WILL RONALDO BE IN PORTUGAL VS MOROCCO QUARTERFINAL PLAYING XI AT FIFA WORLD CUP QATAR 2022?

The all-time leading scorer for Portugal, Cristiano Ronaldo, was not selected for the World Cup match against Switzerland in the round of 16. Goncalo Ramos, 21, took his position and excelled with a hat-trick in a 6-1 triumph. Since Hungary’s Florian Albert in 1962, Ramos, who is 21 years and 169 days old, is the youngest player to score a hat-trick in a World Cup match.

Although Ronaldo has eight goals at the World Cup, he has yet to score in Portugal’s six knockout games. Since 2008, Ronaldo has started each of Portugal’s games at significant tournaments. Ramos had responded, when asked about Ronaldo at halftime, “Ronaldo talks to me and everyone in the team. He is our captain and always tries to assist.

Ramos’ impact on the result against the Swiss makes it difficult for Portugal boss Fernando Santos to replace him with the 37-year-old Ronaldo for Saturday’s match against Morocco.

Santos had previously stated that he “really didn’t like” Ronaldo’s response to being replaced against South Korea after 65 minutes of play in the last group match.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner, though, denied having any kind of reaction to the decision. Ronaldo became the first player to score in five World Cups earlier in the competition. If he will have another opportunity to increase his World Cup total, only time will tell.