Fernando Santos refused to offer Cristiano Ronaldo a clear route back into his starting lineup after dropping him for Portugal’s scintillating 6-1 win over Switzerland, saying the matter had been closed but suggesting his future role is up in the air.
Portugal played with freedom and daring against opponents who could not handle their attack. The 21-year-old Benfica striker Gonçalo Ramos replaced Ronaldo, who had annoyed Santos with his reaction to being substituted during Friday’s defeat by South Korea, and promptly scored a hat-trick. It felt a deeply symbolic move to axe the country’s ageing all-time top scorer for a knockout tie that had looked hard to call. Ramos also set up a goal for Raphaël Guerreiro and will surely be impossible to leave out of the quarter-final against Morocco on Saturday.
