Turkey's seven seconds of madness help impressive Portugal into last 16 (2024)

It was an own goal of such pure slapstick that it would have been funny enough in isolation. But the comical preamble served only to heighten the pantomime feeling as Turkey pressed the self-destruct button during seven seconds of madness.

Samet Akaydin is unlikely to forget his eighth senior appearance for Turkey in a hurry, and for all the wrong reasons.

By the time he was substituted in the 75th minute with a suspected shoulder injury, Turkey’s No. 4 must have been wondering what else could go wrong on a day to truly forget.

Akaydin had watched Nuno Mendes’ cross for Bernardo Silva’s opening goal sail through his legs and would also be wrongly booked for a fine tackle on Rafael Leao but there was no doubting his ultimately indignity.

Indeed, the Fenerbahce defender will now have the dubious distinction of bloopers reels being played for years to come reliving that moment when he played a blind pass past his goalkeeper Altay Bayindir into an empty net and, with it, torched any hopes Turkey had of getting back into a game they were trailing 1-0.

A promising attack looked to have broken down when Joao Cancelo and Cristiano Ronaldo got themselves in a tiff.

Cancelo, having played a quick one-two with Bruno Fernandes after showing brilliant awareness to dart ahead of the flat-footed Ferdi Kadioglu to win possession just inside Turkey’s half, played a pass into the space that he thought Ronaldo was about to chase.

Ronaldo, though, had checked his run and, furious at Cancelo’s haste, threw a mini-tantrum. You’ve seen this scene before - the one where he jumps in the air, throws his arms down in frustration and, head bowed, turns his back on the play. A bit like his Siuuu celebration but without the smile.

Cancelo, in turn, had his arms outstretched and was remonstrating with Portugal’s deified No. 7 as if to say: ‘Why did you stop your run?’. Unbeknownst to both players, though, something altogether more daft was unfolding in front of them.

Under zero pressure, Akaydin had failed to look up to check Bayindir’s positioning and played a blind pass intended for his goalkeeper, only to belatedly discover to his horror that Andre Onana’s understudy at Manchester United was not where he thought he was all along.

Ronaldo, hissy fit over by this time, suddenly glanced up and could not believe what was unfolding in front of him: the ball trickling towards the goal line as a desperate Bayindir and Turkey’s right back Zeki Celik hurtled back in a forlorn bid to retrieve a desperate situation.

The Portugal fans behind the goal held their breath and their Turkish counterparts, who had turned out in spectacular force, for once were silent. The scene played out almost like it was in slow motion and culminated with Bayindir and Celik crashing into the net together, their attempts to clear coming a fraction too late, as referee Felix Zwayer got the signal the ball had crossed the line and Portugal’s players wheeled away in celebration. In an instant, Ronaldo and Cancelo’s flashpoint was forgotten. And, in one bonkers moment, you could feel all the fight and hope drain out of the Turkey players. Sensing the ridicule likely to come his player’s way, Vincenzo Montella opted not to rub salt into Akaydin’s wounds. “There was a misunderstanding,” the Turkey coach said, with considerable understatement. “Sometimes it happens and unfortunately today it happened to us. Next time, it may be our opponents.”

Turkey had a big chance early on when Kerem Arturkoglu, a few yards out, could not turn in Celik’s cross to the far post but once Portugal took the lead, they never looked like surrendering it. And after Akaydin’s brain fart, the game was over. Portugal made certain 10 minutes after the restart when Abdulkerim misread Ruben Neves’ pass, leaving Ronaldo free to run in behind and selflessly square for Fernandes to tap in goal No. 3.

A few observations: Vitinha, once of Wolves, is morphing into a fine footballer. Bernardo and Fernandes brought real quality going forward and then there is 41-year-old Pepe, the oldest player in the history of this competition but still very much young at heart. At one point late in the game, he was spotted winning a tackle down the left wing and then dribbling clear of a couple of Turkey players. Defensively, he was flawless and oozed calm and nous, one superb sliding challenge on Orkun Kokcu read to perfection.

“A neutral watching Pepe play wouldn’t believe he was 41!” Roberto Martinez, the Portugal coach, said. “He’s a great example of Portuguese football. He is a professional for 24 hours a day – he trains, he sleeps right. The focus is on playing another year, then another one. Then there’s a love of the game and his body’s genetics – you can’t buy that!”

That other golden oldie, Ronaldo, had a solid game of his own and when a young fan raced on to the pitch in the second for a selfie with the five time Ballon d’Or winner, the great man was happy to oblige. Even Ronaldo’s children, sat in the stands with his partner Georgina Rodriguez, saw the funny side as the kid was carted away by stewards to rapturous applause from the crowd.