Thursday night and Friday morning’s action saw Spain firmly put their marker down on the tournament and Cristiano Ronaldo keep his World Cup dream alive.
The round of 32 is coming to a close with just three more ties left before the round of 16 kicks off on Saturday. And the overnight action saw a hat-trick of European teams book their place with Spain, Portugal and Switzerland all securing wins.
Spain cruised to a comfortable 3-0 triumph over Austria as Mikel Oyarzabal bagged a double and Pedro Porro also found the net. There was drama, however, as Joe Hart was left stunned that Marc Cucurella’s strike was chalked off for a foul on the keeper before the goal fest began.
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Cristiano Ronaldo netted his first knockout strike at a World Cup as Portugal secured a thrilling yet controversial 2-1 win over Croatia. Goncalo Ramos grabbed the decisive goal as Josko Gvardiol saw his effort disallowed in the 103rd minute of the encounter. Following VAR’s intervention, the fixture experienced a delayed conclusion as supporters hurled bottles onto the field in a furious response to the ruling.
Meanwhile, Switzerland clinched a 2-0 triumph over Algeria courtesy of strikes from Breel Embolo and Dan Ndoye. They will face the victor of Colombia vs Ghana.
Here, the Daily Star Sport rounds up the overnight action from the World Cup.
Furious Croatia fans
Croatia exited the World Cup in the most heartbreaking way as Gvardiol’s last-gasp goal was ruled out by VAR just seconds from time.
VAR used a cricket-style ‘Snicko’ technology to determine whether Igor Matanovic made contact with the ball before it fell to Mario Pasalic in the build-up to the goal.
FIFA clarified why the goal was overturned in a statement released after the clash. “According to the data provided by Connected Ball Technology housed within the @adidasfootball Trionda, the official match ball of the @FIFAWorldCup, it was proven that contact was made by Croatia’s #20 Igor Matanović in the build-up to the goal against Portugal, allowing the referee to correctly determine offside and disallow the goal.”
Croatian fans were furious as they threw bottles onto the pitch in anger, delaying the conclusion of the game.
Luka Modric bows out
Real Madrid and Manchester United legend Ronaldo also addressed his international future after speculation over his retirement surfaced ahead of the fixture. He will discuss matters with his family once the tournament concludes, but his tournament will continue.
However, Luka Modric has most likely featured in his final World Cup fixture after being eliminated from the tournament at the age of 40. Ronaldo was seen embracing him following the match, revealing he had bid ‘farewell’ to his former Real Madrid colleague.
Diogo Jota tribute
Ronaldo and the Portugal squad honoured Diogo Jota after their victory, marking the anniversary of his passing. They displayed a jersey featuring his number ’21’. “We won for ourselves, for Diogo, and for Portugal! ! ! LET’S GO! ! ! !” declared Ronaldo on social media.
Jota has been remembered at every Liverpool and Portugal game since his tragic death in a car crash in Spain exactly a month ago today (June 3).
Nagelsmann resigns
Jurgen Klopp is reportedly prepared to take on the Germany national team position following the nation’s World Cup elimination on penalties against Paraguay.
It’s reported that Julian Nagelsmann has resigned following a three-hour discussion after it emerged his job was seriously under threat. Official confirmation is set to follow.
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