A first-half brace from Manchester United midfielder Bruno Fernandes gave Portugal an easy 4-0 victory against African Giants Nigeria in a friendly match played in Lisbon, Portugal, on Thursday.
Portugal will face Ghana, Uruguay, and South Korea at the World Cup in Qatar, and they met their west African neighbors, Nigeria, in preparation for the game.
Earlier on Thursday in the United Arab Emirates, Ghana had defeated Switzerland 2-0 in a friendly match as Southampton midfielder Mohammed Salisu scored his first goal for the Black Stars.
However, the Nigerian’s performance didn’t reflect any similarity to that of the four-time African champions Ghana, as they conceded in the first 10 minutes.
Bruno Fernandes added a second 35 minutes into the first half from the penalty spot after a Nigerian defender was adjudged to have handled the ball in the box.
After a lengthy display in the second half, Portugal scored two goals in two minutes 10 minutes before the game’s final whistle.
Benfica duo of Goncalo Ramos and Joao Ramos made it 4-0 for a comprehensive victory as the Portuguese side prepared to travel to Qatar.
The loss is Nigeria’s third consecutive defeat, having lost 2-0 to Costa Rica and Algeria 2-1 in friendlies in September.
Nigeria’s last win was a 10-0 victory against Sao Tome and Principe in June. Portugal will play their first FIFA World Cup game against Ghana on the 24th of November before facing Uruguay and South Korea in their last two group-stage games.
Portugal’s World Cup Squad:
Goalkeepers: Diogo Costa (Porto), Jose Sa (Wolves), Rui Patricio (Roma).
Defenders: Diogo Dalot (Manchester United), Joao Cancelo (Manchester City), Danilo Pereira (PSG), Pepe (Porto), Ruben Dias (Manchester City), Antonio Silva (Benfica), Nuno Mendes (PSG), Raphael Guerreiro (Borussia Dortmund).
Midfielders: Joao Palhinha (Fulham), Ruben Neves (Wolves), Bernardo Silva (Manchester City), Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United), Joao Mario (Benfica), Matheus Nunes (Wolves), Otavio Monteiro (Porto), Vitinha (PSG), William Carvalho (Real Betis).
Forwards: Andre Silva (RB Leipzig), Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United), Goncalo Ramos (Benfica), Joao Felix (Atletico Madrid), Rafael Leao (AC Milan), Ricardo Horta (Braga).
Daniel Ademiju Idowu
