In a thrilling 6-1 victory over Switzerland in the round of 16, Portugal produced their best performance of the World Cup thus far.
Cristiano Ronaldo was benched by Fernando Santos for the match on Tuesday, and as a result, the Selecao looked much more fluid in attack.
The first 15 minutes of the game had so little going on that bored spectators at the enormous Lusail Stadium started a Mexican wave before the game’s first opportunity.
Goncalo Ramos, who started in place of Cristiano Ronaldo and had only played 35 minutes of international football prior to Tuesday night, was able to turn away from Fabian Schar and find enough space to throttle the ball with his weaker left foot, squeezing into the roof of the net at Yann Sommer’s near post, but that opportunity came shortly after.
With Portugal’s subsequent opportunity, Ramos nearly made Otavio the provider by setting up the Porto midfielder with a deft flick backwards, but Sommer stopped his bobbling shot.
Ramos was able to connect with Joao Felix’s deft pass over the top, and Portugal was now playing freely and confidently. This time, Sommer was able to stop Ramos’ quick shot because it was much tamer this time.
At the other end, Breel Embolo was making it difficult for the Selecao to remain silent, forcing his way through Portugal’s half and being completely manhandled by Ruben Dias. Diogo Costa successfully tipped Xherdan Shaqiri’s subsequent and impressive free kick from 25 yards around the post.
However, Portugal increased their lead just after the halfway point when Pepe, who was serving as the team’s captain in place of Ronaldo, rose highest to head in a Bruno Fernandes corner. The crafty center-back overtook Roger Milla as the second-oldest World Cup scorer.
When Costa deflected an Edimilson Fernandes cross only into Remo Freuler’s path, Switzerland nearly equalized. Fortunately for the Porto goalkeeper, the ensuing header was harmless and quickly cleared.
While defensive questions were beginning to be raised about Portugal, they were roaring in attack. Ramos should have added his second goal of the night when he was slipped through by Fernandes, but Sommer’s outstretched arm prevented it.
Soon after the break, Ramos added his second goal, outpacing the Swiss defense to tap in a cross from Diogo Dalot. Dalot had done well to gain a yard of space with a deft move on the byline.
Portugal scored their fourth goal shortly after that. After a deft flick by Otavio, Felix carried the ball into the final third and found Ramos running. Ramos kept his head up and saw a wide-open Raphael Guerreiro, who duly shot into the roof of the net.
Ramos ironically flicked it on at the near post and past his Portugal teammates as Manuel Akanji scored a consolation goal by tapping in at the back post from a Xherdan Shaqiri corner.
Ramos completed the first hat-trick of the 2022 World Cup by racing past the finish line and dinking over Sommer at the end of another sweeping move.
To the delight of a packed Lusail Stadium, Santos finally gave in to crowd pressure after 73 minutes and called Ronaldo into action. He started off by launching a free kick straight into the wall.
Despite being laughably offside during his run, Ronaldo did manage to score, but it was immediately disallowed.
Rafael Leao scored Portugal’s sixth goal rather than a substitute forward. The Milan player fooled Sommer by cutting inside from the left and slipping a shot between Akanji and Granit Xhaka, finishing in the far corner to cap the evening.
Portugal player ratings (4-2-3-1)
GK: Diogo Costa – 5/10
RB: Diogo Dalot – 8/10
CB: Pepe – 8/10
CB: Ruben Dias – 6/10
LB: Raphael Guerreiro – 8/10
CM: William Carvalho – 8/10
CM: Otavio – 8/10
RM: Bernardo Silva-7/10
AM: Bruno Fernandes-9/10
LM: Joao Felix – 9/10
CF: Goncalo Ramos – 10/10
Substitutes
Cristiano Ronaldo (73′ for Ramos) – 5/10
Vitinha (73′ for Otavio) – 6/10
Ricardo Horta (73′ for Otavio) – 6/10
Ruben Neves (81′ for Silva) – N/A
Rafael Leao (87′ for Fernandes) – N/A
Manager
Fernando Santos – 9/10
Switzerland player ratings (4-2-3-1)
GK: Yann Sommer – 4/10
RB: Edimilson Fernandes – 4/10
CB: Manuel Akanji – 3/10
CB: Fabian Schar – 2/10
LB: Ricardo Rodriguez – 4/10
CM: Remo Freuler – 3/10
CM: Granit Xhaka – 4/10
RM: Djibril Sow – 2/10
AM: Xherdan Shaqiri – 3/10
LM: Ruben Vargas – 2/10
CF: Breel Embolo – 6/10
Substitutes
Eray Comert (46′ for Schar) – 4/10
Denis Zakaria (54′ for Freuler) – 5/10
Haris Seferovic (54′ for Sow) – 4/10
Noah Okafor (66′ for Vargas) – 4/10
Ardon Jashari (89′ for Embolo) – N/A
Manager
Murat Yakin – 3/10
Player of the Match – Goncalo Ramos
