Belgium, Cristiano Ronaldo-Less Portugal Play Out Scoreless Draw in Friendly

Belgium and European champions Portugal played out a drab scoreless draw in Brussels on Saturday in preparation for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

The visitors, without Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo, had the better chances but never really threatened Thibaut Courtois. Vincent Kompany was substituted in the second half after seemingly picking up a knock.

Here are Saturday's key takeaways.

Belgium Still Lack a Plan B

The Red Devils dominated the early stages before settling into a familiar pattern of passing until an opening appeared, and Portugal easily adapted their strategy. The European champions simply waited for a mistake before hitting the hosts on the counter, creating several chances that way.

Belgium have long struggled breaking down opponents when their standard approach doesn't work, and on Saturday, they once again failed to come up with a suitable Plan B. Many were quick to note it's an issue that has plagued the side for a long time:

Things improved after the break, when both teams started to make substitutions and give their backups a chance. But Belgium need much more from their starters in Russia when things start to go bad, and on Saturday, all we saw were familiar issues.

Kompany Injury a Potential Disaster

Sticking with Belgium, star defender Kompany left the pitch early in the second half after signaling to the bench something was wrong. His replacement, Dedryck Boyata, struggled upon entering the pitch, highlighting the drop in quality in Belgium's defence if one of their stars goes down.

The setback appeared to be minor, and Kompany likely made the decision not to take any chances ahead of the World Cup―he left the pitch under his own strength. It's something to keep an eye on ahead of Belgium's next friendly against Egypt, however.

Joao Mario the Key for Portugal

Several players deserve a mention as standouts for Portugal, including Gelson Martins―outstanding in place of Ronaldo―and Jose Fonte, who paired with Pepe in defence.

But the most eye-catching performance was that of Joao Mario, who took on Kevin De Bruyne and Mousa Dembele in a direct matchup and did a phenomenal job silencing both.

The West Ham man tends to fly under the radar, but in a Portuguese midfield that lacks the depth it had two years ago―Andre Gomes and Renato Sanches are not in the squad―he'll play a key role in Russia.

Portuguese football expert Tom Kundert was impressed with the team as a whole:

Vertonghen Makes History

As shared by Het Laatste Nieuws' Kristof Terreur, Jan Vertonghen became Belgium's first player with 100 caps on Saturday―which the Red Devils celebrated in a rather unique way:

What's Next?

Belgium take on Egypt on Wednesday, while Portugal host Algeria on Thursday.