Edinson Cavani scored a brace as Uruguay beat Portugal to reach the World Cup quarter-finals. The PSG striker scored with both his two shots on target, cancelling out Pepe’s equaliser to set up a quarter-final date with France on Friday.
It’s now or never for Cristiano Ronaldo, as the earlier match saw his nemesis Lionel Messi crash out of the tournament. A toughie for Portugal, as they go up against the most resilient underdogs of the tournament, Uruguay. All eyes will be on Ronaldo, to see if he can lead his nation to glory. A cracking game which will unfold at the Fisht Olympic Stadium, and will definitely turn heads.
Uruguay, under the experienced Oscar Tabarez are on a dream form, as they are unbeaten and haven’t conceded a single goal. Yes, you heard that right! With Diego Godin a rock at the defence, and Cavani and Suarez finally finding their feet. Portugal, on the flip-side have worked hard to get to the last-16, and should play a neat game in order to get past this Uruguayan side.
This will be the third encounter between Uruguay and Portugal, and the first at World Cup.
Uruguay made a solitary change, as Jose Maria Gimenez returned to the heart of the defence alongside Atletico team-mate Diego Godin. Coates dropped to the bench, while Lucas Torreira started what will be a tough test protecting the back-line. Semi-finalist in 2010, this will be the last chance for glory for the golden generation of La Celeste.
Fernando Santos made three changes, which saw Quaresma, Cedric and Andre Silva dropping to the bench. Pereira, Bernardo Silva and Goncalo Guedes replaced the trio. Ronaldo, already on a yellow, will miss the quarter-final if he got booked. The rest of the Portuguese squad needed to step-up if they are to go all the way and needed to be strong against an organised Uruguay side.
Strike partners for the La Celeste for over than a decade, born in the same city in Uruguay and just three weeks apart, Suarez and Cavani got the game off to an absolute flying start. Suarez whipped in a superb cross to the far post where Cavani rose up to head home. The dynamic-duo linked-up once again, as Uruguay drew first blood! 1-0.
Portugal had a stern test of character ahead of them, as they needed to break through a Uruguay defence that hasn’t conceded in the last six international matches. They saw the lion’s share of possession, but struggled to craft oppurtunites, and Ronaldo had barely seen the ball in dangerous areas. The gamble of not playing the more physical Andre Silva upfront or benching the mercurial Ricardo Quaresma could cost heavy for Fernando Santos in the later stages of the match.
At the break it was 1-0, and Portugal needed to be more expansive in the final third, as they haven’t done any sorts of trickery which troubled the Uruguayan defence. Unless the European Champions improve, they’ll follow Argentina out of the World Cup. Uruguay have great defensive strength, and they could just sit back and continue to frustrate Portugal, and honestly La Celeste looked more comfortable after 45-minutes of play.
A tenacious Uruguayan defence was finally broken on the opening 10 minutes of the second-half. Portugal went short from the corner, and full-back Raphael Gurreiro whipped in a cross to the middle, where Pepe camouflaged his marker and headed past keeper Fernando Muslera. It is the first goal conceded for Uruguay, and what a time to concede. 1-1 to Portugal! Game on.
Sadly for Portugal, the lead didn’t last long as the long-haired poacher added his second of the night superbly. A brillant break saw Juventus man Rodrigo Bentancur feed the ball across to Cavani, who curled flawlessly into the top far corner beyond the reach of Rui Patricio, who had no chance at all. Both of Uruguay’s goal had been superb, and credit to one man – Edinson Cavani! 2-1 for the La Celeste!
A golden oppurtunity came knocking for Portugal on the 70th minute, as Muslera fumbled the ball, and Bernardo Silva skied the shot over the bar. A real waste!
Ronaldo helped Cavani off the field after he sustained a knock, with the two-goal man limped off and was replaced by Cristhian Stuani.
Alas, Portugal just coudn’t find a way past Uruguay, and are knocked out of the tournament. Uruguay secured a tie against France next Friday, while Portugal fly back to Lisbon. Questions will now be asked whether this is the last time we’ll see Ronaldo at the World Cup, while Uruguay are already dreaming of going all the way. Two brilliant goals from Cavani send them into the last-8. La Celeste were brilliant defensively and kept their opponents relatively quiet throughout, especially Ronaldo. It was the night for Cavani, as the poacher’s instinctive heroics stole the show. A historic day, as we witnessed Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo bow out of the World Cup on the same day!
Digitized Thoughts 