Cristiano Ronaldo will aim to blast Portugal past Switzerland to reach the quarter-finals of the World Cup on Tuesday as Morocco seeks to derail Spain’s bid for a second world title. Only two last eight slots remain to be filled in Qatar after five-time winners Brazil edged South Korea 4-1 and 2018 finalists Croatia squeezed past Japan via a penalty shoot-out. Ronaldo made headlines at the tournament even before kicking a ball after launching a tirade against Manchester United and their manager Erik ten Hag.
After a “mutual agreement” departure, he is now looking for a new team, according to sources who say he is in talks over a blockbuster deal with Saudi club Al-Nassr.
Appearing in what will almost certainly be his last World Cup, the 37-year-old superstar is a shadow of his former self in Qatar despite all the hype.
After scoring a penalty in his team’s opening match against Ghana to become the first player to score in five World Cups, he has huffed and puffed but failed to find the net again.
Ronaldo’s starting role in the team remains a hot topic among Portuguese fans, but coach Fernando Santos said he was not paying attention to the furious debate.
“I don’t read this kind of material,” he said. “It’s not a disrespect, it’s just that we have three days to train for a game and I don’t watch any other kind of news. We focus on the next game.”
Santos said he expected an exciting game against Switzerland. Portugal beat the Swiss 4-0 in the UEFA Nations League in June before losing 1-0 in the reverse fixture.
African Hope
Morocco is the only remaining team from Africa and the only Arab team still in Qatar.
Coach Walid Regragui has urged his men to believe they can beat superpower Spain as they attempt to reach the quarter-finals of the World Cup for the first time in their history.
Morocco would become only the fourth African team to reach the last eight after Cameroon in 1990, Senegal in 2002 and Ghana in 2010 if they defeated the 2010 champions.
“We come out swinging,” said Regragui. “We want to raise the Moroccan flag. We play for ourselves and our country first and foremost.
“All the Arabs and Africans, we want to make them happy. We want their prayers and we want their support so that it can give us that extra ingredient to win. It used to be only the Moroccans who supported us.”
Spain started the tournament with swagger, scoring seven goals past Costa Rica before a draw with Germany and defeat to South Korea followed.
Coach Luis Enrique said he had given each of his players the “homework” to practice 1,000 penalties ahead of the World Cup, saying he’s convinced it’s not a lottery.
Brazil, with Neymar back in the team from injury, gave a first-half masterclass against South Korea on Monday and shot into a 4-0 lead in the 36th minute, including a goal for their talisman from the penalty spot.
Paik Seung-ho pulled one back with a late thunderbolt, but his side were outclassed on a disappointing night for Asian football.
Earlier, Luka Modric’s Croatia had a tough run against Japan, coming back from behind to equalize before winning 3-1 on penalties.
Goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic was Croatia’s hero, saving three penalties in the shootout.
Seven of Croatia’s last eight knockout matches at major tournaments have gone into extra time, the only exception being their final defeat to France in Russia four years ago.
Brazil will meet Croatia in the quarterfinals on Friday and the Netherlands will take on Argentina on the same day. England will play against France on Saturday.
(This story has not been edited by DailyExpertNews staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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