Euro 2016: Portugal Beat Poland On Penalties To Reach The Semi-Finals

Poland and Portugal clashed in the first quarter-final of Euro 2016. While Portugal have reached the semi-finals of the European Championships thrice, Poland were aiming for their first major last-four appearance since 1982. (Images Credit: AFP)

Robert Lewandowski opened the scoring in the second minute to give Poland 1-0 lead.

Poland continued the attack and one could feel that another goal was around the corner.

But out of nowhere, Renato Sanches (R) smashed an equaliser in the 33rd minute and became the third youngest ever to score in a Euro game.

In the second half, both teams tried hard to score but could not make the most of the opportunities they got.

It all went down the to the penalty shootouts and Portugal skipper Cristiano Ronaldo set the tone for his team by scoring the first penalty.

When Portugal were leading 4-3, Jakub Blaszczykowski missed a crucial shot on target and that all but ended Poland's hopes.

Ricardo Quaresma scored the final penalty as Portugal qualified for the semi-finals for the fourth time in the European Championships.

They'll now face the winner of Wales vs Belgium clash on July 7.