PORTUGAL BEATS CROATIA 2-1; RONALDO SCORES KNOCKOUT GOAL

Portugal defeated Croatia 2-1 in a World Cup round of 32 match on Thursday, with Cristiano Ronaldo scoring his first-ever knockout-stage goal in the competition. Goncalo Ramos netted the decisive goal as Portugal progressed to face Spain. Croatia's Josko Gvardiol had a goal ruled out in the 103rd minute after VAR review, a decision that prompted fans to throw bottles onto the pitch in protest.

FIFA issued a statement explaining the disallowed goal, citing Connected Ball Technology data from the official match ball. According to FIFA, contact was made by Croatia's Igor Matanović in the build-up to the goal, placing him in an offside position and allowing the referee to correctly disallow it. Ronaldo spoke with former Real Madrid and Manchester United teammate Luka Modric after the match, telling him he said his "goodbyes" following what is likely Modric's final World Cup appearance.

Portugal's squad paid tribute to Diogo Jota following the victory, presenting a shirt bearing his number 21. Ronaldo stated: "We won for ourselves, for Diogo, and for Portugal." The tribute marked the anniversary of Jota's death. In other Thursday matches, Spain defeated Austria 3-0 with goals from Mikel Oyarzabal and Pedro Porro, whilst Switzerland beat Algeria 2-0 through Breel Embolo and Dan Ndoye.