They march into quarterfinals with a 2-1 win over Norway
Lisbon: Portugal continued their perfect run in the Nations League with a 2-1 win over Norway, reaching the quarterfinals with four victories from as many Group A4 matches despite Cristiano Ronaldo’s absence.
Goncalo Ramos scored the winner in the 79th minute after Kristoffer Ajer and Joao Cancelo had exchanged first-half goals. Portugal also survived the late dismissal of Francisco Conceicao.
Ronaldo played in Portugal’s opening Nations League match but was replaced by Ramos in a 1-0 win over Wales and has not featured since. The veteran forward subsequently
left the squad after being left on the bench for the second game.
Erling Haaland failed to score for the second successive match for Norway and was substituted in the 67th minute.
Meanwhile, Denmark beat Wales 1-0 through a late Rasmus Hojlund penalty to move second in the group.
Elsewhere, Germany were held to a goalless draw by Greece, while the Netherlands beat Serbia 2-1. The Netherlands and Greece have eight points each in Group A2, with Germany on five.
Ireland and Israel drew 1-1 in a contentious match in Serbia, while Kosovo and Austria also drew 1-1. Azerbaijan and Malta recorded 1-0 wins over Lithuania and Andorra respectively.
