Pepe evaluated the match against Czech Republic: a cashed goal? We were dominant, we didn’t deserve it

Portugal successfully managed its first match at this year’s European Football Championship and won three points against the Czech team. Francisco Conceicao scored the winning goal in the second half. How did legendary defender Pepe evaluate the match against the Czech Republic?

The Portuguese squeezed the Czech team like a lemon. Their dominance is also evidenced by the statistics from the first half – 73% ball possession or nine shot attempts produced compared to only one shot by the Czech team.

Everything was in play for the Portuguese – movement, bounced balls and overall activity and technical maturity. Rafael Leão had a dangerous run down the left side, and Cristiano Ronaldo also had two big chances.

But the Czech team’s defence withstood this huge onslaught and kept the game scoreless until the end of the half. In the second act, the Czechs even took the lead when Lukáš Provod scored after a beautiful shot.

By the way, the legendary Portuguese defender Pepe returned to this moment in his post-match review.

“It was a tough game, we didn’t deserve to concede that goal. We played exceptionally, we dominated and we didn’t let the opponent do anything. But I warned my teammates to stay fully concentrated even though we scored.

We needed to continue our game and we did that. Wedid it with all our strength and got the winning result,” said Portuguese legend Pepe in a post-match interview.

The Portuguese then took the match 2-1 when Francisco Conceicao made the decisive goal in stoppage time of the second half. They are second in Group F with three points, one point behind first-placed Turkey.

Source: EURO 2024, CT Sport