Substitute Silvestre Varela hit an 87th-minute winner to give Portugal a 3-2 win over Denmark in their Euro 2012 Group B encounter in Lviv on Wednesday.
The 27-year-old Porto winger hit low into the corner to snatch Portugal's first points of the campaign after their 1-0 defeat to Germany.
In doing so he spared Cristiano Ronaldo's blushes after the Real Madrid forward squandered two one-on-one chances in a low-confidence display.
Nicklas Bendtner thought he had sealed a point for his team to build on their shock 1-0 defeat of the Netherlands last week with a header ten minutes from time.
Real Madrid center-back Pepe had put the Portuguese in front on 25 minutes with a glancing header at the near post from Joao Moutinho's corner.
Former Tottenham Hotspur forward Helder Postiga broke a goal drought stretching back to November to put Portugal two up nine minutes later.
The 29-year-old stole a march on defender Simon Kjaer to lash a Nani cross into the top corner from ten yards out.
The Danes pulled one back through Bendtner on 41 minutes, the Sunderland striker nodding into an empty net after Michael Krohn-Dehli headed across goal to find the former Arsenal man totally unmarked.
Germany face the Netherlands later Wednesday.
