The goal was Ronaldo’s 23^rd in European qualifiers and finals, surpassing Denmark’s Jon Dahl Tomasson’s total with a close-range finish in the 71^st minute. Portugal are now second in Group I, a point behind Denmark, who won 3-1 in Serbia with two goals from the former Arsenal striker Nicklas Bendtner.

The game was a tight one as Portugal struggled to make an impact. Apart from scoring the only goal, Ronaldo did not have a good game as the Real Madrid forward fired three free-kicks into the Armenia wall.

Armenia had a few chances to score when Borussia Dortmund’s Henrikh Mkhitaryan forced Rui Patricio into a great save in the 14th minute and Midfielder Kamo Hovhannisyan also tested the Portugal goalkeeper in the opening half-hour.

The game marked the return of two former Chelsea players into the Portuguese line-up. Full-back Jose Bosingwa, 32, made his Portugal return after a four-year absence, while 36-year-old Ricardo Carvalho also started the game.

In the group’s other game, Denmark came from a goal down to defeat Serbia 3-1.

After Ronaldo spoke about the record which he knew would come sooner or later and the fact that it happened in front of his own fans made him happier.

He said – “The record? It’s just another one. I knew it would come sooner or later. I still have a lot of games to play. I’m happy, mainly because I broke the record in front of our fans. It’s a special moment.”

29-year old Ronaldo has now scored 25 goals in all competitions for club and country this season and his form impressive form drew the praise of Portugal manager Fernando Santos.

“What is the significance of the record of Cristiano Ronaldo? It has a great significance for him, for the team, for the country, and of course for me as the manager.” said Santos.

The Portugal boss also had words of praise for Quaresma who came on as a substitute and created the chance for the only goal of the match. Quaresma, who came on as a replacement for Danny, brought a save out of Armenia goalkeeper Roman Berezovski, allowing Nani to force the rebound into the path of Ronaldo, who did the rest.

Portugal vs Armenia – Match Photos:

[fbphotos id=720116834739657]

“Quaresma a secret weapon? No, he’s no secret weapon,” Santos said.

“At that time we felt that we needed a man to create and pass, so we decided to gamble on Quaresma and the truth is that he did very well.

“I was expecting it not to be easy. I had seen the games of this team [Armenia] against Serbia and Denmark. They defend a lot and then have two or three very quick players up front.

“I think we had a very good initial 15 minutes and if we had scored then the game would have become simpler.

“We tried to play in the opponents’ area and try and win the rebounds. Often these games are won in rebounds. I think the victory is entirely fair.”

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His vital late winner against Denmark was his twenty-second goal in UEFA European Championship games, equalling a record held by Hakan Sükür (Turkey) and Jon Dahl Tomasson (Denmark).

Portugal’s all time leading scorer with fifty-one was also the youngest player to achieve a century of caps for his country at the age of 27 years, 8 months and 11 days. Portugal coach Fernando Santos has called-up defenders José Bosingwa, Raphael Guerreiro and Tiago Gomes for the injured Coentrão, Eliseu and Antunes.

There is also a recall for striker Hélder Postiga.

Former FC Porto and Chelsea full-back Bosingwa, who can play on the right or the left, had his international career abruptly cut short in similar fashion to Ricardo Carvalho after falling out with Paulo Bento.
Santos recalled Carvalho in his first Portugal squad and the Monaco centre-back responded with a magnificent man-of-the-match performance against Denmark.

Fernando Santos said, “the Armenia game is decisive for us. The victory against Denmark will only be worth it if we beat Armenia. We have to be well prepared because it won’t be an easy match; it will be a tough one. This team were winning in Denmark until late in the game and against Serbia only let in an equaliser at the end. I’ve got every confidence in these players to win the game, but it will be necessary to run hard, work hard and play a great game. It’s fundamental we beat Armenia.” Portugal are currently in third place in Group I having lost one (at home to Albania) and won one (away to Denmark) of their games so far, but are only one point behind leaders Denmark. Kick-off is 7.45pm and fans are advised to arrive early for this all important game.

Full squad:
Goalkeepers: Anthony Lopes (Lyon), Beto (Sevilha), Rui Patrício (Sporting). Defenders: Bosingwa (Trabzonspor), Bruno Alves (Fenerbahçe), Cédric (Sporting), José Fonte (Southampton), Pepe (Real Madrid), Raphael Guerreiro (Lorient), Ricardo Carvalho (Monaco), Tiago Gomes (Braga). Midfielders: Adrien (Sporting), João Mário (Sporting), William Carvalho (Sporting), André Gomes (Valencia), João Moutinho (Monaco), Tiago (Atletico Madrid). Forwards: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid), Danny (Zenit), Éder (SC Braga), Hélder Postiga (La Coruna), Nani (Sporting), Ricardo Quaresma (FC Porto), Vieirinha (Wolfsburg).

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The Real Madrid striker’s absense with a hamstring injury was felt during Portugal‘s Euro qualifying opener 1-0 defeat at home against Albania, which resulted in coach Paulo Bento losing his job.

Bento was replaced last month by Santos, 60, who lead Greece to the quarter-finals of the 2012 European Championship and the round of 16 in the World Cup in Brazil.

Ronaldo has recovered from his injury woes with the world player of the year scoring for Champions League holders Real Madrid in a 2-1 win over Ludogorets Razgrad in Sofia on Wednesday.

Portugal will play France in Stade de France on October while the Denmark clash will take place in Copenhagen three days later.

Players call up for the Portugal Squad: 

Goalkeepers: Anthony Lopes (Lyon), Rui Patricio (Sporting Lisbon/POR), Beto (Sevilla/ESP)

Defenders: Bruno Alves (Fenerbahçe/TUR), Fabio Coentrao (Real Madrid/ESP), Pepe (Real Madrid/ESP), Antunes (Malaga/ESP), Ricardo Carvalho (Monaco), Ivo Pinto (Dinamo Zagreb/CRO), Cedric (Sporting Lisbon/POR), Eliseu (Benfica/POR), Jose Fonte (Southampton/ENG)

Mildfielders: Adrien Silva (Sporting Lisbon/POR), Andre Gomes (Valencia/ESP), Joao Moutinho (Monaco), William Carvalho (Sporting Lisbon/POR), Joao Mario (Sporting/POR), Tiago (Atletico Madrid/ESP)

Strikers: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid/ESP), Vieirinha (Wolfsburg/GER), Eder (Sporting Braga/POR), Nani (Sporting Lisbon/POR), Ricardo Quaresma (FC Porto/POR), Danny (Zenit/RUS).

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