Portugal maintained their perfect start to the Nations League campaign with a 2-1 victory over Norway, while Cristiano Ronaldo remained an unused substitute throughout the encounter.
João Félix opened the scoring for Portugal with his second goal in as many matches, giving the hosts an early advantage before Norway responded shortly after the restart.
Erling Haaland restored parity for Norway with his 65th international goal, while also taking his Nations League tally to 22. The strike further extended his record as the competition’s all-time leading scorer.
Portugal, however, quickly reclaimed the lead after a costly error from Norway goalkeeper Ørjan Nyland.
Nyland’s attempted pass went straight to Gonçalo Ramos, who kept his composure to calmly lift the ball over the stranded goalkeeper and restore Portugal’s advantage.
Ramos nearly doubled his tally later in the match but sent his effort narrowly wide, while Rafael Leão also came close when his deflected shot struck the crossbar.
Ramos appeared to have found the net again later in the game, but the goal was ruled out by VAR after he was adjudged to have been in an offside position.
Ronaldo, 41, watched proceedings from the bench as he continued his pursuit of 1,000 career goals. The Portugal captain remains 21 goals away from reaching the landmark.
Portugal were also without Bruno Fernandes, who missed the match through injury.
The result means Portugal have now secured two wins from their opening two Nations League matches, while Norway were left to regret Nyland’s costly mistakes.
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