Portugal 5-0 Uzbekistan: FIFA World Cup Match Report

Three goals up at half-time and five by the end, this was Portugal's answer to the point they had dropped in their opening match. Portugal 5-0 Uzbekistan was the biggest win of Group K and the most complete performance any side in the group produced.

The first half did the damage. Portugal had scored once in their opener, the 1-1 draw with Congo DR, and matched that total three times over before the interval. Two more after the break took them to six goals for the group, the highest tally in Group K by two and more than double what they had managed to that point.

Uzbekistan were a side already in trouble. They had lost 3-1 to Colombia in the opening round and went on to lose 3-1 to Congo DR, finishing the group with no points, two goals scored and eleven conceded. Five of those eleven came here, in the match that took their goal difference beyond any hope of repair. For Portugal the clean sheet mattered nearly as much as the five: they conceded a single goal in the entire group stage, in that opening draw, and this was the first of two consecutive shutouts, the second being the goalless draw with Colombia in the final round.

It restored Portugal's position without quite restoring their control of the group. Four points from two matches and a goal difference of plus five, with a final fixture against a Colombia side that had won both of theirs. The 0-0 that followed left Portugal second on five points, two behind.

So the practical effect of five goals was qualification rather than first place. That is not nothing. Portugal went through with a 6:1 record, the best goals-against figure in Group K and second only to Colombia on points. Uzbekistan's elimination was confirmed here in all but name; they finished bottom of the group without a point from three matches.

Our pre-match call was Double Chance 1X (Portugal or Draw) at 1.42, and it was safe inside the first half.

There is not a great deal to review in a bet that covers both the win and the draw when the favourite is three goals clear at the interval. The more honest observation is that the price was too short for the risk actually being taken. Portugal against a side that would finish pointless with eleven goals conceded is close to the definition of a fixture where the double chance adds nothing you need. The straight win, or even the handicap that had cost us against Congo DR the previous week, would have paid considerably more for the same ninety minutes. A win, and a cheap one. Verdict: won