Ronaldo became the first player to miss a penalty (excluding shootouts) for Portugal at a major tournament.
Advertisement
Ronaldo then thought he had made amends in the 85th minute by grabbing the victor with a header but it was ruled out for offside.
Portugal took 23 shots but could find no joy against Austria, who earned their first point following an opening defeat to Hungary.
Hungary top the group with four points after earlier snatching a 1-1 draw against Iceland, who are level with Portugal on two points and ahead of Austria on one.
If the final group games both finish in draws and Portugal and Iceland finish with the same number of goals scored, they will be ranked according to their fair play record. Coach Fernando Santos tinkered with the team and made two crucial changes – bringing in Quaresma and Willaim Carvalho for João Mário and Danilo Periera – a move that further fortified their attacking options. “I understand you and I don’t talk about Cristiano”, he said. “We just came to have fun, drink beer and watch the game”.
“We were so close”, said Iceland forward Kolbeinn Sigthorsson, who was named man of the match.
“It ” s obviously going to be a tough challenge but we ” re prepared and we know what to do”, said captain Christian Fuchs, adding that Austria were willing to take on Portugal.
Cristiano Ronaldo returned to Portugal training just hours after his nightmare evening in Paris.
Always in the thick of the action, Portugal’s immaculately groomed all-time leading scorer also sidefooted wide from an excellent position in the first half, and forced two good saves from Austria goalkeeper Robert Almer after halftime. The fan was then led away.
Ronaldo struck the base of the post with his spot kick after Austria defender Martin Hinteregger had wrestled him to the ground and later headed home only to be denied by the offside flag.
Riot police look on at supporters during the match between Iceland and Hungary.
When a fan stepped onto the pitch at the final whistle, Ronaldo asked a couple of stewards to let the intruder take a selfie with him.
Paris: Austria have given themselves a shot in the arm after keeping Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal side at bay and will go into their final group match against Iceland full of confidence, coach Marcel Koller said on Saturday.
Advertisement
Fans taunted Cristiano Ronaldo during his Euro 2016 horror show by chanting the name of his greatest rival: Lionel Messi.
