When Cristiano Ronaldo was benched for Portugal’s 1st knockout match of the tournament, manager Fernando Santos lifted more than a few eyebrows, but he was amply proven correct once his young substitute scored a hat-trick as part of an utterly dominant performance.
In his first ever start for Portugal, Benfica forward Gonçalo Ramos, who started in place of Cristiano Ronaldo, scored Portugal’s opening goal from a tight angle inside the box.
Pepe, who is 39 years old, quickly made it 2-0 with a thunderous header from a corner. By the time the half was over, Ramos had forced another save from Sommer, and Fernando Santos would have been pleased with his team’s performance.
After the break, Ramos made the night even more incredible by scoring his brace with a close-range finish, almost certainly sending Portugal into the quarterfinal.
Raphael Guerreiro added a fourth goal with a skillful shot high into the roof of the net, giving Portugal a four-goal advantage before the hour mark. The game was fluid and free-flowing.
Then, Manuel Akaji of Manchester City scored a consolation goal for Switzerland by turning the ball in while unopposed at the back post.
But Gonçalo Ramos, 21, had a big night as he scored his third goal of the game before the 70th minute after being set up by a quick exchange of passes in the penalty area.
Ronaldo entered the game with 15 minutes remaining and scored less than 10 minutes later, but he was unfortunate because he was far offside.
Rafael Leo, a substitute, cut inside his defender and fired from distance to cap off a fantastic night for the Portuguese.
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