For the entirety of World Cup qualifying, Portugal trailed Switzerland. The Swiss defeated Portugal at home on the first matchday, while Cristiano Ronaldo was injured, and both teams won their next eight games in a row. That set up a decisive game in Lisbon on Friday, which Portugal won 2-0. Both teams finished 9-1-0 in qualifying, but Portugal progressed on goal differential.
Cristiano Ronaldo has thankfully made it to the World Cup
Portugal came up clutch on Tuesday evening.
Photo by Octavio Passos/Getty Images
The decisive moment was, sadly for Switzerland, an own goal. The Swiss defense had no idea how to deal with a cross by Eliseu, smashed into each other, and the ball bounced off Johan Djourou into his own net.
Portugal solidified its lead through André Silva, who collected a square ball from Bernardo Silva, finished from a narrow angle, then hit a sliding dab celebration.
And now Cristiano Ronaldo will get one last crack at winning the only major trophy that has eluded him in his career, the World Cup. Lionel Messi and Argentina are under threat of not making it to Russia 2018, and it would have been disastrous for FIFA if both of the world’s biggest stars missed out on the tournament.
But Ronaldo’s in, and with a Euro 2016-winning squad around him, he’ll have his best chance yet to win the world’s biggest prize.
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