Ruben Dias saw out the full 90 minutes as Portugal held on to a 0-0 draw against Colombia despite late drama on Saturday night.
Colombia secured top spot in Group K after battling to an entertaining 0-0 draw against Portugal in Miami, leaving Roberto Martínez’s side to settle for the runner-up position. Despite being Los Cafeteros’ first scoreless stalemate in 25 World Cup matches, the encounter delivered non-stop drama.
Freshly introduced starter Jhon Córdoba caused early chaos, flashing a header over the crossbar before forcing a magnificent one-handed save from Diogo Costa. Portugal gradually found their footing as the first half progressed, with Camilo Vargas producing a point-blank stop to deny Bruno Fernandes, while a largely peripheral Cristiano Ronaldo struggled to make an impact.
The second-half narrative belonged entirely to Colombia’s relentless waves of attack, with Richard Ríos and Gustavo Puerta both coming agonisingly close to breaking the deadlock. After Luis Suárez hooked a major opportunity over an open goal, the South Americans appeared to have snatched a dramatic 90th-minute winner when Davinson Sánchez powered home a header.
However, a VAR and assistant referee review determined the defender’s boot was offside by a microscopic fraction, cruelly wiping the goal off the board.
Though Colombia drew a World Cup blank for the first time since 1998, the hard-earned point safely sealed their passage into the round of 32 as group winners.
Colombia go on to face Antoine Semenyo’s Ghana in the last-32, while Portugal will meet Croatia – pairing Matheus Nunes, Ruben Dias, and Bernardo Silva up against Josko Gvardiol and Mateo Kovacic for Croatia.
Matheus Nunes match statistics vs Colombia
4 Minutes
1 Touch
1 Accurate Pass
100% Pass Accuracy
Ruben Dias match statistics vs Colombia
90 Minutes
70 Touches
50 Accurate Passes
93% Pass Accuracy
7 Clearances
4 Headed Clearances
3 Aerial Duels Won
3 Passes Into Final Third
2 Recoveries
2 Interceptions
1 Block
1 Ground Duel Won
1 Successful Dribble
1 Accurate Long Ball
Bernardo Silva match statistics vs Colombia
Unused from the bench.
Data courtesy of FotMob.