SoccerNews
Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice on his international return as Portugal completed their Euro 2024 preparations with a 3-0 victory over Republic of Ireland in Aveiro.
Roberto Martinez’s side were 2-1 losers against fellow European Championship hopefuls Croatia on Saturday but responded three days later with a convincing victory at Aveiro Municipal Stadium.
Joao Felix opened the scoring after just 18 minutes, while Ronaldo was denied by the woodwork in a one-sided first half against John O’Shea’s visitors on Tuesday.
Ronaldo would not be stopped after the interval, though, curling in a fine 50th-minute strike before adding a second soon after in a dominant win, just a week before Portugal’s Euro 2024 opener against Czechia.
Que venha o Europeu! #PORIRL | 3-0 | #PartilhaAPaixão #EURO2024 pic.twitter.com/AwLpBQXDfS
— Portugal (@selecaoportugal) June 11, 2024
Data Debrief: Ronaldo stars again
Ronaldo stole the headlines with his 129th and 130th goals for his country, having already broken the Saudi Pro League’s single-season scoring record in the campaign just gone.
The Portugal talisman was at his brilliant best here, scoring twice from just 0.49 expected goals (xG) – his personal tally marginally higher than the 0.48 xG for O’Shea’s lacklustre side.