Portugal secured their second Nations League title, with Cristiano Ronaldo featuring prominently, while Alvaro Morata became the unfortunate figure for Spain.
Having won the first edition in 2019, Roberto Martinez`s team triumphed again in a dramatic final held in Munich. They came from behind twice to level the score against the current European champions, Spain.
Ronaldo scored a brilliant volley in the 61st minute to equalize at 2-2. This was his 938th career goal and 138th for Portugal. The 40-year-old, along with 17-year-old rising star Lamine Yamal, watched the penalty shootout from the bench.
Spain`s Morata missed his penalty attempt, which allowed Ruben Neves to convert his spot-kick and secure the victory.
Both teams were competing to be the first nation to win the Nations League trophy twice.
The match began slowly but came alive after 17 minutes with a curling shot from Nico Williams that just went over the bar. Four minutes later, Spain took the lead.
Lamine Yamal was central to the opener; his superb cross caused confusion in the Portuguese defense, allowing Martin Zubimendi, linked with a move to Arsenal, to score his only second international goal.
In their semi-final thriller last week, Spain were 4-0 up against France after 55 minutes, but Ronaldo made sure history didn`t repeat itself here, initiating an attack with a run in behind.
This attack culminated in Mendes scoring low into the bottom corner in the 26th minute. The goal was confirmed after a VAR review, which validated Ronaldo`s perfectly timed run.
Spain had the final word of the first half.
Pedri provided a superb reverse pass in injury time, setting up Mikel Oyarzabal. Oyarzabal, who famously scored against England in the Euro final in Berlin the previous summer, delivered another significant goal in Munich.
Martinez made changes at halftime, bringing on Neves and Nelson Semedo. This almost paid off immediately when Bruno Fernandes had a strike disallowed for offside in the 49th minute.
An equalizer seemed inevitable, and Ronaldo was quickest to react to a deflected cross that caught Marc Cucurella off guard, scoring his eighth goal of the Nations League campaign.
Ronaldo was substituted in the 88th minute due to a muscular injury, while Yamal was replaced in the 106th minute. The match became somewhat scrappy late on, including a VAR check for a potential red card after a large confrontation.
In the penalty shootout, Goncalo Ramos, Vitinha, Bruno Fernandes, and Nuno Mendes successfully converted their spot-kicks before Neves scored the winning penalty to become the hero.
