- Ronaldo Tribute Night Turns Sour as Denmark Thrash Portugal
Portugal’s first competitive match since Cristiano Ronaldo’s international retirement ended in a 4–1 home defeat to Denmark, as Rasmus Højlund scored twice to turn an evening of tributes in Braga into a sobering test of life without the country’s record goalscorer.
The loss was emphatic, but it did not cost Portugal a place in the UEFA Nations League quarter-finals.
They had already secured qualification and remain top of League A Group 4 with 12 points, three ahead of Denmark. The Danes, meanwhile, kept their hopes of advancing alive with Tuesday’s final group match against Norway still to come.
Portugal’s players took to the pitch wearing shirts bearing Ronaldo’s name and number, while the number seven appeared on the sleeve of the national-team jersey. The tribute recognised the forward’s extraordinary contribution over more than two decades, but it could not soften the result once the match began.
Denmark took the lead shortly before half-time when Pierre-Emile Højbjerg converted a penalty. Højlund then struck twice after the break, first finishing a move built by Gustav Isaksen and later driving a low shot past goalkeeper Diogo Costa.
Joachim Andersen added Denmark’s fourth with a header, before Bernardo Silva scored a late consolation for Portugal.
The result exposed how quickly a night framed around one player’s departure can become a broader examination of a team’s identity.
Portugal had qualified for the last eight, but the heavy defeat raised questions about the side’s ability to manage difficult periods without relying on the figure who had defined its attack for so long.
Ronaldo announced his retirement from international football earlier this month. His departure leaves Portugal without the player who had become the team’s most recognisable presence and a decisive source of goals.
The Denmark match was the first competitive fixture since that announcement, making the result an immediate, if not definitive, measure of the transition ahead.
Portugal coach Jorge Jesus dismissed suggestions that the team should dwell on Ronaldo’s absence. Asked whether he missed the forward, Jesus said: “People miss him and have not forgotten what Cris gave over 23 years with the national team but there is no going back on the matter. Do I miss him? How can I miss him when he is no longer in the national team?”
He added: “The only way I would miss him is if he were beside me but he no longer plays, he is no longer here, he made his own decision.”
The coach’s response was direct, but the scoreline made the question difficult to avoid. Portugal have to establish how their attacking responsibility will be shared and how the team will respond when opponents disrupt its rhythm.
That process cannot be judged from one result, particularly against a Denmark side that took its chances, but the match offered a stark reminder that Ronaldo’s absence will be felt in high-pressure moments.
Højlund was central to Denmark’s performance. His two goals gave the visitors control after the break and converted a promising position into a commanding lead.
Portugal were unable to contain the forward once Denmark began to find space, and Andersen’s goal further widened the gap before Silva’s late strike reduced it.
The defeat was particularly striking because it came at home and on a night when Portugal had surrounded the game with symbolic recognition of Ronaldo. The tributes were an acknowledgment of a career that had shaped the national team’s modern era. The performance, however, belonged to the team now tasked with moving forward.
Portugal’s qualification provides an important safeguard. The loss did not derail their campaign or erase the work that had already put them into the quarter-finals.
But finishing top of the group remains a separate objective, and their final fixture against Wales on Tuesday gives the team an immediate opportunity to respond. Denmark will face Norway on the same night as they try to claim a quarter-final place.
For Jesus, the next challenge is to ensure that the defeat becomes a lesson rather than a defining image of Portugal’s post-Ronaldo period.
The team must restore defensive organisation, create a more reliable supply of chances and show that its attacking threat can come from several players rather than a single focal point.
The transition will not be measured by whether Portugal can replace Ronaldo goal for goal. It will be judged by whether the team can maintain its competitive level while developing a new balance.
The players who wore his number seven tribute now have to establish their own roles in a side that has qualified for the next round but still faces questions about its consistency.
For Denmark, the win was a statement of their ability to punish Portugal when opportunities appeared. Højlund’s brace and Andersen’s header turned a close contest into a decisive result, keeping the Danes in the hunt for the quarter-finals.
Their final match will determine whether the victory in Braga is enough to carry them through.
Portugal leave the match with their qualification secured but their pride bruised. The night honoured a player whose influence spanned 23 years; Denmark’s four goals made clear that the team’s next chapter will have to be written through collective performance.
