Hammers Abroad in June #2: Fonte, Portugal lose to Chile on penalties in Confederation Cup semifinals

The good news for Jose Fonte on Wednesday is the fact that he looks set to remain a starter for Portugal beyond the Confederations Cup, as Pepe possibly fades to the background with Bruno Alves remaining the other centerback.

The bad news is that he and his country can start to look beyond the Confederations Cup, as Portugal were eliminated by Chile in the semifinals on penalties after three consecutive horrible spot kicks in the penalty shootout after a scoreless 120 minutes.

Fonte had a mixed game, as his combination with Alves rendered Eduardo Vargas ineffective and contained Arturo Vidal’s bursts from the midfield as much as he could. He also produced a quality block on Alexis Sanchez that was possibly headed past Rui Patricio in extra time.

But Fonte should have been called for a penalty in the 112nd minute when he clearly stepped on Francisco Silva in the box. He also saw Sanchez split between him and Alves to receive a perfect cross and the Arsenal superstar just miss heading home the winning goal.

Now Fonte is the last Hammers regular to start his summer vacation, before returning to the team, probably in late July or early August, for the end of their preseason.