TORONTO:<\/strong> Portugal produced a dramatic second-half comeback to defeat Croatia 2-1 in a thrilling FIFA World Cup Round of 32 clash, booking their place in the Round of 16 after a contest packed with VAR drama and late twists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After a cagey opening 45 minutes, Croatia struck first in the 53rd minute. Josip Stani\u0161i\u0107 delivered a pinpoint cross into the box, where Ivan Peri\u0161i\u0107 finished clinically to give the Croatians a deserved lead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Portugal responded with renewed intensity and were awarded a penalty in the 68th minute following a VAR review. Captain Cristiano Ronaldo calmly converted from the spot, bringing his side level at 1-1 and shifting the momentum firmly in Portugal’s favor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Both teams pushed relentlessly for a winner as the match entered its closing stages. The decisive moment arrived deep into stoppage time when substitute Gon\u00e7alo Ramos met Rafael Le\u00e3o’s inviting cross with a powerful header, sealing a dramatic 2-1 victory for Portugal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Croatia believed they had forced extra time moments later, but their late equalizer was ruled out for offside after a VAR review, ending their World Cup campaign in heartbreaking fashion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Portugal head coach Roberto Mart\u00ednez praised his team’s resilience and composure under pressure, while Croatia were left to rue missed opportunities after controlling large portions of the game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The victory sends Portugal into the Round of 16, where they will face Spain in a highly anticipated Iberian showdown. With Cristiano Ronaldo once again delivering on the biggest stage and Portugal showing impressive character to recover from a goal down, the Sele\u00e7\u00e3o strengthened their credentials as genuine World Cup contenders.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" TORONTO: Portugal produced a dramatic second-half comeback to defeat Croatia 2-1 in a thrilling FIFA World Cup Round of 32 clash, booking their place in the Round of 16 after a contest packed with VAR drama and late twists. After a cagey opening 45 minutes, Croatia struck first in the 53rd minute. Josip Stani\u0161i\u0107 delivered…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":8819,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8818","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\n