Portugal v France LIVE: Result and reaction as France end penalty shootout hoodoo

Portugal needed penalties to reach the quarter-finals and will face a France side who have had a more straightforward route at Euro 2024.

France squeezed through to the last eight with a late Jan Vertonghen own goal that sealed their victory against Belgium.

Portugal struggled to create openings against Slovenia and Cristiano Ronaldo missed a penalty, but was on target in the following shoot-out as Roberto Martinez’s side squeezed through.

France’s narrow win over Belgium might have lacked quality and excitement for large periods of the match, but France had several missed opportunities. Kylian Mbappe has not found his form since sustaining a broken nose in his side’s first game of the tournament but will have another chance against Portugal.

The game might be billed as the new generation of Mbappe against 39-year-old Ronaldo, and it is set to make for an exciting contest.

Welcome to The Independent’s coverage of tonight’s Euro 2024 quarter-final between Portugal and France. Two nations with very similar play styles and led by global superstars in Cristiano Ronaldo and Kylian Mbappe.

France reached the last-eight with a 1-0 victory over Belgium despite the game being a fairly placid and unthrilling affair while Portugal needed a penalty shootout to squeeze past Slovenia.

Tonight’s match gets underway at 8pm with the winners facing either Spain or Germany whose quarter-final tie begins at 5pm. We’ll have all the team news, build-up and updates throughout the evening so stick with us.

There’s no second summer fairytale for Germany, as it’s instead Spainwho have the happy ending. For now. Mikel Merino ensured they rose above it all, with a brilliant header in the 119th minute. The big question as to whether they go and actually win Euro 2024 is what the cost of this 2-1 victory over the hosts will be. Toni Kroos didn’t get his grand farewell, either, as he instead contributed to a match that often turned ugly.

That meant that it didn’t quite become the game of the tournament in the manner anticipated but it was thoroughly absorbing, right until the death. And that was very, very late. It is easy to see why games like this can prevent teams from becoming champions, because of the gruelling physical and psychological cost. Spain now have Alvaro Morata and the red-carded Dani Carvajal suspended for the semi-final, with Pedri looking like he might be out injured – maybe for the summer. He was the victim of an abrasive challenge from Kroos in the opening minute, that very much set a tone.

Through that, Spain displayed another quality in a European Championships when they have already shown so many. They were the picture of perseverance. That wasn’t just because of what a gallant German team put them through but what they put themselves through.