Portugal 2-2 Switzerland: Portuguese fight back to earn draw in Group C

Portugal fought back from two goals down to clinch a draw against a stunned Switzerland in their Euro 2022 Group C opener at Leigh Sports Village.

It was the Swiss who showed an initial clinical edge as Coumba Sow fired in a superb opener and Rahel Kiwic headed in a second inside five minutes to hand them the dream start.

But a resilient Portugal replied when Diana Gomes poked in with half an hour to play and Jessica Silva deftly guided Tatiana Pinto's cross into the bottom corner to level soon after.

With big-hitters the Netherlands and Sweden the other sides in the group, Switzerland and Portugal had marked this up as a must-win game if they were to progress to the knockout stages - and that sparked a frantic finish.

Geraldine Reuteler volleyed on to the crossbar for the Swiss and Portugal scrambled another effort off the line as the sides had to settle for a point.

In Saturday's other Group C game, the Netherlands and Sweden drew 1-1.

• Reaction to Portugal v Switzerland

Wildcard Portugal prove their worth

Portugal are the tournament's wildcard entrant, having only made it to the Euros because Russia, who beat them in the qualifying play-offs, were banned.

They racked up 19 points from a possible 24 to finish second in their qualifying group, thanks largely to a frugal defence that conceded only twice, while scoring only 10 goals in eight games themselves.

It therefore looked likely to be an uphill task when their back four was breached twice in quick succession, but the lowest-ranked team in the competition came out with more purpose after the break and proved they are not merely here to make up the numbers by becoming the first side to wipe out a two-goal half-time deficit in Women's Euros history.

The celebration from Francisco Neto's side when Gomes scrambled in their first goal showed they believed a result was still possible and when Silva finished smartly to level, it was Portugal who seemingly had the momentum.

In the end a draw may make it difficult for them to qualify, but Portugal will at least hope to improve on their inaugural Euros campaign five years ago, when they finished bottom of the group.

Clinical Swiss fail to make it count

Rahel Kiwic scored Switzerland's second inside the opening five minutes

Any pre-tournament nerves Switzerland had were calmed in the second minute when Sow fizzed an effort into the bottom corner with virtually her first touch of the ball.

Three minutes later, things got even better. Portugal failed to deal with a free-kick hoisted into the area and Kiwic escaped her marker to head into the roof of the net, sending the lively band of travelling Swiss supporters wild in the early evening sunshine.

But despite the carnival atmosphere in the stands, that was as good as it got for their side on the pitch.

Like Portugal, Switzerland are aiming to improve on their tournament debut in 2017, when they failed to progress from the group, but they succumbed to an eight-minute double from the Portuguese in the second half.

Nils Nielsen's side flooded forward looking for a vital winner, only to be denied by a combination of the woodwork and some last-ditch defending, meaning an entertaining encounter ended all square.