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World Cup 2026: Portugal cruise past Uzbekistan as Ronaldo delivers again

World Cup 2026: Portugal cruise past Uzbekistan as Ronaldo delivers again

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Turixxx
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Contents hide
  1. 1 Selecao needed a response. CR7 gave it to them
  2. 2 Ronaldo misses, then Ronaldo strikes
  3. 3 Nuno Mendes lights the fuse
  4. 4 VAR kills Uzbekistan’s only real spark
  5. 5 Bruno Fernandes supplies it, Ronaldo finishes the job
  6. 6 The tempo drops, Portugal stay in charge
  7. 7 Nematov has a nightmare
  8. 8 Ronaldo wanted the hat-trick. Leao finished the night
  9. 9 Uzbekistan kept going, but they had no answers
  10. 10 Portugal reset ahead of Colombia showdown

Selecao needed a response. CR7 gave it to them

Portugal didn’t exactly have the luxury of waiting around. After a frustrating draw with DR Congo, the Selecao arrived in Houston with the pressure already piling up. In Group K, another slip would have opened the door to doubt, the maths, the criticism and that familiar suffocating mood Portugal know all too well at major tournaments.

Against Uzbekistan, tournament newcomers but hardly there just to make up the numbers, Roberto Martinez’s side put things right. A 5-0 win, their first in World Cup 2026, and a night driven by a revived Cristiano Ronaldo, a two-goal display, hungry, occasionally clumsy, but still right at the centre of everything.

At 41, CR7 is now the oldest scorer in World Cup history. Another line for the scrapbook. Another entry in a career that clearly has no intention of ending in any normal fashion.

Ronaldo misses, then Ronaldo strikes

The night could have started with frustration. In the 4th minute, Nuno Mendes whipped in a perfect cross into the box. Ronaldo threw himself at it, but mistimed it. Chance gone. For plenty, that sort of miss would have sparked the post-match noise, especially after a flat opener against DR Congo.

Two minutes later, he shut it all down.

From a well-worked move, Vitinha switched play to Pedro Neto, Joao Cancelo burst down the flank and his cross found Ronaldo at the near post. The Portugal captain darted in ahead of Abdullaev and beat Nematov. 1-0 after 6 minutes.

A proper striker’s finish. No blazing pace, no tricks, just the run, the timing, the instinct. Ronaldo still has that better than almost anyone.

Nuno Mendes lights the fuse

Portugal did not hang around to make the game safe. In the 17th minute, Nuno Mendes caught everybody off guard from a free kick. Ronaldo made the decoy run, the Uzbekistan defence seemed to expect a shot from the No 7, and the PSG full-back drilled a low drive into the corner.

Nematov, already under pressure, made a mess of it. 2-0.

Mendes was one of the standout names of the night. Energetic, direct, strong going back, always there to feed Ronaldo, he gave Portugal width and thrust they were badly missing in their first match.

With him on the left, the whole side looked more alive.

VAR kills Uzbekistan’s only real spark

At 2-0, Uzbekistan thought they had a way back into it. After Cancelo lost the ball in a dangerous area just outside his own box, Fayzullaev pressed hard, Ganiev nicked it and smashed a rocket into the top corner past Diogo Costa. The NRG Stadium briefly sensed the game turning.

Then VAR stepped in.

A foul on Cancelo earlier in the move. Goal ruled out. Portugal breathed again. Uzbekistan, meanwhile, had just lost their one real moment of hope. In a game this one-sided, calls like that carry real weight. At 2-1, the night might have got twitchy. At 2-0, it stayed firmly under Portuguese control.

Bruno Fernandes supplies it, Ronaldo finishes the job

Just before the break, Portugal put the game out of reach. Bruno Fernandes, busy between the middle and the left side, slid Ronaldo through on goal. The Portugal captain didn’t blink and clipped his finish across the keeper to make it 3-0 in the 39th minute.

Game, effectively, over.

Fernandes was Portugal’s other major attacking engine. Constantly moving, always available, able to break a line with a pass or cook up something from set pieces, the Manchester United man reminded everyone he is still a key creator in this side.

On a night when Bernardo Silva started on the bench, Bruno took control. And he did it with authority.

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The tempo drops, Portugal stay in charge

After the restart, Roberto Martinez started to manage the game. Cancelo and Pedro Neto came off, Nelson Semedo and Francisco Conceicao came on. The tempo dropped, as you would expect, but Portugal’s grip never really slipped.

Joao Felix tried his luck from distance. Ronaldo kept pressing, pestering, hunting for his hat-trick. Uzbekistan had a few moments, mainly through Fayzullaev, but Diogo Costa dealt with them calmly.

Portugal were not in a hurry any more, but they still controlled possession, closed the spaces and made sure the opponents never found a proper second wind.

Nematov has a nightmare

On the hour, Portugal scored a fourth in unfortunate fashion for Uzbekistan. From a short corner, Joao Felix helped it on, the ball bounced off Khusanov and then deflected into his own net via Nematov.

Own goal. 4-0.

The Uzbekistan keeper had already been at fault for Mendes’ free kick and beaten three times in the first half. This summed up his evening: heavy, painful, almost impossible to rescue. He did recover in patches, including one stop from Ronaldo, but the damage had long been done.

Against a side like Portugal, even the smallest wobble can turn into a goal.

Ronaldo wanted the hat-trick. Leao finished the night

Cristiano Ronaldo did everything he could to grab a treble. A shot blocked by Ashurmatov, a volley kept out by Nematov, another chance late on: he kept circling the third goal like a frustrated predator.

He never got it. But he had already done the job.

Off the bench late on, Rafael Leao added the fifth in the 87th minute. A big moment for him too, a little confidence hit in a tournament where every attacker wants a say. For Portugal, seeing Leao score from the bench is excellent news: this team will need his pace if the games get tighter.

Uzbekistan kept going, but they had no answers

The scoreline is brutal, but Uzbekistan did not disappear completely. Ganiev kept trying to make things happen, Fayzullaev looked to drive at people, Khusanov won a few duels despite a rough evening, and Shomurodov had a half-volley sail over late on.

But the gap was too big. Too much running, too few usable balls, too much Portuguese pressure, too many individual errors. Fabio Cannavaro set them up in a back three to try to hold firm, but Selecao quickly found the flanks, then the gaps, then the cracks.

Uzbekistan will play for their future against DR Congo. That will be a very different match, and far more winnable. But against this Portugal side, the step up was simply too steep.

Portugal reset ahead of Colombia showdown

With this win, Selecao move onto four points and put themselves back in a strong position in Group K. After the Congo frustration, they had to win. More than that, they had to win looking in control. Done.

Ronaldo answered the critics. Mendes shone. Bruno Fernandes ran the show. Vitinha had more room to pick passes. Joao Neves did the dirty work. The defence barely broke a sweat.

Not everything was perfect, of course. Portugal were saved by VAR after Cancelo’s major error, Ronaldo still missed a few chances, and the tempo dropped at times after half-time. But in a World Cup, 5-0 sends a message.

The next clash with Colombia could decide top spot.

And if Ronaldo keeps looking like this, nobody will be calling Portugal a team in decline.

They’ll be calling them a team that still wants more.

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