Portugal 2 Croatia 1: VAR drama sees Croats’ 103rd minute equaliser ruled OUT and keeps Ronaldo’s World Cup dream alive

CRISTIANO RONALDO’S World Cup dream lives on – even though he watched the dramatic crucial moment from the DUG-OUT. Ronaldo had handed Roberto Martinez’s men a lifeline from the spot when he converted a penalty to cancel out Ivan Perisic’s opener at the start of the second half. But as the second period exploded into life with FOUR offside goals, two stunners against the woodwork, the VAR spot kick and a host of chances, Ronaldo did not get the chance to see out the game, Instead, with nine minutes of normal time to go, his number was quite literally up as he was hooked by the former Everton boss. Ronaldo’s face told a story his actions – shaking the manager’s hand – did not. But it was Ronaldo’s old Real Madrid pal Luka Modric whose international career ended in Canada. READ MORE ON THE WORLD CUP Four minutes into stoppage time, PSG striker Goncalo Ramos rose superbly to direct Rafael Leao’s curling centre into the corner of the net. As Martinez danced a jig of pure delight, Ronaldo raced from the bench area to join the manic celebrations, giving the hero of the hour a hug of sheer joy. With the clock into the 103rd minute, Croatia thought they had levelled, as Josip Gvardiol poked in from a goalmouth scramble. Yet as they celebrated wildly, the VAR spotted that Mario Pasalic was offside when he got on the end of Igor Matanovic’s flick, confirmed by the chip tech inside the adidas ball. Most read in Sport WORLD CUP 2026 FREE BETS AND SIGN UP OFFERS World Cup 2026 - all the info IT'S A KNOCKOUT The knockout stages of the World Cup are hotting up. England believe football might finally be coming home after 60 years of hurt, with Harry Kane on fire. But the likes of France, Spain, Brazil and Argentina are all serious contenders to go all the way. Heavyweights Germany and the Netherlands have both been knocked out on penalties in the Round of 32. LATEST NEWS - All pubs that will open for England’s 1am World Cup clash - How England beat DR Congo by copying Brazil - Germany ‘tell Nagelsmann resign or be SACKED’ - BBC blasted for World Cup broadcasting decision - World Cup fan has to be rescued by CRANE KEY INFO - World Cup 2026 full match schedule including kick-off times - World Cup 2026 full squads - World Cup 2026 rule changes - World Cup 2026 prize money VIDEO - Proper Football Daily: Get all the expert analysis each morning - Team Talk – Tactics Exposed: Dive into the tactical talking points TIPS AND BETTING If you click a link in this article, we will earn affiliate revenue. Ronaldo went from despair to joy as the Croatian fans lobbed a fusillade of plastic bottles onto the pitch. But as he stalked onto the pitch at the final whistle – after 19 minutes had been added – Ronaldo was clearly overcome and broke down in tears wearing a 21 shirt in honour of Diogo Jota to mark the first anniversary of his pal’s tragic death. Those emotions showed how much it still means. Ronaldo’s quest to match arch-rival Lionel Messi and lift the World Cup is the main reason he is still playing at 41. Had Argentina not conquered in Qatar in 2022, you do think Ronaldo would have already called it a day – although his sister suggested hours before the match that this World Cup would be the “last dance”. And now, after a night that had almost everything, he will go on to meet Spain after netting his first World Cup knock-out goal – and 11th in his six tournaments – after the Dallas video booth spotted a stupid rugby tackle by Nikola Vlasic on Renato Veiga. It was tough on Croatia and Modric, who grew into the game after a difficult start. Initially, as Portugal dominated with Vitinha pulling the strings, Bruno linking and genuine width from Rafael Leao and Pedro Neto, Modric looked powerless against the tide. How does the adidas Trionda World Cup football tech work? THE Trionda footballs carry the latest evolution of adidas Connected Ball Technology in the form of an innovative new side-mounted chip system. The 500Hz inertial measurement unit (IMU) motion sensor chip now sits inside a specially created layer in one of the four panels, rather than as a centre-mounted system held in place by a suspension system. The addition of counter-balances across the three other panels ensures continued flight stability and balance. Providing unprecedented insight into every element of the movement of the ball, the technology sends precise ball data to the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system in real time – which when combined with player position data and by applying artificial intelligence, helps match officials make faster offside decisions. Developed in close collaboration with Kinexon, adidas Connected Ball Technology can also aid match officialsin identifying each individual touch of the ball, resulting in less time spent resolving specific incidents, including possible handball. Source: adidas The best chance, though, was squandered when Manchester United ace Bruno, found by Leao after a glorious defence-splitter by Nuno Mendes, fired too close to the keeper and had the close-range rebound blocked in just the fourth minute. Ronaldo, shrugging off the relentless jeers, was a flame attracting defensive moths – creating space even from set-pieces. Centre-half Veiga should have scored from six yards from one Nuno Mendes flag-kick, planting it over the bar. Then a brilliant diving header clearance from Marin Pongracic prevented the PSG left back’s cross finding Chelsea’s Pedro Neto, before Joao Cancelo’s inswinging delivery just eluded both Bruno and Ronaldo. All it needed was a touch. Possession counts for nothing on its own. You need to score and when Leao spooned over at the back post it was still deadlocked at the interval. The second half, with Croatia introducing 6ft 4in Matanovic up front, was a different story, as Modric and Mateo Kovacic took a grip. It started when Manchester City’s Kovacic wriggled through after Matanovic unsettled the Portuguese defence but Diogo Costa, called into action for the first time, parried behind. He could do nothing, though, on 53 minutes. Bayern man Josip Stanisic’s cross was allowed to travel all the way to the back post and Perisic, whose career was supposed to have been finished by injury when he left Spurs two years ago, had time to bring down and drill through the keeper’s legs. Ronaldo stood on the centre spot, hands on hips, looking daggers at all around him. Croatia thought they had a second when Matanovic slid home from an offside Vlasic. Next, twice, it was Portugal’s turn to rue their luck. Leao cut in and smashed a 20-yarder against the bar which was still juddering when Cancelo picked out Ronaldo, who brought the ball down and flicked over the keeper – only for the flag to go up again. His shoulder was offside. But with Martinez making FOUR changes – Bruno among those off and Bernardo Silva on – Portugal were handed a VAR lifeline. It looked like a normal melee from the corner but the second look showed Vlasic hauling Veiga to the ground from behind. Ronaldo was never going to look the gift horse in the mouth, sending Dominik Livakovic the wrong way before setting off on a celebration which was, in truth, all about him. “Siu!!!” roared the Portuguese fans. CLICK ON PIC FOR STAR’S PROFILE Back came the Croats, Kovacic running 45 yards from the left into the centre before unleashing a stunning drive that pinged back off the post, with another shot tipped over when the ball was recycled, before Diogo Costa spread himself to foil Matanovic. Petar Sutar was the second Croatian to be denied by the flag after a really tidy finish. That was a tight one as well, but correct again. Before the free-kick, the biggest shock of the night as Martinez decided Ronaldo’s race was run. He looked perplexed but accepted it with good grace, shaking the coach’s hand as he was passed by Ruben Neves. All changed as Ramos plunged the killer blow, and the final offside call left Modric and Co crestfallen. Portugal and Ronaldo head to Dallas. The dream remains alive.