Portugal coach Roberto Martinez makes feelings clear about two-man attack with Joao Felix and Rafael Leao in absence of Cristiano Ronaldo
Portugal coach Roberto Martinez has given his assessment of the tactical changes he made to the starting XI against Croatia, as captain Cristiano Ronaldo was left out. Portugal traveled to Poljud Stadium to face Croatia in their last group game of the Nations League on Monday (November 18). The game ended in a 1-1 draw.
Seleção das Quinas had already qualified for the quarterfinals of the competition following their 5-1 drubbing of Poland on November 15. Thus, Martinez was confident enough to withdraw four key players — Cristiano Ronaldo, Pedro Neto, Bruno Fernandes, and Bernardo Silva — from the Portugal squad.
The head coach had to name a rotated squad against Croatia for Monday's game. The Spaniard also tweaked his formation as he deployed a 3-5-2 setup against Croatia, as opposed to the 4-3-3 formation he had used against Poland.
Cristiano Ronaldo, Rafael Leao, and Pedro Neto led the attack against Poland, while Leao and Joao Felix spearheaded the attack against Vatreni. After the draw against Croatia, Roberto Martinez weighed in on the mobile attack involving Joao Felix and Rafael Leao. He said (via Ojogo.pt):
"It is important to adjust and be flexible tactically. I have spoken about this in many conferences. It is important to execute the concepts well. The first half was very good; Croatia could not stop our game. If we had scored the second goal, the game would have been completely different. But we were already first in the group."
Piotr Zielinski remains unapologetic for taking pictures with Cristiano Ronaldo after 5-1 defeat to Portugal
Poland captain Piotr Zielinski refused to apologize for his actions after they were defeated 5-1 by Portugal in the penultimate group game of the Nations League on November 15. After the game, Zielinski and his teammate Nicola Zalewski were seen posing for pictures with Cristiano Ronaldo.
This, however, didn’t sit well with many, as they thought it was insensitive of them to cozy up to a rival who had just inflicted a heavy defeat on their nation. The Pole captain is aware that his actions have sparked a lot of noise. He has now responded, saying (via GOAL):
“Nicola and I approached him, asked for a photo and took it. Neither Cristiano nor we had a problem with it, that's all. I am not interested in what’s going on in social media. For me, Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the top players in the history of football. I felt like taking a picture and I did. That’s it. Why is it unbecoming?”
He added:
“We lost the match but what should I do? Hide in a corner? I went up to him and asked him for a picture and that’s it. That’s what I felt like doing. He (Bak) has the right to have his own opinion. But I don’t think there was anything wrong with it.”