Portugal vs Croatia: Ronaldo Scores, Selecao Secure a Dramatic 2-1 Victory

Portugal secured their spot in the 2026 World Cup Round of 16 after coming from behind to beat Croatia 2-1 in the Round of 32 fixture at Toronto Stadium, Friday WIB. Cristiano Ronaldo was the pivotal figure with the equalising goal, before Goncalo Ramos emerged to score the decisive winner.

This victory sends Selecao through to the next stage of the tournament, setting up a Round of 16 clash against Spain. Croatia meanwhile exit the competition, despite taking an earlier lead in the match.

Croatia registered the first threat in the 3rd minute through Ante Budimir's strike, which drifted wide of the left goalpost. Portugal responded one minute later via an effort from Bruno Fernandes that was safely collected by Dominik Livakovic.

Portugal gradually took control of proceedings. Joao Cancelo unleashed a long range shot in the 7th minute, followed by Renato Veiga's header from Nuno Mendes' corner kick - neither attempt found the target.

Cristiano Ronaldo also failed to convert Cancelo's cross in the 30th minute. Despite holding superior possession and creating more attacking openings, Portugal could not break the deadlock heading into half time.

Upon the start of the second half, Croatia took the initiative and played with greater aggression. Mateo Kovacic nearly put his side ahead in the 47th minute, only for Diogo Costa to produce a vital save.

Croatia's pressure yielded a goal six minutes later. A delivery from Josip Stanisic deflected off a Portugal defender, falling perfectly for Ivan Perisic. The PSV Eindhoven winger calmly beat Diogo Costa to give Croatia a 1-0 lead in the 53rd minute.

Portugal came under further pressure when Croatia found the net again just three minutes later. Their celebrations were cut short however, as the goal was disallowed for offside.

In the 68th minute, Portugal were awarded a penalty after Renato Veiga was brought down by Nikola Vlasic during a corner kick sequence.

Cristiano Ronaldo stepped up as the designated taker and converted the spot kick flawlessly, bringing the score to 1-1.

Croatia threatened again through Kovacic, whose volley was parried away by Diogo Costa. Luka Sucic also put the ball past the Portugal goalkeeper in the 80th minute, but this strike was also ruled out for offside.

Just as the match appeared set to enter extra time, Portugal scored the winning goal in the 90+4th minute. A cross from Rafael Leao was met with a headed finish from Goncalo Ramos to turn the game around and put Selecao 2-1 ahead.

In the 90+14th minute, Josko Gvardiol thought he had scored a late equaliser for Croatia. Following VAR review however, this goal was also disallowed for offside.

The full time whistle eventually confirmed Portugal's 2-1 victory over Croatia.

Starting Lineups

Portugal: Diogo Costa (GK); Joao Cancelo, Ruben Dias, Renato Veiga, Nuno Mendes; Joao Neves, Vintinha; Pedro Neto, Bruno Fernandes, Rafael Leao; Cristiano Ronaldo

Croatia: Dominik Livakovic (GK); Josip Stanisic, Josip Sutalo, Marin Pongracic, Ivan Perisic; Mateo Kovacic, Luka Modric; Nikola Vlasic, Luka Sucic, Martin Baturina; Ante Budimir