Portugal’s Joao Felix missed a crucial penalty at Hamburg’s Volksparkstadion on Friday night, allowing France to advance to the semifinals.
Felix’s shot hitting the post was the sole miss in the shootout, leading to France’s 5-3 victory on penalties after a goalless draw, even after extra time. Portugal didn’t need to take a final 10th penalty.
Despite Portugal’s strong start in the second half and a last-minute save denying Kylian Mbappe, the game remained goalless after 90 minutes.
Both teams struggled to create clear chances during the dull 120 minutes, with Joao Felix missing the only penalty in the shootout and Theo Hernandez scoring the decisive spot-kick.
In a lackluster first half, France’s goalkeeper Mike Maignan made notable saves against Bruno Fernandes and Vitinha.
Cristiano Ronaldo successfully converted his penalty, but this marks the first time the 39-year-old hasn’t scored in a major tournament.
Eduardo Camavinga missed France’s best chance, shooting wide.
Kylian Mbappe, still recovering from a broken nose sustained in France’s opener against Austria, was substituted at half-time in extra time.
In the earlier quarter-final on Friday, Mikel Merino’s header in the 119th minute secured Spain’s dramatic 2-1 win over Germany in Stuttgart.
France is set to face Spain in the first semifinal on Tuesday, July 9.
