ISTANBUL – Cristiano Ronaldo made history on Tuesday as Portugal won 5-0 against World Cup debutants Uzbekistan in their second Group K match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup at Houston Stadium in the United States, Anadolu Ajansi reported.
After missing two important chances in the opening minutes, Portugal took an early lead in the sixth minute when Ronaldo converted a right-wing cross from full-back Joao Cancelo, scoring his ninth World Cup goal.
The opener saw the Portuguese captain, 41, become the second-oldest scorer in the tournament’s history, behind Roger Milla, who scored against Russia in 1994 at the age of 42. Ronaldo also became the first player to score in six FIFA World Cup tournaments.
Portugal doubled their lead in the 17th minute following a free-kick delivered by left-back Nuno Mendes, with all eyes initially on Ronaldo to take it.
Uzbekistan’s best chance of the first half came in the 29th minute when midfielder Azizjon Ganiev scored a stunning long-range effort. However, the goal was ruled out by VAR a minute later due to a foul in the build-up.
Ronaldo grabbed his second goal of the game in the 39th minute, sliding the ball into the bottom-left corner after latching onto a superb through-ball from attacking midfielder Bruno Fernandes.
With his second goal of the match, Ronaldo overtook Portuguese legend Eusebio as his nation’s leading World Cup scorer.
Despite creating a couple of chances in the opening stages of the second half, Uzbekistan fell further behind in the 60th minute when a near-post flick from a corner caused chaos in the penalty area, resulting in an own goal by goalkeeper Abduvohid Nematov.
Portuguese substitute Rafael Leao completed the scoring just four minutes after coming on, firing home from inside the box in the 87th minute to make it 5-0.
The result lifted Portugal to the top of Group K with a game in hand, while Uzbekistan are still searching for the first points of their debut World Cup campaign.
In their opening match of the tournament, Portugal drew 1-1 with fellow World Cup debutants DR Congo despite taking an early lead.
Meanwhile, Uzbekistan lost 3-1 in their first World Cup fixture against Colombia, runners-up in the 2024 Copa America.
In the other Group K fixture, Colombia will face DR Congo later on Tuesday at Estadio Guadalajara in Mexico at 0200 GMT.
In their final group matches, Portugal will face Colombia, while Uzbekistan will take on DR Congo. – 24 Jun, 2026