Martinez heralds Portugal´s ´incredible´ focus after Hungary win

Portugal boss Roberto Martinez lauded his side’s focus after the Selecao edged out Hungary 3-2 in a thrilling 2026 World Cup qualifier.

Portugal thought they had won it when Cristiano Ronaldo equalled the all-time World Cup qualifying goals record, putting them 2-1 up from the penalty spot in the second half.

First-half goalscorer Barnabas Varga had other ideas as he got his second of the game in the 84th minute, drawing Hungary level.

But just two minutes later, Joao Cancelo saw his low, driven effort beat Balazs Toth to win it for Portugal.

Ronaldo’s strike means he has been directly involved in goals in each of his last three World Cup qualification matches, recording three goals and one assist.

No player has scored more #WCQ goals than Cristiano Ronaldo pic.twitter.com/SvhiVE9scy

— UEFA EURO (@UEFAEURO) September 9, 2025

With his team enjoying an ideal start to their campaign, Martinez is hoping they can go from strength to strength ahead of facing the Republic of Ireland on October 11.

“Every game is different, but we found the solutions that I think are important. Hungary have a very good counter-attack, we defended very well in general, we controlled the game,” said Martinez.

“It’s a perfect game to improve and adjust aspects. Overall, the focus was incredible. The players who came in helped, they made the difference.

“We showed an incredible personality. When we conceded a goal against Germany [in the Nations League in June], we changed the mentality.

“Now we can suffer and we believe in what we can do. It happened with Spain too. We have a resilience that is very important to build on in the rest of the game.”

Bernardo Silva was back among the goals in the first half, netting for his country for the first time in four years.

“It was a game with a lot of transitions. At times, we should have calmed down the pace of the game more, not let them run and not let it be such a direct game,” said Silva.

“We are also a team with fast, intense players, who can also play this type of game. We are very happy. We are on the way to qualify for the World Cup.”