After a pass by João Félix, the right-handed Gonçalo Ramos turned on the marker and, with his left foot, violently finished, making the ball reach 106 km/h in Portugal’s first goal in the 6-1 victory over Switzerland.
As fast as the striker’s kick –measured by Fifa– only the renovation he imposed on the Portuguese team during the World Cup in Qatar.
The 21-year-old took the place of Cristiano Ronaldo, 37, who, barred by coach Fernando Santos, saw his replacement do what he never managed to: score for the Lusitanian team in the knockout phase of the World Cup. And several times.
With three goals from the boy, the team advanced to the quarterfinals. He will face Morocco, on Saturday (10), at the Al Thumama stadium.
Cristiano Ronaldo had never been a substitute in a Cup game in the five editions he played. It was a hard blow for him to experience this on Tuesday (6th) in Lusail.
It was difficult for the number 7 to hide the expression of frustration, especially seeing his face appear on the stadium screen from time to time, while the Portuguese team dominated Switzerland without needing his help.
The team had its best performance in the competition, which raised the question: would Portugal have found its ideal formation precisely without its greatest idol?
“This was the ideal formation for this game, it was the formation that the coach understood was the best for this game”, said Bernardo Silva, 28.
A good part of the squad taken by Fernando Santos to Qatar grew up and became professional watching Cristiano Ronaldo’s plays. Names such as defenders António Silva, 19, and Rúben Dias, 25, lateral Dalot, 23, midfielder Vitinha, 22, and forwards, Gonçalo Ramos, 21, Rafael Leão, 23, and João Félix, 23, are some examples .
The oldest on this list, Rúben Dias was just starting his career at Benfica, in 2017, when the number 7 already had three World Cups under his belt, in addition to having led Portugal to its first title in history, Euro 2016.
Even disputing position with the star, it is not easy for many of them to see him in a bad phase.
But no one is more frustrated with this than the captain of the Portuguese national team. The reserve condition, however, was brought about in part by himself. Substituted halfway through the second half against South Korea, still in the group stage, he had a small tantrum.
Fernando Santos denies that this was the reason. “Neither I nor Cristiano confuse the human question with the aspects of the game”, said the coach after the duel with the Swiss.
Despite this, he avoided committing himself to the return of the number 7 shirt in the next match. He only said that he was going to study Morocco and assemble the lineup with names that represent “the best strategy for the game”.
The new Portuguese star, Gonçalo Ramos, also praised the importance of the number 7 shirt for the team. “He behaved naturally in the dressing room, he motivated us, as our captain, as he always did.”
In the team’s re-presentation this Wednesday (7), Cristiano Ronaldo did not train with the reserves. Instead, he did an activity aimed at those who played a good part of the 90 minutes against the Swiss.
The day before, at the final whistle, he was the first to leave the pitch at the Lusail stadium, while his teammates celebrated with the crowd. Something seen as another sign of his dissatisfaction.
Cristiano had similar behavior in England before entering into litigation with Manchester United on the eve of the World Cup. The relationship with coach Erik ten Hag was marked by conflicts when he was passed over.
The situation led him to compete in the World Cup in a rare condition in his career, as unemployed, depending on good performances in the tournament to define the size of his next club. Hence, also, the frustration of being on reserve.
Fernando Santos knows that managing this will not be easy. The Portuguese press classified the decision to bar the star as “bold”. Nor did he imagine that it would work out so well, to the point that his option now has great support from the media in his country.
The vehicles still insist on defending the number 7 shirt. “The moment of Gonçalo Ramos cannot serve to diminish Cristiano Ronaldo”, wrote the newspaper A Bola. But even the most traditional publications have already surrendered to the talent of the boy who replaced the captain.
After the three goals in the rout, it’s hard not to want to see him as a starter until the end of the Portuguese journey in search of the unprecedented title.
As highlighted by the Portuguese periodical Record, “Gonçalo Ramos made history”.
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