Portugal rout Algeria

Lisbon, June 8: Portugal cruised to a 3-0 victory over Algeria in their final pre-World Cup international friendly with superstar forward Cristiano Ronaldo making a successful return to the national football squad after a two-game absence.

Over the past 10 days, Portugal have stumbled to a 2-2 tie against Tunisia and a scoreless draw versus Belgium without the Real Madrid talisman.

Ronaldo had taken a break after Real Madrid’s victory over Liverpool in the May 26 Champions League final, reports Efe news agency.

Unaffected by steady rain at the Estadio da Luz here on Thursday night, Portugal seized control of the match from the outset and would have opened the scoring with a Ronaldo goal in the 10th minute if not for a highly questionable off-side call. IANS