Quaresma charisma thrills Portugal
Monday, March 26, 2007
Article summary
Ricardo Quaresma's first goal for Portugal was a birthday gift for his mother, but the 4-0 win against Belgium was something for the whole nation to enjoy.
Article body
Ricardo Quaresma's first goal for Portugal was a birthday gift for his mother, but the 4-0 win against Belgium was something for the whole nation to enjoy.
Tremendous third
Manchester United FC winger Cristiano Ronaldo may feel he deserves his share of the credit for scoring twice in Saturday's UEFA EURO 2008™ qualifying triumph in Lisbon, but FC Porto forward Quaresma stole the show with a tremendous strike with the outside of his right foot for Portugal's third of the night. Quaresma hit the crossbar with a similar effort for Porto against Chelsea FC in the UEFA Champions League, so was delighted to see his 69th-minute attempt against Belgium swerve over goalkeeper Stijn Stijnen and into the net to thrill the crowd at the Estádio José Alvalade.
'For my mother'
"My goal? Even I can't explain that," said the 23-year-old, after breaking his international duck in his eighth appearance for Luiz Felipe Scolari's side. "It's just something that happens during a game. It is down to the work I do every day. I want to dedicate this goal to my mother because it's her birthday." The Brazilian coach was delighted with Quaresma's virtuoso display, saying: "We asked him to play like he normally does for his club and he managed to do that. We gave him the freedom to create beautiful things and the goal shows exactly what he is capable of."
Momentum restored
The victory got Portugal's Group A campaign back on track following October's 2-1 defeat in Poland, and they will hope to maintain the momentum when they take on a Serbia side reeling from a 2-1 reverse in Kazakhstan in Belgrade on Wednesday. However, Quaresma was quick to point out that Saturday's success was no walk in the park. "The game was easy because we made it that way," he said. "They opened up in the second half and that helped us. We deserved to win." With Portugal having proved that they boast dangerous wingers on both flanks in Ronaldo and Quaresma, their bid for a place at next summer's Austria/Switzerland finals is looking good again.
