Cristiano Ronaldo led Portugal to a thrilling 2-1 victory over Germany in their Nations League semifinal on Wednesday, scoring his 137th international goal after the team came from behind to claim the win.
At 40 years old, Ronaldo made history by becoming the oldest player ever to score against Germany, breaking a five-match winless streak against the Germans. His goal came five minutes after substitute Francisco Conceição had equalized with a powerful shot in the 63rd minute, following a header from Germany’s Florian Wirtz that had given the home team a 1-0 lead in the 48th minute.
Ronaldo’s goal marked a historic milestone for the veteran forward, and it came at a crucial time as Portugal coach Roberto Martínez made strategic changes, including bringing on Conceição and Champions League winner Vitinha. Vitinha had played just four days earlier, helping Paris Saint-Germain win the Champions League final against Inter Milan in the same stadium.
Germany’s goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen was kept busy, doing his best to prevent further goals from Portugal as they finished the match with a dominant performance.
Portugal’s wing-backs, João Neves and Nuno Mendes, both started for the team, while Germany gave Stuttgart’s Nick Woltemade his debut. Conceição made an immediate impact, scoring a brilliant long-range strike after breezing past Germany’s Robin Gosens. Just five minutes later, Mendes provided Ronaldo with an easy tap-in to give Portugal the lead.
“It could have been more,” Mendes said after the match.
The game was delayed by 10 minutes due to severe weather in Munich, with a storm sweeping across the city and leaving hailstones on the pitch just before kickoff. UEFA had already warned fans about potential thunderstorms.
In the other semifinal, France will face Spain in Stuttgart on Thursday.
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