Denmark condemned Portugal to a 4-1 defeat in Braga on Saturday, inflicting the heaviest home loss in a competitive match in the hosts' 105-year history of international football and dealing a painful blow to the opening of the country's post-Cristiano Ronaldo era.
Pierre-Emile Højbjerg set Denmark on their way before the interval, converting an emphatically taken penalty after Rúben Dias was penalised for handball. That breakthrough proved the decisive turning point, and the goals kept coming.
Rasmus Højlund doubled the advantage four minutes into the second half, volleying home to cap a fine team move in which Gustav Isaksen played a prominent part. The former Manchester United striker was not finished there — he then shook off Dias on the edge of the area and drove a low shot beyond Diogo Costa to make it three. Joachim Andersen headed in a fourth in the 75th minute, by which point sections of the home support had begun chanting Ronaldo's name. Bernardo Silva pulled one back for Portugal in stoppage time, though it arrived only in time to prompt a VAR check.
The defeat is also the largest Portugal have suffered in the Nations League; each of their previous four losses in the competition had ended 1-0.
Jorge Jesus' side entered the match having already secured a quarter-final berth, but nothing about their position could lessen the gravity of a night that began with a permanent redesign of the iconic No 7 unveiled in tribute to Ronaldo. The 41-year-old brought a 23-year international career to a close earlier in November after a dispute with Jesus over playing time, subsequently apologising to his teammates. Portugal issued him a 30-day suspension and a fine of €255 (£214). He finished as the country's all-time leading scorer and appearance maker, with 146 goals in 234 matches. His trophy haul with the national side included Euro 2016 and Nations League titles in 2018/19 and 2024/25.
Asked whether his side had felt the absence of Ronaldo, Jesus was blunt. "But what's there to miss? If he's no longer available for the national team, what exactly are we missing? Only if it's someone to keep me company -- he doesn't play anymore, he's not here, he's already made up his mind about his situation," the coach said, according to ESPN.
Jesus did concede the depth of feeling among supporters. "It's normal, people miss him and won't forget what Cris achieved over 23 years with the national team -- there's no getting round that," he said, according to ESPN. "And so, the fact that some fans left [the stadium] while the team were losing 4-1 -- nobody's satisfied, nobody's happy. We were not prepared for the possibility of losing here, let alone by 4-1."
The last time Portugal suffered a multigoal defeat at home in a competitive fixture before Saturday was a World Cup qualifier against Italy in 1993. They face Wales in three days, with a draw enough to secure top spot in Group A4.
Elsewhere on Saturday, Crysencio Summerville opened the scoring inside six minutes as Netherlands matched the biggest winning margin in Nations League history with a 7-0 thrashing of Greece in Amsterdam. Denmark, meanwhile, stay in contention to advance from their group, though they would need to win on the final matchday and rely on Portugal dropping points to claim top position.
Reporting: The Sun, ESPN, talkSPORT, Mirror, UEFA (Official).