MANILA — Cristiano Ronaldo scored his first-ever FIFA World Cup knockout-stage goal before Gonçalo Ramos delivered a dramatic stoppage-time winner as Portugal edged Croatia, 2-1, to book a place in the Round of 16 and arrange a blockbuster showdown with Spain.
Portugal looked headed for extra time after Ronaldo canceled Croatia’s second-half opener from the penalty spot, but Ramos rose highest to head home Rafael Leão’s cross deep into stoppage time, sealing the hard-fought victory at BMO Field in Toronto on Thursday night (Friday in the Philippines).
After a scoreless first half, Croatia broke the deadlock in the 53rd minute when Ivan Perišić finished a cross from Josip Stanišić to put the 2018 runners-up ahead.
Portugal responded in the 68th minute after Ronaldo calmly converted from the penalty spot, with the goal marking the veteran superstar’s first-ever strike in the knockout stage of a World Cup.
Ramos then delivered the decisive blow in added time, heading in Leão’s cross to complete Portugal’s comeback.
Croatia thought it had rescued the match moments later, but Mario Pašalić’s apparent equalizer was disallowed after a Video Assistant Referee (VAR) review ruled him offside.
The loss ended Luka Modrić’s fifth and likely final World Cup campaign. The Croatian captain helped his country finish runner-up in 2018 and third in 2022.
Meanwhile, Spain cruised into the Round of 16 with a commanding 3-0 victory over Austria at SoFi Stadium.
Mikel Oyarzabal scored twice for the European champions after Marc Cucurella had an earlier goal ruled out for a foul during a corner.
Oyarzabal broke the deadlock in the 36th minute before Pedro Porro doubled Spain’s advantage shortly after halftime. Oyarzabal completed his brace a minute before full time to set up a mouthwatering Round of 16 clash against Portugal for a place in the quarterfinals.
Switzerland also advanced after posting a 2-0 victory over Algeria. Breel Embolo opened the scoring in the 10th minute before Dan Ndoye doubled the lead early in the second half to seal the Swiss side’s passage to the knockout stage./PN
