Ronaldo’s historic goal and Portugal’s early dominance
Portugal secured their place in the World Cup last 16 after a dramatic 2-1 victory over Croatia. The match saw Cristiano Ronaldo make history by becoming the oldest goalscorer in the FIFA World Cup knockout stage. At 41 years and 147 days old, Ronaldo converted a second-half penalty, marking his first goal in the knockout stages of the tournament.
The first half of the match, played in Toronto, was largely controlled by Portugal. Early on, Rafael Leão created an opportunity, cutting back to Bruno Fernandes, whose two shots were saved by Dominik Livaković and blocked by the Croatian defence. Pedro Neto posed a consistent threat for Portugal during this period, delivering numerous crosses into the box, though none resulted in a goal.
Despite Portugal’s dominance, Croatia remained resolute. They defended effectively and showed confidence against the attacking waves. Their strategy involved isolating Martin Baturina against João Cancelo and delivering crosses for Ante Budimir, though this approach had limited success, partly due to the physical presence of Rúben Dias.
Croatia’s resurgence and VAR drama
The dynamic of the game shifted significantly in the second half after Zlatko Dalić substituted Budimir for Igor Matanović. Croatia took the lead eight minutes into the second half when Josep Stanišić delivered a cross from the right, which Ivan Perišić controlled and drove past Diogo Costa.
Croatia then mounted a series of attacks. Petar Sučić found Matanović in the box, whose shot was saved, but the goal was disallowed for offside. Sučić later had a strong shot saved by Costa. Amidst Croatia’s surge, Leão hit the crossbar with a 25-yard effort, and a Ronaldo goal was ruled out for offside. A crucial moment came when Livaković inadvertently conceded a corner after a backpass. Following the corner, VAR intervened, and after review by referee Espen Eskås, a penalty was awarded to Portugal due to Vlašić having an arm around Leão.
Ronaldo calmly converted the penalty, levelling the score and igniting the crowd, particularly the local Portuguese community. However, Croatia continued to press, with Mateo Kovačić having two long-range efforts saved and Matanović forcing another save. Sučić had another goal disallowed for offside, the fourth such instance in the match.
Late winner and historical milestones
A significant substitution saw Ronaldo replaced by Rúben Neves, a move that altered Portugal’s approach. Portugal subsequently began to control possession more effectively and directed play towards Leão. In added time, Leão’s cross was converted by Gonçalo Ramos, securing the winning goal for Portugal. The celebrations for Ramos’s goal were extensive, leading to an additional three minutes being added to stoppage time. Croatia scored again in the final moments, but Joško Gvardiol’s goal was once more ruled out for offside by VAR, prompting protests from the Croatian side.
Ronaldo’s appearance in the match also marked his 26th World Cup appearance, placing him just one behind Lothar Matthäus on the all-time list. Furthermore, Ronaldo became the oldest outfield player to start a men’s FIFA World Cup knockout match at 41 years and 147 days. Croatia’s captain, Luka Modrić, aged 40 years and 296 days, also started, making it the first men’s FIFA World Cup match to feature two outfield players over the age of 40 on opposing sides.
This victory propels Portugal into the next round of the tournament.
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Source: theguardian.com
Arjun Sharma
Sports Reporter