Euro 2016 final player ratings: Nigel Winterburn gives his Portugal v France verdict
Portugal stunned France to win Euro 2016 at the Stade de France on Sunday thanks to Eder’s stunning extra-time strike.
The former Swansea striker’s 109th minute goal handed Portugal, who played for 95 minutes of the game without the injured Cristiano Ronaldo, their first major tournament crown in dramatic fashion.
But how did the players from both sides fare in Paris?
PORTUGAL
Rui Patricio – 8
I was saying in commentary he made five or six good saves. They were not outstanding but they were very good saves. The first one very early on to deny Antoine Griezmann was the best but overall he put in a very strong performance.
Cedric Soares – 7
It was a very solid performance from the Southampton full-back. He backed himself up against Kingsley Coman when he came on in the second half. The Frenchman initially gave him a few problems but Cedric pulled it together to put in a soild display.
Pepe – 8
He was potentially Portugal’s man of the match. He was a rock at the back for them and fully deserves an eight.
Jose Fonte – 7
The Southampton defender used his experience really well. In terms of his understanding and reading of the game it was another strong performance.
Raphael Guerreiro – 7
He got stronger and stronger as the game went on. He was particularly strong in the later stages of the game. He also nearly broke the deadlock with a superb free-kick that hit the crossbar.
William Carvalho – 8
He covered an enormous amount of ground. He put in a very good performance sitting in front of the back four and breaking play up.
Renato Sanches – 6
When Cristiano Ronaldo went off he got switched inside and I don’t think it was his night.
Adrien Silva – 6
Portugal did soak up a fair amount of pressure so the midfielders were all forced to put in a shift. He did nothing wrong and kept the ball well when Portugal had possession.
Joao Mario – 6
He kept going right until the end. At one point in extra time he looked as if he had nothing left but he found a second wind and worked for his side until the final whistle. I can’t criticise any of Portugal’s forward players in terms of their effort and work-rate but I was looking for them to create a bit more.
Nani – 7
Nani tried to get on the ball and create for his side. He held it up well on occasions and worked tirelessly for the team.
Cristiano Ronaldo – N/A
It’s difficult to rate someone who has come off injured after just 20 minutes. It was great to see his passion on the sidelines during extra time. It was the reaction of a world-class player and it’s something I’ll remember that final for.
Subs
Eder – 8
When he came on he held the ball up really well. His strike was absolutely first class. He shrugged off the challenge of Laurent Koscielny with ease before cutting inside and hitting his strike really well. It was a fantastic goal to win the final.
Ricardo Quaresma – 6
He’s certainly shown he’s a useful impact player to come off the bench but it didn’t really work for him in the final. He had plenty of time to make an impact after replacing Ronaldo but he didn’t really create much going forward.
Joao Moutinho – 6
He’s a useful substitute to bring on because he’s excellent on the ball and keeps possession extremely well.
FRANCE
Hugo Lloris – 6
He couldn’t do much with the goal but there were a couple of things he parried that he should have caught. Nani’s cross springs to mind and Quaresma’s overhead kick. He’s been so strong through the tournament but in the final he unnerved me a bit.
Bacary Sagna – 6
France didn’t produce much out wide. I was really disappointed with them going forward and I thought they would use their full-backs much more than they did in attack, particularly Sagna. However, he couldn’t really get in the game and make the impact his side needed.
Laurent Koscielny – 6
It’s difficult because he didn’t have masses to do. However, the Arsenal man will be disappointed looking back at the goal. He got booked just before the goal and if he’d have escaped without a caution, would he have brought Eder down in the build-up? He got out-muscled by the former Swansea man and in the end it proved costly.
Samuel Umtiti – 7
France’s defence wasn’t really put under that much pressure. He did alright with what he had to do.
Patrice Evra – 6
Evra’s slightly older than Sagna so may not have the same energy to get forward. Still, France struggled to get their full-backs in the game, meaning Evra did not have the impact he might have wanted.
Blaise Matuidi – 7
He’s not really someone who’s going to pick out the killer passes going forward. He’s more of a break-up player. He put a good shift so I’m going to hand him a seven.
Paul Pogba – 6
He didn’t really drive forward. It was a very surprising performance from the Juventus midfielder.
Moussa Sissoko – 7
He was France’s best player. He looked to burst forward at every opportunity and was his side’s only real threat. It was a good performance.
Dimitri Payet – 6
He had a couple of early moments on the ball where he looked a threat but other than that it wasn’t the Payet we’re used to seeing.
Antoine Griezmann – 5
It wasn’t his night. The first header which was saved by Patricio was a good effort but the one in the second half he should have buried. He’ll look back at that and say, ‘I should have scored’. He probably will be the player of the tournament but not on this performance. It was a really disappointing night for him.
Olivier Giroud – 6
For a team that dominated possession as they did, there was no real service for him. France’s build-up play was very slow and they just did not get the ball into him enough.
Subs
Kingsley Coman – 7
He made an impact initially with his pace after coming on but as his time on the pitch wore on, Cedric got to grips with him.
Andre-Pierre Gignac – 6
He did alright when he came on. He hit the post right at the end of normal time but when he looks back he’ll think he should have scored. I thought initially it deflected off the goalkeeper but he actually scuffed it, which he’ll be disappointed with.
Anthony Martial – N/A
He did not have enough time on the pitch to give him a rating. He had one chance right at the death but more excellent Portugal defending denied him.
Source:Skysports
