World Football

The 2022 FIFA World Cup quarterfinals field is made up of seven regulars on the men’s international soccer scene and one underdog determined to make one of the biggest surprise runs in tournament history.

Portugal was the seventh favored side to win a round-of-16 match, as it thumped Switzerland 6-1 on Tuesday afternoon.

Portugal scored five of its goals without Cristiano Ronaldo on the field, a move that worked out better than manager Fernando Santos could have imagined.

Morocco will be Portugal’s quarterfinal opponent. The Atlas Lions are the only team left from outside Europe and South America in Qatar.

Morocco used its fantastic defense to force a penalty shootout with Spain. La Roja missed three of their PKs, while Morocco made three of its four spot kicks to advance.

Morocco 0 (3), Spain 0 (0)

Morocco continued its remarkable run in Qatar by becoming the fourth-ever African side, and first since 2010, to advance to the quarterfinals.

The Atlas Lions benefited from two saves by Yassine Bounou in the penalty shutout and one Spanish shot off the post.

Achraf Hakimi finished off the victory with a cheeky finish past Unai Simón.

Spain, as expected, dominated the possession battle, but it was wasteful in the final third. La Furia Roja attempted 13 shots, but only one of those attempts went on target.

The arrivals of Alvaro Morata and Pablo Sarabia did not help the Spanish, as Morocco remained firm in defense.

Morocco defended well for 120 minutes, like it has all tournament long. The Atlas Lions have not allowed a goal to an opposing player. Canada forced an own goal off them in the group stage.

Before Qatar, Morocco reached the round of 16 at the World Cup once in 1986. It has not gotten past the quarterfinals at the African Cup of Nations since it was runner-up in 2004.

Morocco will once again be a hefty underdog on Saturday when it goes head-to-head with another European side within close proximity of its borders in Portugal.

Portugal 6, Switzerland 1

Portugal turned in its best performance in Qatar without Cristiano Ronaldo in the starting lineup. Ronaldo’s replacement, Gonçalo Ramos, turned in the breakout game of his young international career.

Ramos, who plays for Benfica in the Portuguese league, produced a hat trick to power Portugal into the final eight.

Ramos scored his first World Cup goal in the 17th minute by blasting a shot over Yann Sommer. The Swiss goalkeeper looked bewildered that the shot went over him from such a close angle.

The 21-year-old striker finished off the victory with a pair of second-half goals in the 51st and 67th minutes.

Pepe, Raphaël Guerreiro and Rafael Leão were the other three scorers for Portugal.

Pepe became the oldest player to score a goal in a men’s World Cup knockout-round game at the age of 39.

Switzerland managed one goal in a very brief comeback attempt. Manuel Akanji tapped in from close range in the 58th minute.

The Swiss have now been knocked out in the round of 16 in five of their last six World Cup appearances dating back to 1994.

Quarterfinal Schedule

Friday, December 9

Brazil vs. Croatia (10 am ET, Fox)

Netherlands vs. Argentina (2 pm ET, Fox)

Saturday, December 10

Morocco vs. Portugal (10 am ET, Fox)

England vs. France (2 pm ET, Fox)

Portugal is a better football team without Cristiano Ronaldo, and the only person who doesn't seem to know that is Ronaldo himself.

Harsh or not, it was the general sentiment after Portugal blasted Switzerland on Tuesday 6-1 in round-of-16 play at the World Cup. Ronaldo didn't start in the game and wasn't subbed on until the 72nd minute, while his replacement in the starting 11, Gonçalo Ramos, notched a hat trick and added an assist.

And yet, Ronaldo was the storyline. Without him, Portugal looked like a legitimate contender to win a World Cup title, brushing aside the dangerous Swiss with relative ease.

Unsurprisingly, football Twitter had a field day dunking on Ronaldo after the match:

Ronaldo's role as a sub was deserved on more than one level. It obviously was the correct tactical move, given the result, but he also earned the ire of manager Fernando Santos after he appeared to say, "He's in a rush to sub me" while unhappily leaving the pitch as part of a 65th-minute change during Friday's 2-1 loss to South Korea.

"On the pitch, I didn't hear anything," Santos told reporters this week of the incident. "I was too far, and this is why I only saw him arguing with a South Korean player, and nothing else."

"Have I already watched the footage? Yes. I didn't like it," he continued. "Didn't like it at all. From there, it's things you sort out internally. It was sorted out this way, and now we think about the game tomorrow. Everyone is focused on the game."

And yet Ronaldo is undoubtedly a legend of the game and the most important player in Portugal's history, so keeping him out of the starting lineup for a knockout-phase game was no small decision. Even if it felt like the correct move, it was still shocking.

It has to be Santos' approach going forward, however. Portugal was a buzzsaw without Ronaldo, a player who still has a goal in him but is little more than a poacher at this point in his career. He simply doesn't offer the dynamic movement or pressing that Ramos brings to the table, making Portugal far more static when he's on the pitch.

Time spares no man. It's a lesson that can be hard to face for once-elite athletes in particular. But on Tuesday, it was abundantly clear that the 37-year-old's time as Portugal's centerpiece is well and truly over.

Spain was knocked out of the 2022 FIFA World Cup on penalties by Morocco on Tuesday in Qatar.

Spain had two of its penalties saved by Morocco goalkeeper Yassine Bounou.

The loss marked the third time in a row penalties eliminated La Roja at a major tournament.

Spain controlled the match with an overwhelming edge in possession, but it was unable to find the finishing touch in the final third.

Morocco became the fourth-ever African team to secure a spot in the quarterfinals of the World Cup.

Morocco still has not conceded a goal awarded to an opposing player. Its only concession in group play was on an own goal against Canada.

Morocco moves on as the only underdog left in the tournament. It will face the Portugal-Switzerland winner in the quarterfinals on Saturday.

Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo hasn't yet agreed to a deal with Saudi club Al-Nassr, according to ESPN's Adriana Garcia.

Spanish newspaper Marca reported Monday that Ronaldo would join Al-Nassr on Jan. 1 after he struck a bargain on a two-and-a-half-year contract worth around $500 million.

However, Garcia reported the five-time Ballon d'Or winner "has not signed anything with any club," though Al-Nassr is the only team to make a formal offer to this point.

Ronaldo is a free agent after he and Manchester United agreed to terminate his contract with immediate effect in November. It brought an end to a turbulent second spell at Old Trafford.

The fact United preferred to simply release him altogether rather than wait until the January transfer window and his subsequent inability to land with another European club illustrate how far the 37-year-old's stock has fallen.

Ronaldo might be hoping a strong World Cup will entice a Champions League side or one that at least has ambitions of reaching Europe in 2023-24.

If that's the case, then his plan isn't working out.

Portugal advanced to the round of 16, where it faces Switzerland on Tuesday, but its captain hasn't been integral to those efforts. His only goal of the tournament so far came from the penalty spot, and he was notably subbed off in the 64th minute of a 2-1 loss to South Korea in the group stage.

Coach Fernando Santos subsequently criticized how Ronaldo reacted to being removed from the match. Perhaps tellingly, Santos didn't confirm whether he'll start the veteran forward against the Swiss.

It's tough to see a return to high-level European soccer for Ronaldo at this point, so he might have little choice but to accept the Al-Nassr offer if he wants to continue playing competitively.