The Portuguese national team booked a ticket to the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup, after overturning its deficit to a thrilling 2-1 victory against its Croatian counterpart, in the confrontation that brought them together in the round of 32 competitions at Toronto Stadium, setting up a fiery date with the Spanish national team in the next round.
The Portuguese national team imposed its advantage during the first half, possessing the ball and creating several chances, the most dangerous of which was Bruno Fernandes’ shot in the minute. Fourth, but the goalkeeper and the Croatian defense succeeded in keeping the danger at bay, so the first half ended without goals.
At the beginning of the second half, the Croatian team entered better and threatened Portugal's goal early through Kovacic, before Ivan Perisic succeeded in opening the scoring in the 53rd minute, giving his country the advantage.
The Portuguese team responded quickly, after Rafael Leao's shot hit the crossbar in the 58th minute, and then Cristiano Ronaldo scored a goal. It was ruled out for offside in the 61st minute, before the Portuguese team won a penalty kick, which Ronaldo successfully translated into an equalizer in the 67th minute.
The match heated up in its final minutes, as Kovacic wasted a clear opportunity after his ball hit the post in the 75th minute, and goalkeeper Diogo Costa excelled in stopping more than one dangerous Croatian attempt, to keep his country in the atmosphere of the match.
And in Deadly time, Gonçalo Ramos succeeded in snatching the winning goal with a perfect header in the 90+4 minute, after taking advantage of a special cross from Rafael Leao, to lead Portugal to the lead.
Although Joshko Gvardiol scored the equalizing goal for Croatia in the 90+13 minute, the referee canceled it after returning to the video assistant referee technique due to offside, so the match ended with an exciting victory for Portugal, which continues Its journey in the World Cup, while the Croatian team bid farewell to the tournament with honor after a confrontation full of excitement until the last moments.