At the end of this goalless draw at Hampden, Cristiano Ronaldo ran down the tunnel with a mocking applause, signaling that although Scotland is still without a win, the losing streak is finished and another victory against Portugal was witnessed.
When referee Lawrence Visser blew his full-time whistle as Bernando Silva and Bruno Fernandes sprinted to the byline, Ronaldo’s annoyance at being denied by a goalie older than him—41-year-old Craig Gordon—exploded when Portugal was denied an injury-time corner. Visser had probably had enough and wanted it to end because Ronaldo had been in his ear all night.
Even though many cheered for Ronaldo, the pantomime villain who stormed off the field in a rage without shaking hands or cheering the Portugal fans in the corner, there were finally applause for Steve Clarke and his struggling team. For the home team, who persevered and avoided dropping five straight games for the first time, it was essentially a job completed.
While trying to play through the middle third, Clarke’s team wasted possession and made a vain attempt to hit long at an isolated Che Adams. There wasn’t much indication that there was a strategy or concept to brighten the mood. The national squad still has just one victory in 16 games. The threat of relegation from the Nations League’s top division remains.
Since his disastrous performances at Euro 2024, Ronaldo had scored in three straight games for Portugal. Even though he didn’t appear to be scoring here, he stayed on until the very finish, grimacing and giving the stands the thumbs up at the conclusion Naturally, Ronaldo was the focal point of the activity. Nevertheless, this was a low-quality, gritty match, best exemplified by Ronaldo and Nuno Mendes mishandling a Portugal free kick 30 yards away from goal and taking it to each other simultaneously. The Tartan Army responded to the 39-year-old’s dramatic plea to referee Visser with pantomime jeers as he either missed with an effort on goal, which there were multiple of, or mishandled a diagonal pass and the ball slipped past his studs.
