Portugal defeated Croatia 2-1 to enter the last 16 of the ongoing FIFA World Cup, courtesy of a brilliant goal from substitute Goncalo Ramos. Ramos headed the ball into the Croatian net four minutes into stoppage time on Thursday night to edge past a team that created more chances but failed to capitalise on them.
However, the drama continued until the last minute when Croatia thought they had qualified for the round of 16, but Joško Gvardiol’s goal was chalked off for offside after VAR. The Croatian side were left in tears due to the decision, while Portugal’s players and fans celebrated the win.
Cristiano Ronaldo played his role in the victory, stroking home a penalty that cancelled out Ivan Perisic’s opener. The goal was Ronaldo’s first ever in the knockout stages of the World Cup, and his much-celebrated international career will have another chapter when Portugal face Spain in Dallas on Monday.
Croatia’s Perišić scored the first goal of the match in the 53rd minute by placing the ball under the Portugal goalkeeper.
Portugal levelled when Renato Veiga was grabbed by Croatia’s Nikola Vlašić in the penalty area, and after a VAR check, the referee pointed to the spot. Ronaldo, the biggest superstar, stepped up and easily converted the penalty, restoring the scoreline to 1-1.
Croatia continued to create more chances than their opponents, and Mario Pasalic came so close to winning the game with a header at the far post, but it bounced just wide. However, when Ramos connected, the net bulged, and Portugal was through.
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