Portugal News: Three major talking points as the Seleção beat Turkey 3-1, take a step closer to the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar

Portugal News: The Selecao knew that they had to play out of their skins to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Hence Fernando Santos’ team did just that as they got a crucial 3-1 victory over Turkey. 

The win takes Portugal to the Playoff finals where they are set to face off against North Macedonia. In this article, we will look at three major talking points from the FIFA World Cup 2022 playoff game.

A good first half and a scary second half for Portugal! 

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The Selecao started the game strongly and were in attack mode from the first minute. Their patience eventually paid off in the 15th minute when Otavio scored after Bernardo Silva hit the post. 

Portugal’s lead was then doubled in the dying minutes of the first half. Otavio this time turned provider as he provided Diogo Jota with the perfect cross in the 42nd minute.

After a nervous second half that saw Turkey score and then misses a penalty, Portugal eventually put the game to rest. Matheus Luiz put the ball at the back of Turkey’s net in injury time as the Selecao won the game 3-1. 

Burak Yilmaz: A Hero who became the Villain! 

The 36-year old Lille forward captained Turkey on a night when they had to win. Yilmaz led his country from the front and though he didn’t score in the first half, the striker did look threatening. 

Burak Yilmaz eventually got the lead for his country in the 65th minute. The striker got on to a scintillating through ball by Chengiz Ünder and proceeded to calmly score past Diogo Costa in Portugal’s goal. 

Jose Fonte made matters worse for Portugal as he conceded a penalty in the 83rd minute. Burak Yilmaz stepped up to bring Turkey level in the game but the striker rocketed his strike over the goal. 

This was certainly a shock to many people as Yilmaz is one of the best penalty takers from Turkey. The scoreline was 2-1 in favour of Portugal at that time hence Turkey could have pulled off a major upset had Burak Yilmaz scored his penalty. 

Portugal vs North Macedonia for the FIFA World Cup 2022 berth 

Before the game, all the talk was about a potential Italy vs Portugal game in the finals. The Italians were certainly the favourites in their game against North Macedonia and were also picked by many to pip Portugal as they qualified for the World Cup. 

But football being football, it was not to be for Italy. Instead, North Macedonia beat them 1-0 in Italy, hence setting up a date with the Selecao. The FIFA World Cup playoff final between Portugal and North Macedonia will be played on 29th March. Only the winner of this game will go to Qatar.