Portugal secured passage to the World Cup Quarter-finals after defeating Croatia with a final score of 2-1 in the Round of 16. The match saw early action when Ivan Perišić scored to give Croatia the lead in the 53rd minute. The momentum shifted when Cristiano Ronaldo equalized for Portugal from a penalty kick in the 68th minute.
The decisive goal for Portugal came in the fourth minute of extra time, scored by Gonçalo Ramos. The game appeared destined for further extra time after Josko Gvardiol scored late in the period. However, the Norwegian referee, Espen Ekegaard, initially permitted the goal before subsequently disallowing it due to an offside infraction.
This ruling allowed Portugal to advance to the Quarter-finals, where they are scheduled to face Spain, who defeated Austria. Separately, reports indicated that a previous goal scored by Croatia was disallowed by FIFA officials. According to the Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo, the disallowed goal was attributed to contact with a sensor.
FIFA published evidence and key explanations regarding the incident, which the publication headlined as “The biggest theft.” Despite the controversy surrounding disallowed goals, Portugal advanced following Ramos’s crucial extra time goal.
Topics: #croatia #goal #minute
