Lille striker, Eder, who was dumped by Swansea earlier this season after failing to score in 15 games, has revealed how his captain, Cristiano Ronaldo told him that he would score the winner when he came on as second half late substitute.
Speaking in an interview with FIFA.com, Guinea-Bissau born striker, Eder, who netted a 109th-minute winner worthy of the grand occasion, as Portugal secured their greatest triumph at the expense of hosts France in Euro 2016 final, has revealed that Cristiano Ronaldo told him he would score.
Eder, a second-half substitute for young star, Renato Sanches, muscled clear of marker, Laurent Koscielny, before unleashing a fierce low shot past goalkeeper, Hugo Lloris for the only goal of the contest.
The 28-year-old goalscoring hero revealed Ronaldo, who was forced off with injury midway through the first half, provided words of inspiration prior to making the decisive contribution.
"[Ronaldo] told me I would score the winning goal for the team. He gave me this strength, and I just took that energy into my game, and it was vital.
"Ever since [coach] Fernando Santos called me up. He knows what my capabilities are and so does our group. They trust me and I have worked hard to contribute and today it was possible. I’m very happy about what we’ve achieved.
"We went through a difficult spell after [Cristiano] Ronaldo’s injury, because he’s the best player in the world and an important player for us. But after that he still gave us all his strength and bravery, and we got this important victory, both for him and all of Portugal.
"It was an amazing moment. Our team worked really hard. We knew that the Portuguese people were behind us. The Portuguese people deserve this.
"We weren’t the best technical team, but we worked for each other. Since the coach arrived he believed this group could do this," he said.
