Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice as Portugal cruised to a 5-0 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina in a Euro 2024 qualifying match on Monday. The match was coached by Roberto Martinez.
Portugal, who qualified for the event that will take place in Germany the following summer with a victory over Slovakia last Friday, extended their outstanding record under the guidance of their Spanish coach by winning their eighth game in a row since he took over.
Ronaldo scored 126th and 127th goals for Portugal, thereby extending his record as the top all-time goalscorer in men’s international competition.
All of these goals were scored before halftime, with Bruno Fernandes of Manchester United scoring the third, followed by Joao Cancelo and Joao Felix of Barcelona each scoring one.
As a result of Slovakia’s 1-0 victory over Luxembourg, Bosnia, which is led by the seasoned target man Edin Dzeko, is currently in fifth place and cannot advance out of the group stage.
In Group J, Bosnia has two games left to play but is currently trailing Slovakia by seven points. Portugal is dominating the competition and has a comfortable lead.
The squad managed by Martinez has racked up all 24 of the available points so far by virtue of their 32 goals scored and two goals allowed.
The Al-Nassr striker Ronaldo, who is 38 years old, scored the game’s first goal from the penalty spot and added a second goal with a deft finish before being replaced by Martinez after 65 minutes. Ronaldo was still looking for a hat trick when he was substituted.
Shortly before the break for the half, the former Real Madrid forward was also challenged by a pitch invader, but the stewards quickly intervened to protect him.
While the home team’s defence was falling apart in embarrassing fashion, Fernandes and Cancelo finished with exquisite accuracy and force, and Felix stroked in the fifth goal.
In the second half, Bosnia was able to tighten up their defence, but it was far too little, far too late.