Finland held by ten-man Portugal
Wednesday, September 6, 2006
Article summary
Finland 1-1 Portugal Portugal played much of the second half with ten men as they held on for a point against a confident Finland.
Article body
Finland press
Finland had a dream start against the 2006 FIFA World Cup semi-finalists, dominating for much of the first half, with Sami Hyypiä heading just wide from a corner by Jari Litmanen early on. The Liverpool FC centre-back did hit the target 60 seconds later, however, forcing an impressive save from Ricardo in Portugal's goal.
Kolkka opener
Finnish pressure soon told when Jonatan Johansson received a pass from Joonas Kolkka on 22 minutes and fired beyond Ricardo. Portugal responded well, with Cristiano Ronaldo going close with two shots in quick succession and though Finland, who beat Poland on Saturday, still had the upper hand, the visitors equalised just before the break as Deco's pass found Nuno Gomes, who finished clinically.
Portugal punished
Portugal rallied after half-time, with Ronaldo and Deco causing problems for Finland, but any hopes the visitors had of picking up three points were dealt a significant blow eight minutes after the restart when Ricardo Costa collected a second yellow card. The hosts looked to capitalise and began pressing, with Johansson demanding another great stop from Ricardo on the hour. Portugal threatened briefly on the counterattack, but were vulnerable at the back and Litmanen was unlucky not to find the target from a free-kick as Finland had to settle for a draw.
