Portugal made sure the absence of top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo, resting the day after after Real Madrid’s Champions League triumph, went unnoticed as they thrashed Norway 3-0 in a Euro 2016 warm-up on Sunday.
Ronaldo would have been impressed with the finishing of his international teammates as Ricardo Quaresma and Raphael Guerreiro netted spectacular goals before Eder added a clinical third at the Dragao stadium.
The Portuguese started in an adventurous 4-3-3 formation and it soon paid off as 32-year-old winger Quaresma fired them ahead against Norway, who failed to make the Euros, with a viciously swerving shot from the edge of the area in the 13th minute. Giving his markers a roasting all night with dazzling footwork before he was substituted on the hour, the unsettled and often inconsistent Quaresma rolled back the years to show why he was once regarded as one of Europe’s hot prospects.
It was then Guerreiro’s turn to impress as the 22-year-old left back curled in a delightful free kick in the 65th minute, with Norway goalkeeper Rune Jarstein clutching thin air.
Portugal continued to press and their towering striker Eder made it 3-0 five mintues later, sweeping home a perfect low cross from the right by midfielder Joao Mario.
The performance set a perfect stage for Portugal’s visit to Wembley on Thursday, when they meet England in their final warm-up for next month’s European Championship in France.
The Norwegians missed two gilt-edged chances as Joshua King was denied by goalkeeper Anthony Lopes and Veton Berisha hit the bar when the visitors were trailing 1-0.
Portugal are strong favourites to advance to the Euro 2016 knockout stages from Group F which also includes Austria, Hungary and
Iceland.
Later on a busy night, Romania crashed 4-3 at home to impressive Ukraine in an action-packed game. Andriy Yarmolenko, who scored Ukraine’s final goal, said: “This was an important victory for us. We played on the attack right from the start, and we showed that we are in good form ahead of the Euros in France.”

Ronaldo rests to show the ‘jealous’ who’s best
Cristiano Ronaldo will not play in Portugal’s pre-European Championship friendly against England on Thursday as he rests from his third Champions League triumph but he insists those who doubt his talents are “jealous”.
The 31-year-old, who looked jaded in Real Madrid’s win over Atletico Madrid on Saturday even though he scored the winning penalty in the shoot-out, believes he is still “number one” and has nothing to prove.
After a sixth straight season with more than 50 goals, Ronaldo has been given extra time off and will miss Portugal’s game at Wembley on Thursday.
“Come on, let me rest my legs. Now is the time to rest and enjoy this moment. I have six days to be prepared to play a good competition,” Ronaldo told reporters after Saturday’s triumph in
Milan.
Portugal coach Fernando Santos said Ronaldo’s performance in the Champions League final was not a concern for his campaign.
The star forward has struggled with fitness problems in recent weeks but should be ready to play Estonia in a final friendly on June 8, two days before the tournament starts.
“I am not worried. What interests me is that he will be with us next weekend and he really wants to help us and to win,” Santos said after Portugal’s 3-0 friendly win against Norway on
Sunday.
Ronaldo said he was also not worried and that he had every reason to feel proud and happy after helping Real win their 11th European Cup.
“Only the jealous don’t feel that,” he said.
“But I don’t care about that. I always keep the people who love me. So this Champions League is for them, the guys who support me all the time, my fans in Portugal and around the world.”
Ronaldo highlighted that he was the Champions League’s top scorer for the fifth time with 16 goals while also reaching 50 goals altogether for the campaign once again.
“But I am asking more,” he declared.
“I am always in the top level. I just want to maintain. I still feel good, I still feel fresh ... and I want to carry on like that.
“I feel good and I love to play for Real Madrid. I want to carry on. I have more than 4,000 minutes (playing time this season). I was the number one in the team, again, for most minutes. That means a lot to me.
“It means I am still good, I still feel good physically, mentally.”
However, Ronaldo did acknowledge feeling fatigued at the end of a long season. “I have a lot of minutes in the legs. But I am still there. I am always there. I showed the team I am there for the good moments and bad moments. This is what makes me feel proud.
“My performance (in the final) was maybe not the best one but who played unbelievable? No one.”
Ronaldo’s performance in Madrid’s celebrations, however, was firmly in the limelight. The Portuguese took centre stage at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium on Sunday night.
“I am so proud to wear this white shirt, it suits me and I am very happy,” he told the crowd.