Cristiano Ronaldo Makes History in World Cup Knockout Stage and Earns Man of the Match

Cristiano Ronaldo, captain of Al-Nassr, received the man of the match award for Portugal's game against Croatia in the round of 32 at the World Cup.

Ronaldo scored a penalty goal that leveled the score after Croatia took the lead through Ivan Perišić.

He was substituted off in the 80th minute, replaced by midfielder Ruben Neves.

The equalizing goal by Ronaldo paved the way for Portugal, with teammate Gonçalo Ramos scoring the winning goal in the fourth minute of second-half stoppage time.

This goal marked Ronaldo's third in the current tournament, having previously scored twice against Uzbekistan, and brought his total World Cup goals to 11 across six tournaments.

Additionally, Ronaldo scored his first goal in the knockout stages of the World Cup, becoming the oldest player to score in this phase at 41 years old. This surpassed his former teammate Pepe, who scored for Portugal against Switzerland in the round of 16 at the 2022 World Cup at age 39.