Bruno Fernandes, captain of Manchester United, played for Portugal in a friendly match against Croatia before Euro 2024. He played for 70 minutes and Portugal lost 2-1.

Luka Modric of Real Madrid scored a penalty kick just eight minutes into the game to break the tie.

Both teams tried the other team’s goalie for most of the game. Diogo Costa and Dominik Livakovic both had to make huge stops between the posts.

In the third minute of the second half, Liverpool’s Diogo Jota tied the game again. He scored the goal with a beautiful cross across the goal at just the right time. Croatia, on the other hand, didn’t seem to care and got their prize quickly.

Costa made a great save on a strong shot, but he couldn’t control the ball. The only thing he could do was block it into Ante Budimir’s path. Budimir was happy to head it in from close range.

During his time on the pitch, Fernandes touched the ball 67 times and completed 43 of the 49 passes he tried, for an 88% completion rate per pass. He made a key pass.

The 29-year-old, who started in a midfield trio also consisting of Joao Palhinha and Vitinha, tried to find a Portugal teammate with two crosses and six long balls. Fernandes successfully connected with four of the long balls he pinged. None of his crosses came off.

The United skipper had just one shot to his name but it was off-target and didn’t really challenge Livakovic.

Fernandes completed the one dribble he embarked on and won four of the six ground duels he delved into. His other defensive contributions include making one clearance and putting in three times as many tackles. He also blocked two shots.

The playmaker lined up alongside United teammate Diogo Dalot, who was taken off at half-time and replaced by Nelson Semedo.

Dalot made just one tackle and won half of his contests on the ground. He delivered two of the seven crosses he made and also the one long ball he tried.

The right-back touched the ball on 37 occasions.

Unfortunately for Fernandes and Dalot, their efforts were not enough. They will however be looking to make amends when the Selecao face Ireland on Tuesday in yet another friendly encounter before they finally kickstart their Euro 2024 campaign.