TORONTO — Portugal advanced to the World Cup knockout stage with a dramatic 2-1 victory over Croatia, a match that featured late heroics, three disallowed goals for the Croats and Cristiano Ronaldo starting on the bench. Gonçalo Ramos, introduced after Ronaldo’s 81st-minute substitution, headed home over two defenders four minutes into stoppage time to secure the win.
The game was guaranteed to be the last World Cup appearance for one of two aging stars — either Portugal’s 41-year-old Ronaldo or Croatia’s 40-year-old Luka Modric — but both were more supporting figures than central protagonists in a contest full of twists. Ronaldo converted a penalty after an earlier disallowed goal for offside, then came off soon after his spot-kick.
Croatia had taken the lead through Ivan Perišić in the 53rd minute and appeared to have forced a late equalizer when Joško Gvardiol found the net in the final minute of stoppage time, only for the effort to be ruled out for offside — the third disallowed Croatian goal of the evening. Frustrated Croatia fans threw empty water bottles onto the field following the decision.
Portugal coach Roberto Martínez made several tactical calls that paid off, including the first start of the tournament for Rafael Leão. Leão recorded 10 progressive carries with a team-high 276 total carry meters, tied for the team lead in ball recoveries with five, hit the post in the 58th minute and delivered the lob that set up Ramos’ header. Ramos has previously recorded a World Cup hat trick in a 6-1 win over Switzerland in 2022 and has nine goals and two assists in 701 minutes across FIFA and UEFA competitions.
Croatia coach Zlatko Dalić praised his team’s performance but lamented the result, saying they had momentum at times and created several opportunities and that he was sorry his side had been eliminated. Portugal will meet Spain in Arlington on Monday, following the defending European champions’ 3-0 win over Austria earlier on Thursday.
