma was in inspirational form, helping Portugal beat Norway 3-0 in a friendly at the Estadio do Dragao on Sunday.

The hosts were without talisman Cristiano Ronaldo, who won the UEFA Champions League with Real Madrid on Saturday, per BBC Sport's Neil Johnston, but Quaresma made sure the iconic No. 7 wasn't missed.

His wonder goal in the first half gave manager Fernando Santos' team a 1-0 lead before FC Lorient left-back Raphael Guerreiro struck a magnificent free-kick after the break and Eder tapped in a third.  

Santos had chosen Lille striker Eder to partner 32-year-old Besiktas forward Quaresma up front, while Sporting Lisbon powerhouse William Carvalho anchored midfield further back, per Goal.com.

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The same source also revealed how Markus Henriksen and Salzburg's Valon Berisha featured in the middle for Norway. Meanwhile, Celtic's Stefan Marius Johansen was tasked with providing goals and creativity up top.

There were just 13 minutes gone when Quaresma danced his way off the left wing and tricked his way into the box before curling an unstoppable shot into the top corner.

It was the kind of moment of individual brilliance that has made the mercurial Quaresma such an enticing yet ultimately frustrating attacker down the years.

Portugal were doubly grateful for Quaresma's outburst of excellence when Southampton centre-back Jose Fonte nearly let Norway equalise 10 minutes later. His misjudgement of a bouncing ball allowed striker Joshua King to scamper behind, but goalkeeper Anthony Lopes made a smart save to spare Fonte's blushes.

It wasn't just in defence where the Portuguese were reckless. Jan Hagen of Sport Witness singled out how much Carvalho struggled to assert himself in possession:

The Sporting destroyer was helped out by the introduction of Porto defensive shield Danilo in the second half. Portugal needed some greater solidity at the back after 22-year-old forward Veton Berisha had rattled the crossbar for the visitors after the break.

Goal hero Quaresma was also substituted for Braga's Rafa Silva after feeling the effects of some rugged treatment as the hosts' danger man, as Nathan Motz of PortuGOAL.net noted:

The match was lurching into its final 25 minutes when Guerreiro livened things up with his stunning set piece. His free-kick thundered in off the bar to lift the crowd and give Portugal a cushion their overall performance scarcely merited.

The stunning attacking contribution masked some suspect elements of Guerreiro's game at the other end of the pitch, per Eric Krakauer of BigSoccerHead Podcast:

Eder soon wrapped up the scoring and the match by turning home a devilish cross from reported Manchester United target Joao Mario, per Starsport (via the Daily Star's Jonathan Green), at close range. 

The sudden salvo in the final third prompted Motz to laud the ability of a squad even sans their best player:

On this evidence, it's hard to dispute that claim, even if Norway offered little resistance and Santos was not too enamoured with the performance, according to Hagen:

It will be interesting to see how well Portugal's other talents fare when they are gearing their respective games toward helping Ronaldo flourish at this summer's UEFA Euro 2016.