Ramos, Ronaldo score as Portugal rallies to beat Croatia 2-1 and advance to round of 16

“First half we dominated the game,” Ronaldo said. “In second half after the goal we get a little bit panic, but this is football.

“After the penalty, I think it was a little bit better for us. We created a few chances and I think at the end of the day we deserved to win the match.”

The game ended in controversy as Croatia thought it had tied things up 2-2 in the very last moments, but Mario Pasalic was called offside as VAR ruled no goal. Croatia fans threw bottles on the field and whistled in protest.

Croatia opened the scoring in the 53rd minute when Ivan Perisic scored off a cross from Josip Sanisic.

Ronaldo, booed loudly by Croatia fans every time he touched the ball, got his chance from the spot after Nikola Vlasic was called for a holding foul inside the box. Portugal’s megastar hitched his step and converted down the middle as the goalkeeper went to his right.

Modrić led Croatia to second- and third-place finishes in 2018 and 2022, and the match carried the weight of the two aging stars each trying to realize the dream of winning the World Cup. Modrić is 40, while Ronaldo is 41.

The men, who were teammates at Real Madrid, shared a few smiles and an embrace ahead of the coin toss before the match. The two met on the pitch after the match, and hugged and exchanged a few words.

“I played with Luca so many years,” Ronaldo said. “We’re nearly the same age. I think he’s a legend of football. He’s still a legend of football.”

Lexie Linderman is a student in John Curley Center for Sports Journalism at Penn State.

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

Lexie Linderman, The Associated Press

by The Canadian Press

Ramos, Ronaldo score as Portugal rallies to beat Croatia 2-1 and advance to round of 16

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