Edinson Cavani of Uruguay celebrates after scoring his team’s second goal during the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia Round of 16 match between Uruguay and Portugal at Fisht Stadium on June 30, 2018 in Sochi, Russia. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
Uruguay vs. Portugal
Round of 16, Fisht Stadium, Sochi
Portugal substitution: Quaresma for Adrien Silva
In the 65th minute.
Goal Uruguay
Cavani again! The striker bent a shot around Portuguese keeper Rui Patricio in the 62nd minute. It’s Cavani’s second goal of the day and puts La Celeste back in front, 2-1.
Goal Portugal!
Portugal poured so many men forward to start the second half, it was poised to strike eventually. In the 55th minute, they have. Off a short corner, Pepe rose above the Uruguayan defense in a pocket of space and deposited a header to tie the match.
Halftime update: Uruguay 1, Portugal 0
Both sides had scoring chances, but after 45 minutes, only Uruguay was able to capitalize. La Celeste takes a 1-0 lead into halftime against Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal.
Uruguay’s strike came early: a seventh minute header from Edinson Cavani on a cross from Luis Suarez. Ronaldo had a chance to equalize late with a free kick just outside the 18-yard box, but his attempt was blocked by Uruguay’s wall.
The winner of this match advances to face France in the quarterfinals.
A chance for Suarez
When La Celeste can get the ball on the feet of Suarez and Cavani, it is consistently generating good scoring chances. This time, Suarez was fouled running just outside the 18-yard box and his free kick nearly found the back of the net.
Goal Uruguay!
And what a fantastic goal it was. Edinson Cavani switched the ball across the field 40 yards to Luis Suarez in the 7th minute and then kept driving to to the net. Suarez took a couple touches toward the 18-yard box, then sent a cross to the back post right back to Cavani, whose header was picture perfect.
Edinson Cavani of Uruguay scores his team’s first goal. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)
Starting lineups announced
Pregame thoughts
The knockout stage is here and with it arrives a meeting between two of the world’s most organized, creative and offensive-minded teams. Both Uruguay and Portugal are possession-oriented sides keen to be patient with the ball in the midfield while their talented strikers and wingers find space to attack.
Uruguay dominated possession against Egypt in a 1-0 win and even more so against Russia, a 3-0 victory. Saudi Arabia nearly provided the kryptonite for La Celeste’s tactics by playing keep-away along the back line, dropping 10 and sometimes 11 men on defense, and then counterattacking. But the Saudis couldn’t score; Uruguay, in fact, is the only team in the tournament yet to allow a goal.
Portugal likes to play a similar style, funneling balls forward to Cristiano Ronaldo, tied for second in this tournament with four goals. But it might also relish the opportunity to counterattack and let Ronaldo take on defenders at full speed in space. Set pieces, too, may prove crucial, between Ronaldo’s expertise bending around a wall and keeper and Edinson Cavani’s touch for Uruguay, picking out the open man in the box. Uruguay has already scored twice off corner kicks in this tournament, with a third goal coming off a free kick from the corner.
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When: Saturday, 2 p.m. Eastern.
How to watch on TV: Fox
How to stream online: Fox Sports and the Fox Soccer Match Pass apps and FoxSportsGo.com.
How to watch in Spanish: Telemundo.
How to watch in Canada: Bell Media’s TSN and CTV networks, the TSN GO app and TSN.ca/live.
What’s next: The winner will face the winner of France and Argentina on Friday, July 6 in Nizhny Novgorod.
[Round of 16 analysis and predictions]
Team profiles
Uruguay (Group A winner)
- Previous results: Defeated Egypt, 1-0. Defeated Saudi Arabia, 1-0. Defeated Russia, 3-0.
- Best World Cup finish: Champion, 1950, 1930.
- Notable: Striker Luis Suarez leads La Celeste with two goals through the group stage. Last time Uruguay made a World Cup run, he was sent off in the quarterfinals for a deliberate handball against Ghana in 2010. His transgression ultimately saved the game, though. Uruguay won on penalty kicks.
- FIFA world ranking: 14. ELO world ranking: 8.
Portugal (Group B runner-up)
- Previous results: Drew with Spain, 3-3. Defeated Morocco, 1-0. Drew with Iran, 1-1.
- Best World Cup finish: Third place, 1966.
- Notable: Striker Cristiano Ronaldo scored a hat trick against Spain to open the World Cup. It was the first of two hat tricks recorded in the tournament’s group stage, and the first time in World Cup history that a player recorded a hat trick in a draw.
- FIFA world ranking: 4. ELO world ranking: 5.
Players to watch
Both of these sides are led by star power, and there’s no reason to think that won’t be on display in Sochi. That means watching Cristiano Ronaldo for Portugal and Luis Suarez for Uruguay. Ronaldo likely will be Portugal’s only scoring threat. The side struggled to find rhythm against Morocco and Iran, two teams that put 11 men behind the ball and took away extra time and space. But there are always set pieces, or weird bounces. Ronaldo will get his chances, and if Portugal has high hopes of winning, they rest on his feet. Suarez, on the other hand, plays in a more balanced offense and can look to Edinson Cavani (Paris Saint-Germain) and Jose Gimenez (Atletico Madrid) for a scoring touch. Also keep an eye on Carlos Sanchez, who has two assists.
Read more about the World Cup:
Croatia, Belgium and Mexico loom large in knockout round
Colombia advances in joyful noise, and Senegal is eliminated by cold arithmetic
Cristiano Ronaldo for president? Donald Trump cracks that he wouldn’t win in Portugal.
Complete scores, standing and results
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