Rafael Leão: "We secured a very important point"

Rafael Leão was the first Portuguese player to react to Portugal's 1-1 draw against DR Congo in their opening Group K match of the World Championship. The AC Milan winger admitted that the Seleção couldn't maintain the level shown in the early stages of the game: "In the first 20 minutes, we controlled the game, scoring early. Perhaps due to the eagerness to find a second goal, we lost control, and DR Congo became more dangerous."

The 27-year-old Portuguese international, however, denied that the national team underestimated their opponents: "We know we are Portugal, but we respect our adversaries. The game's circumstances led to DR Congo's equalizer. We continued to fight until the end, but luck wasn't on our side."

Leão conceded that the goal conceded in the 45+5th minute was "a collective error." He added, "Starting tomorrow, we'll work on it. We certainly can't make that mistake again in the next match because it cost us the draw."

"We need to lift our heads; we secured a very important point. We're heading into the second game aiming to control the match for a longer period, put our players in a position to make a difference, and clinch all three points," he emphasized, already looking ahead to Tuesday's clash against Uzbekistan.

Leão refused to throw in the towel: "There are still two more games where we can make a difference and advance. It's about resting, focusing on what didn't go so well, and going all out in the next match."