Cristiano Ronaldo was unable to get the better of the inspired Bulgarian goalkeeper Vladislav Stoyanov following Marcelinho's debut goal in the first-half
Bulgaria recorded successive victories for the first time since 2013 after stunning Portugal 1-0 at Dr. Magalhaes Pessoa Stadium in a friendly fixture on Friday.
Marcelinho scored the game’s opener as he collected a forward pass into the box before twisting and turning centre-half Pepe and stabbing into the bottom corner.
Portugal held superior possession throughout the first period and should have levelled matters when Adrien Silva dragged his low effort across goal after finding space in the box from a corner.
Cristiano Ronaldo continuously peppered the Bulgarian goal with long-range and set-piece efforts but goalkeeper Vladislav Stoyanov was an effective last line of defence for the visitors.
And that was proved in the 65th minute after a penalty was awarded against Bulgaria after Nikolay Bodurov was penalised for a blatant handball. Stoyanov again kept out Ronaldo before the Real Madrid attacker skewed his rebound effort wide.
Nani had a wonderful opening to grab a deserved equaliser with 10 minutes to play but Portugal's prolificacy continued to let them down as the Fenerbahce winger skied over from six yards.
More to follow...
- Goal