Portugal went to Copenhagen without the most famous footballer on the planet and scored four. Whatever conclusion you want to draw from that, you had 35,951 people inside Parken watching it happen on Thursday night, and a 4-2 win that never quite settled until the last ten minutes.
Joao Cancelo opened it in the 13th minute, set up by Goncalo Ramos. Mikkel Damsgaard pulled Denmark level ten minutes later from Joakim Maehle's pass. Then Ramos turned provider into scorer on 25, finishing a Bruno Fernandes ball, and Portugal went in at half-time a goal up. The pattern held after the break: Rasmus Hojlund equalised on 53 from Damsgaard's delivery, Vitinha headed Portugal back in front on 67 from another Fernandes cross, and Joao Felix put the game out of reach on 87 after Diogo Dalot's pass.
Hojlund's celebration said the quiet part out loud
The former Manchester United striker marked his goal with the "Siuuu", Cristiano Ronaldo's own celebration, which he has aimed at Portugal before. It landed differently this time, because Ronaldo was not in the building. He left the Portugal camp on Wednesday after learning he would start on the bench against Norway, and the 41-year-old has not yet explained himself in public.
His sister, Elma Aveiro, posted on social media that betrayal is a dish best served cold. Nobody in the Portugal set-up responded to it directly.
Jesus is not moving
Jorge Jesus, 72, said afterwards that nothing about the result had changed his thinking. "I still think exactly the same way. There are players with status. That much is crystal clear," he said. "But I'll say it again — the rules are the same for everyone. That's a method I've followed throughout my coaching career and I'll continue to follow."
Ramos was blunter about the week. "This situation didn't affect us," he said. "External issues do not influence the importance of today's game."
What four goals actually prove
Less than people will claim, and more than nothing. Ronaldo has 146 goals in 234 caps and 979 across his career, numbers no replacement is going to approach, and one away win in a Nations League group does not retire him. But Portugal created from wide areas and through midfield for ninety minutes without stopping to look for a target in the box, and the two goals that decided it both came from Fernandes. Vitinha and Ramos, former team-mates at Paris St-Germain, between them had a hand in three.
Denmark will be the more frustrated side. Twice they got back level, twice they conceded within fifteen minutes of doing it, and the second time they never recovered. Portugal are back home to Norway on Sunday, and by then Ronaldo may have said something. Or he may not.
Match facts: Denmark 2-4 Portugal, Nations League, Parken, Copenhagen, Thursday 1 October 2026. Half-time 1-2. Attendance 35,951. Goals: Cancelo 13 (Ramos), Damsgaard 23 (Maehle), Ramos 25 (Fernandes), Hojlund 53 (Damsgaard), Vitinha 67 (Fernandes), Felix 87 (Dalot). Portugal host Norway on Sunday.
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