Portugal 3-0 Sweden: Bernardo Silva and Diogo Jota goals sees hosts stay top of Nations League Group A3 as captain Cristiano Ronaldo watches on at home after positive Covid-19 test
- Portugal took the lead when Bernado Silva put them in front on 21 minutes
- Diogo Jota, who assisted Silva, then turned into a scorer just before half-time
- Jota made it 3-0 on 72 minutes after being set up by midfielder William Carvalho
No Cristiano Ronaldo, no problem for Portugal as they swept aside Sweden in their Nations League encounter on Wednesday night.
With their captain absent, due to his positive coronavirus test, Bernardo Silva and Diogo Jota stepped up in Ronaldo’s place by scoring their goals in a 3-0 win.
Silva opened the scoring on 21 minutes thanks to a Jota assist before the latter scored 23 minutes later. Jota then grabbed his second of the match on 72 minutes with another timely finish.
Bernado Silva (centre) and Diogo Jota (right) were on the scoresheet as Portugal beat Sweden
Silva celebrates after scoring Portugal opening goal on 21 minutes after Jota’s assist
Jota doubled his country’s lead just before half-time with his right-footed strike on 44 minutes
The Liverpool forward was quickly congratulated by his Portugal team-mates after scoring
Ronaldo went back to Italy earlier on Wednesday to finish his isolation period after testing positive for Covid-19 on Monday – but cheers on his team-mates from home. The Juventus forward was said to be asymptomatic.
He had played in the national team’s 0-0 draw at France on Sunday. However, in his absence, Jota came into the starting line-up.
Some 5,000 fans were allowed to watch the match at the Jose Alvalade Stadium in Lisbon. Nearly 2,500 had been in the stadium for the team’s 0-0 friendly against Spain last week as authorities try to evaluate whether to allow fans back in local soccer competitions.
The victory left defending Nations League champion Portugal at the top of Group 3 with 10 points. France, which won 2-1 at Croatia in the other group match, also reached 10 points, but it has a worse goal difference than Portugal. Croatia stayed in third place with three points, while Sweden has zero points.
In the next round of matches in November, Portugal visits France and Croatia plays at Sweden.
Jota put the result beyond doubt with 18 minutes left with this close-range finish
Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo watched from home after testing positive for coronavirus