France beats Portugal, clinches Nations League finals spot

LISBON, Portugal (AP) — France ended Portugal’s defense of its Nations League title after winning 1-0 in Lisbon to ensure it advances to the final-of-four on Saturday.

N’Golo Kanté scored in the 54th minute when the midfielder joined the attack hunting for a loose ball that fell to him when goalkeeper Rui Patricio fumbled a save.

France clinched a first-place finish in Group 3 with three more points than Portugal and the tiebreaker on head-to-head goals with one game to play. Portugal won last year’s inaugural Nations League.

World champion France outplayed European champion Portugal at Benfica’s stadium and was denied a lead by halftime only thanks to Patricio.

“Given the quality of the opposition, it’s of course one of our best performances of recent times,” France coach Didier Deschamps said. “We deserved the win and we’ve fulfilled our objective of finishing top. I’m very proud of the players. They proved tonight that France are still a great team.”

Starting for the injured Kylian Mbappe, France striker Anthony Martial hit the post on the half-hour mark and had two more good chances denied by Patricio.

Patricio closed quickly to smother Martial’s attempt to tap in a great throughball by Antoine Griezmann in the 12th. Martial’s header from a well-executed set-piece hit the crossbar on the half-hour mark, and Patricio stood firm to block another tap-in by Martial of Lucas Hernández’s low cross in the 41st.

Patricio kept his side in the match until shortly after the restart when he failed to keep his grip on a shot by Adrien Rabiot. Instead, he spilled the ball into the path of Kante to finish off.

Forced to focus on defending, Portugal’s playmaking trio of Bruno Silva, Bruno Fernandes and João Félix struggled to get involved.

Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo was left seven goals shy of the men’s national team record held by former Iran striker Ali Daei with his 109 goals. His best chance came just before halftime when he headed the ball inches above the bar.

Portugal mustered its two best scoring chances once it fell behind.

Defender José Fonte almost equalized in the 60th when he headed off the post. France goalie Hugo Loris protected the lead by stretching to block a stinging shot by substitute João Moutinho with 15 minutes left.

It was Portugal’s first home defeat in a competitive match in six years. It had not lost on home soil under coach Fernando Santos.

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