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France were held to a 0-0 home draw to Portugal in a UEFA Nations League fixture that largely failed to live up to its expectations.
Pepe appeared to have snatched a late winner for the visitors with a diving header, only to be flagged for offside as the spoils were shared between the reigning Euro Cup and FIFA World Cup winners.
The result means Portugal lead Group A3 on goal difference, although the European powerhouses will clash once again next month in what's likely to be the decider.
For now, here are the major talking points from the clash of the heavyweights at the Stade de France:
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#1 Crucial interceptions keep the tie even
Given the staggering amount of attacking power in both camps, fans were expecting plenty of goal-mouth action. However, rather curiously, it was the defence that came out on top.
France and Portugal both came really close to breaking the deadlock, only to be denied by a last-minute interception from someone at the back.
Cristiano Ronaldo's first real attempt was smothered by Lucas Hernandez, who timed his jump perfectly to deny the Juventus talisman a clear effort at goal before Hugo Lloris refused him a late winner by punching his effort out of play.
On both occasions, the 35-year-old, who had a clear sight of goal, would've buried it had it not been for some defensive heroics.
Kylian Mbappe was also close to finding the back of the net on Sunday. He danced through the Portuguese defence inside the area to arrow a shot at the back post. However, Rui Patricio got a hand to it, denying what was a clear opportunity.
#2 Paul Pogba's anonymous return to France's starting line-up
Paul Pogba missed both the opening games of the UEFA Nations League for France last month after testing positive for COVID-19 but returned to the squad for this international break's triple-header.
After coming off the bench in the friendly win over Ukraine, he marked his return to the starting XI for the first time since June last year (he missed the remainder of 2019 due to ankle injury) and offered no great shakes.
Pogba surrendered possession frequently while also lacking ideas going forward. Even though he looked unstoppable on the break, the Manchester United star didn't know where to pass after surging into the Portuguese half. This fizzled out a couple of promising counters.
His evening is perfectly summed up in this tweet:
#3 Fernando Santos' late substitutions raise questions
In the friendly game against Spain last week, Portuguese manager Fernando Santos made five of his six substitutions before the final quarter of the match, giving some fringe players a chance to flex their muscle. Yet, in a high-stakes game against France, he waited until the final few minutes of the match to inject fresh legs into the game.
With the match deadlocked at 0-0, he could've brought on players like Joao Moutinho and Renato Sanches slightly earlier to infuse more creativity into the side. His decision to deny Andre Silva a single minute was baffling too.
The reigning European champions were clearly struggling to break down France's stoic defence, so bringing on the Eintracht Frankfurt striker might have maximised their attacking potential.
Instead, Santos made four substitutions only after the 80th minute, three coming in the 89th minute in a triple-change! This suggests he was just content to eke out a point rather than go for all three, which was quite timid of him.
#4 Cristiano Ronaldo's wait for more goals continue
Considering he's just eight behind the world record for most international goals, you can imagine how much Cristiano Ronaldo was itching to get there.
The Juventus talisman must have surely hoped to add a few more to his 101 strikes heading into this international break but must be disappointed to have drawn a blank once again.
He played for 70 minutes of the friendly against Spain, only to be frustrated. He couldn't find any luck against France either, despite playing the entirety of the match.
We all know that Ronaldo is eventually going to surpass Ali Daei's tally of 109 goals but he may have to wait for a while to do that.
#5 Portugal and France will have everything to play for in return fixture
France and Portugal arguably have the best squad in Europe. Stacked to the rafters with world-class talents, the European heavyweights are among the top favourites for the season but only one can get through the group.
This might be decided in next month's return leg in Lisbon, which should be more openly contested and should witness more goal-mouth action.
Both sides are level on points in Group A3, with seven each, and are expected to pick up maximum available points from their next fixtures against Croatia and Sweden respectively.
