By Toby TAIWO
One goal made the difference between Spain and Portugal and it happened so late, not even Ronaldo could do anything about it.
The goal, scored by Mikel Merino into stoppage time, effectively sent Spain into the quarterfinals and Portugal out of the 2026 World Cup.
Merino had just been knocked down, and a foul was called. While a Portugal player argued, Merino played the ball back in, ran toward the goal and put a shot past goalkeeper Diogo Costa after taking a pass from Ferran Torres.
Spain advanced to the quarterfinals for the first time since winning its only World Cup title in 2010 in South Africa. Spain will play either the United States or Belgium on Friday in Los Angeles.
Ronaldo was trying to get Portugal to the quarterfinals in a second consecutive tournament for the first time. Instead, the career on soccer’s biggest stage is over for the all-time leader in international goals.
