Portugal and Switzerland national teams faced each other in the last match of the 1/8 round of the World Cup. The real surprise before the match was that Cristiano Ronaldo was not in the squad. Goncalo Ramos, who made his debut at the head of the national team, entered the field instead of the star partner. Note that Portugal has already had two duels with Nati at the League of Nations this year. At home, the “chosen” defeated their opponents with a score of 4:0, after which the Swiss took revenge – 1:0.

The teams, who started the match at an average pace, tried to hold the ball. Players periodically tried to intensify the positional game with bursts of activity, and the Portuguese did it better. With the creation of dangerous moments, the wards of Fernando Santos did not develop much, but they realized the first. Felix made a pass on the corner of the penalty area where Ramuş was, after he entered an exit from the left wing. The young striker took the ball with his first touch and with his irresistible second blow drove the football bullet almost to the “nine”.

After scoring a goal, the “chosen ones” felt confident and made several more sharp attacks. The gate was threatened by Otavio and the same Ramos, but their blows did not cause trouble for Sommer. Nominal guests with offensive actions did not go well: even on the outskirts of the Portuguese penalty area, their attack was destroyed. Still, the locals managed to create sharpness after the standing piece. Shakiri from a penalty kick from 30 shots close to the bar. But Diogo Costa controlled the situation and even caught the ball in the fall.

The Portuguese doubled their lead without extra effort. Bruno Fernandes moved from the corner to the goalkeeper line and Pepe rushed there and hit his head on target. The 39-year-old defender also became the oldest goalscorer in playoff games at the World Championship. And before the break, Ramush nearly smashed the score, but the striker failed to get a one-on-one encounter with Sommer.

The Portuguese did not consider the slowdown they showed at the beginning of the second half of the match. And the defense of the Swiss national team again could not cope with the aggression of the opponents. First, the middle of Dalo was closed by Ramos, and after a few minutes Guerreiro completed a quick attack. And Ramush also had an assist.

The winner of the match question was removed long before it was over, and Akanji’s scoring shot had absolutely no effect on Portugal’s confidence in the final success. The Portuguese still looked sharp on offense and in the middle of the second half the Felix-Ramos connection reminded itself again: the young forward of the Portuguese national team scored a hat-trick.

In the last 15 minutes of the match, the ‘selected’ coach team released Ronaldo. Nati, the long-term leader of the Portuguese, tried to sign at the gate, but only from offside. However, Leau, who also entered the game as a substitute, sent the ball to the far corner from the left wing and gave a magnificent end to the match.

The Portuguese national team, which played a confident game, became the last participant in the 1/4 final. At this stage, the opponent of the “chosen” will be the Moroccan team.

World Championship. 1/8 final.

Portugal – Switzerland – 6:1

Ramos (17, 51, 67), Pepe (33), Guerreiro (55), Leau (90+2) – Akanji (58)

Cher (43), Jemert (59)

Portugal: D. Costa, Dalo, Pepe, R. Dias, Guerreiro, Otavio (Vitinha, 74), V. Carvalho, B. Silva (Neves, 81), B. Fernandes (Leau, 87), Ramos (Horta, 74), Felix (Ronaldo, 74)

Switzerland: Sommer, Cher (Jemert, 46), Akanji, R. Rodriguez, E. Fernandes, Freuler (Zakaria, 54), Jaka, Sow (Seferovic, 54), Shaqiri, Vargas (Okafor, 66), Embolo (Yasari, 89)

Judge: Cesar Arturo Ramos (Mexico)

Lusail Aikonik Stadium (Lusail, Qatar)

PORTUGAL – SWITZERLAND. TEXT BROADCAST OF THE MATCH