Portugal coach Roberto Martinez places blame on Ireland coach's pre-match antics as Cristiano Ronaldo gets sent off in WC qualifier loss

Roberto Marinez has put the blame for Portugal’s 2-0 loss to Ireland in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers on Thursday (November 13) on his opposite number, Heimir Hallgrimsson. Martinez claimed the Ireland national team boss tried to influence the referee before the match.

A first-half brace from Troy Parrott gave Ireland a famous victory in Dublin, extending Portugal’s wait for 2026 World Cup qualification. Portugal’s night was made more disastrous when Cristiano Ronaldo was given his marching orders in the second half for elbowing Dara O'Shea in an off-the-ball moment.

Speaking after the match, Martinez accused Hallgrimsson of pre-match intervention.

“The Ireland coach spoke in the press conference and tried to influence the referee,” Martinez said.

The Portugal boss defended his captain, Cristiano Ronaldo’s red card, saying the 40-year-old was frustrated.

"The reason for the red card is because he has a lot of passion and gets frustrated when the national team doesn't win,” he claimed. “That's what we want from all players. It's very difficult for a striker when he's grabbed, when there's physical contact.

He added:

"I'm wondering if the coach talks about the referee in the press conference, if the defender exaggerates on the ground. We accept it. The images are worse than it actually was; it looks like an elbow. He spent 60 or 70 minutes being grabbed and pushed and tried to free himself from a defender. A 40-year-old player still has the same passion as a player making his debut for the national team."

Despite the defeat, Portugal are still atop their group standings with 10 points from five matches. They will face Armenia in their last group match on November 16 and need just one point to secure qualification.

“We weren’t very efficient in the way we attacked” – Bernardo Silva on Portugal’s 2-0 loss to Ireland

Portugal midfielder Bernardo Silva hasn't mince words while assessing his team’s performance after their unexpected defeat to Ireland. The Manchester City star, who drew the ire of fans for his performance during the match, said they weren’t efficient in attack and added that their loss was as a result of ‘technical-tactical issues.’ He told RTP:

“A difficult game in which Ireland gave us the ball and control of the game and looked to be direct, on the counter-attack, on set pieces. To their credit and some demerit on our part, it was a very complicated game in which we couldn't control the transitions. On their first set piece they made it 1-0 and everything became more complicated. We weren't very efficient in the way we attacked: we put few people in finishing zones, we were very predictable.

“Against teams so physical and with a line of 5 [defenders] it's not easy, I would say it's the most difficult in football, because I'm also used to playing against teams like that at my club. I wouldn't say anxiety, of course we wanted to win and secure qualification for the World Cup but this group of players plays at the highest level and doesn't get anxious so easily, I would say it was more technical-tactical issues that didn't go well for us today.”

In the match, Silva had a passing accuracy of 81% (35/43), didn't register any key passes, lost possession 14 times, and wasn't successful in the only dribble he attempted.