The team has a new Ronaldo: his name is Bruno

It is still too early to say whether the draft of the Portuguese team is good which struck Poland it is a definitive version. It could be, repeating this Tuesday (7:45 pm, RTP) against Scotland, but it could very well be a great surprise as well. But there is something that can already be said, even with just one game of experience: that is that Roberto Martínez wanted to make a new Cristiano Ronaldo for Bruno Fernandes and not only that the idea worked well but it is, in theory, very logical.

One of the most obvious problems for the national team was the lack of offensive presence in the area caused by the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo, who was keen to leave his position to help his teammates create play.

Deep down, the captain does not seem willing to accept that, at this stage of his career, he can be “just” a finisher, surrendering, at the age of 39, to the fact that he is not is no longer a balancer – much less a games creator.

Ronaldo seems to believe that the more involved he is in creating the game, the closer the team will be to winning. The basis is debatable, but Roberto Martínez does not want to discuss it, especially since it is unlikely that Ronaldo will accept to change his mind or that anyone will convince him to do so – much less Martínez , with a focus on being more conciliatory than litigious.

Therefore, the Spaniard chose to overcome this problem with the help of Bruno Fernandes. Against Poland, Ronaldo did not fail score “ahead”in a reload inside the area, but he also didn’t stop doing the raids he likes to do: front supports far from the area, touching the ball on the right hand and catching it on the left side.

But Portugal did not lose a striker, thanks to the work of Bruno Fernandes, who was there often.

Recruitment scam

The selection game system is very hybrid and it assumes that players are able to appear in areas that are not theoretically alone.

This has already happened with the right back who is an attacking midfielder, with the center back who is a right back, with the right winger who is a midfielder inside and with the left back which is a bit of everything. Now, it also happens with the midfielder who is a striker.

Against PolandBruno Fernandes asked him to be present in the forward area when Ronaldo retired and this gave the team a body in the end zone.

Fernandes sought the ball in front of tackles, stood up to loads, made clearances in space and, above all, hauled in marks. Often, the midfielder did not touch the ball in end zones, but his presence at least allowed him to fix a defender, instead of leaving him “in a wheelchair” because there was no opponent nearby.

Mancha in the penalty area

The heat maps of Bruno Fernandes’ movements show the painful difference between the previous five games (Nations League and Euro Cup) and this game against Poland, the only one in which there was a dark spot on his side – inside the area – a sign that Fernandes spent a lot of time in the penalty area.

This job as a conservative decoration may seem like a small task for someone like Bruno Fernandes, but that does not take away from its relevance. First, because the heat map shows that it could be influential in other areas as well. Secondly, because he was close to the goal several times and, in Portugal 1-0, he was the one who was the center of an aerial ball, watching Bernardo, with his back to the goal, in “striker” motion.

It can be argued that it is an advantage to see the game in the head, because of its virtues in reading the game, passing, making decisions and even in the middle field, but it seems to a large extent that the team is benefiting from this individual loss. to Bruno Fernandes – and it is not certain that it will be so.

The player without a place

Already preview press conference match with Scotland, Roberto Martínez did not deal with this topic, but he spoke, in a general way, about the ability of several players to play different roles – including Bruno Fernandes, but also Bernardo, who ended up getting a special mention .

“There are many players who can play many roles. We have many options. With low blocks, Bernardo can find space inside, but on the outside he makes good decisions and changes the intent of our attacks. Bernardo is a player who has no position”, he explained.

At this point, Bruno Fernandes doesn’t seem to have a situation either. Or even that: the situation is wherever Ronaldo is not.