Portugal's 2-1 victory over Croatia became special as this is likely the last World Cup of one of the two legends Cristiano Ronaldo and Luka Modric. However, both only played a secondary role in the match witnessing a series of unexpected developments and the brilliance of many other stars.
Goncalo Ramos, who was positioned as a center forward after Ronaldo left the field in the 81st minute, scored with a powerful header, putting Portugal ahead in the fourth minute of injury time.
Croatia seemed to have equalized in the last seconds of injury time thanks to Josko Gvardiol. However, the goal was disallowed.
That was the third time Croatia was denied a goal in the match due to offside. After Croatian fans threw empty water bottles onto the field to protest, Portugal still stood firm to preserve the victory. Roberto Martinez's team will face Spain at Arlington, after the reigning European champions defeated Austria 3-0 earlier.
Portugal and Croatia continuously clashed for control of the game. Croatia usually played better after each break, while Portugal increased pressure as the match gradually moved towards the end.
We defended well. We didn't let the opponent create many chances. There were even times when we controlled the game. There were times when we played better and created more chances.
In the end, we did not deserve to suffer such a defeat. I can only congratulate Portugal. It's a pity that we had to stop, but that's football. Sometimes luck is not on your side" - Croatian coach Zlatko Dalic shared after the match.
Croatia took the lead in the 53rd minute thanks to Ivan Perisic's goal. After Ronaldo's goal was disallowed for offside, Croatia was somewhat distracted when they conceded an unnecessary corner kick, before Nikola Vlasic fouled and pulled Renato Veiga down in the penalty area. Ronaldo successfully converted the penalty before leaving the field not long after.
Ramos shines once again when Ronaldo is no longer on the field, and this is not the first time he has done so. This striker once scored a hat-trick right in his first start at the World Cup, in the 6-1 victory over Switzerland in 2022. To date, he has scored 9 goals and had 2 more assists in just 701 minutes of playing in FIFA and UEFA tournaments.
Coach Roberto Martinez showed flexibility in personnel use and was rewarded deservedly. He not only boldly withdrew Ronaldo from the field - something he had never done in the group stage - but also gave Rafael Leao the opportunity to start for the first time in the tournament.
Leao is a player who can make a difference in both directions. At times he handled the ball cumbersomely and lost 7 out of 8 duels. However, he still performed 10 attacking dribbles with a total distance of 276m, the most among Portuguese strikers. Leao also leads the team in the number of ball recoveries with 5 times, including 2 times in the attacking area.
More importantly, Leao made a perfect cross for Ramos to head in the decisive goal. Portugal's attack sometimes seemed lifeless in the group stage, but Leao brought a completely different source of energy.
