Ivory Coat 0 Portugal 0

 

FACE OFF ... Ronaldo squares up to Demel

RONALDO fired a blank in Port Elizabeth as Portugal were held by the Ivory Coast.

The £80million man had promised goals galore in this tournament after his dismal record in qualifying.

Ronaldo did hit the post early on but disappeared as the Africans found their feet.

Gervinho looked the most menacing for Sven Goran Eriksson's men but nobody took this game by the scruff of its neck and it ended in stalemate.

Ronaldo takes a tumble

 

Ronaldo and Guy Demel square up

 

Kolo Toure sees a chance go begging


Before kick-off, Didier Drogba was cleared to play with a cast on his arm — but still had to make do with a spot on the bench.
Instead, it was Ronaldo who grabbed the spotlight early on.
The Real Madrid ace, who failed to score at all during the World Cup qualifying campaign, hammered a 30-yard shot against the frame of the goal.
That was the 25-year-old at his very best — ten minutes later he was back to his worst.
The forward threw himself to the floor under the slightest contact from Guy Demel — and earned himself a booking by kicking off at the Ivory Coast full-back.
Demel then also picked up a yellow card for his part in the scuffle.
Ivory Coast almost carved out an opening when Siaka Tiene came close with a long range thunderbolt.
Portugal were pegged back now, and Gervinho — in for Drogba — and Salomon Kalou were running the Europeans ragged.
But neither could force a way through and the teams went into half-time all-square.
It did not take long for Gervinho to get stuck in after the break, forcing keeper Eduardo into a 47th-minute save.
And the Lille star saw an effort balloon over the bar as the Africans stepped op the chase for an opener.
On 66 minutes, boss Sven Goran Eriksson turned to Drogba — thrown on for Chelsea team-mate Kalou — to break the deadlock.
And his introduction almost sparked the game into life when Yaya Toure then cannoned a shot just wide.
Portugal got a let-off when Drogba shanked a shot that sent Gervinho clear on goal — only for the 23-year-old to be flagged offside.
After a long injury break which saw cramp victim Kolo Toure carried off, Eriksson's men had one last throw of the dice.
Aruna Dindane had a shot blocked in the box and the Elephants won a last-gasp corner — only for ref Jorge Larrionda to blow up before they could swing it in.
Ivory Coast: Barry, Demel, Toure, Zokora, Tiene, Eboue (Romaric 88), Toure Yaya, Tiote, Gervinho (Keita 82), Dindane, Kalou (Drogba 65). Subs Not Used: Zogbo, Angoua, Gohouri, Doumbia, Gosso, Kone, Bamba, Yeboah. Booked: Zokora, Demel.
Portugal: Eduardo, Ferreira, Bruno Alves, Carvalho, Fabio Coentrao, Deco (Tiago 62), Mendes, Raul Meireles (Ruben Amorim 85), Ronaldo, Liedson, Danny (Simao 55). Subs Not Used: Beto, Rolando, Duda, Miguel, Veloso, Pepe, Hugo Almeida, Ricardo Costa, Fernandes. Booked: Ronaldo.
Att: 37,034
Ref: Jorge Larrionda (Uruguay).

 

  

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