February 18, 2026 09:35 pm (IST)
Follow us:
facebook-white sharing button
twitter-white sharing button
instagram-white sharing button
youtube-white sharing button
AI takes centre stage as Modi meets Google CEO Sundar Pichai in Delhi | G7 Spotlight: Emmanuel Macron invites Narendra Modi for 2026 Summit | AI Summit embarrassment! Galgotias University asked to vacate stall after ‘own robot’ exposed as China’s Unitree Go2 | Actor Rajpal Yadav granted interim bail in ₹9-crore cheque bounce case | Learn AI or become redundant: Microsoft India President issues stark message | India’s wholesale inflation rises to 1.81% in January as manufacturing prices surge | 'India at forefront of AI revolution': PM Modi welcomes world leaders to Delhi summit | Rs 5,000 to women ahead of Tamil Nadu polls! Vijay slams Stalin, says: ‘take the money, blow the whistle’ | Modi congratulates Tarique Rahman as BNP clinches majority in Bangladesh polls | Bangladesh Polls: Tarique Rahman-led BNP secures 'absolute majority' with 151 seats in historic comeback

Quaresma snatches extra-time win for Portugal

| | Jun 26, 2016, at 02:49 pm
Lens Agglo, June 26 (IBNS) : Substitute Ricardo Quaresma turned in a rebound three minutes from the end of extra time as Portugal edged a tense encounter with Croatia to book a UEFA EURO 2016 quarter-final date with Poland.

After 116 minutes in which the teams failed to muster a single shot on target, Ivan Perišić headed against the upright. Portugal immediately broke through Renato Sanches and he supplied Nani to drill a low ball across the box to Cristiano Ronaldo. Danijel Subašić made the initial save but could only parry Ronaldo's strike as far as Quaresma who headed in from point-blank range.

Caution had been the watchword for much of this last-16 tie in Lens, with both sides digging in throughout. Croatia strung together their pretty passing, with Marcelo Brozović and Luka Modrić to the fore, but there was little penetration or urgency. Even less so for Portugal, fully paid-up members of the waiting game.

Yet it was Fernando Santos's team who came closest in a cagey first half as Raphael Guerreiro delivered a tantalising free-kick that Pepe, five metres out and unmarked, nodded wastefully over. His reaction, head in hands, said it all. The attrition resumed. Who would blink first?

The second period started like the storm after the calm. On came Sanches, injecting impetus for Portugal, and Croatia responded in kind. Suddenly there were half-chances here, half-chances there. Three-quarters of one, perhaps, when Domagoj Vida headed wide with Mario Mandžukić better placed behind him.

Nerves crept in again, defensive care stamped out any green shoots of attacking abandon. By 116 minutes we were still waiting for the first attempt on target ... then Portugal broke.

 

Man of the match: Renato Sanches (Portugal)

Credit: UEFA.com

Support Our Journalism

We cannot do without you.. your contribution supports unbiased journalism

IBNS is not driven by any ism- not wokeism, not racism, not skewed secularism, not hyper right-wing or left liberal ideals, nor by any hardline religious beliefs or hyper nationalism. We want to serve you good old objective news, as they are. We do not judge or preach. We let people decide for themselves. We only try to present factual and well-sourced news.

Support objective journalism for a small contribution.