Ronaldo scores as Portugal come back to win, Croatia denied by VAR late on | World Cup 2026 news

Cristiano Ronaldo pulls Portugal level before Goncalo Ramos scores late on, with Croatia adjudged to be offside.

His replacement Goncalo Ramos led Portugal to the last 16 of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. to beat 2-1 win against Croatia.

Ramos connected with a superb pass from Rafael Leao in the fourth minute of stoppage time on Thursday to spoil a Croatia team that had created the lion’s share of the heat on a sweltering evening in Toronto.

In a dramatic finish, Croatia thought they had equalized in the dying seconds, but Josko Gvardiol’s goal was ruled out for offside.

The Croatians were shocked by the decision, while the Portuguese players celebrated.

Cristiano Ronaldo played a part in the victory, scoring a penalty that denied Ivan Perisic’s opener.

It was Ronaldo’s first goal in a World Cup final, and his remarkable international career will have another chapter when Portugal face Spain in Dallas on Monday.

Perisic stunned the Portuguese by lobbing the ball under Portuguese midfielder Diogo Costa in the 53rd minute.

Minutes later, Ronaldo had the ball in the net after directing a long pass, but his effort was ruled out for offside.

But Portugal leveled when Renato Veiga was tackled by Croatia’s Nikola Vlasic in the penalty area, and after a VAR check, the referee pointed to the spot.

Ronaldo stepped up to convert the penalty with ease, hitting the ball straight into the center of the goal and throwing his fists in celebration afterwards.

In a thrilling match, Manchester City’s Mateo Kovacic’s low shot was pushed onto the post by Costa’s toe.

However, Croatia pushed, and Petar Sucic had the ball in the net, but the referee’s flag should have been offside.

Ronaldo was taken off in the 81st minute to allow Ruben Neves to come on.

Croatia continued to create more chances than their opponents, and Mario Pasalic came close to winning the game with a header from distance, but it just went wide.

But when Ramos connected, the net widened, and Portugal went through.