Canada’s remarkable progress to the Round of 16 in the World Cup has unveiled a fascinating statistical twist linking Portuguese football history directly to Cristiano Ronaldo.
After Canada’s 1-0 triumph over South Africa at SoFi Stadium, journalist Colin Millar from The Athletic highlighted a distinctive milestone achieved by match-winner Stephen Eustáquio.
By netting a decisive 92nd-minute goal to clinch Canada’s first-ever victory in the World Cup knockout stage, Eustáquio became, technically, the first player who has represented Portugal at any international level to score a World Cup knockout goal while donning the number 7 jersey.
Eustáquio, who currently wears the No. 7 shirt for Canada, was born in Ontario to Portuguese parents. Before pledging his senior international allegiance to Canada in 2019, he had represented Portugal at the Under-21 level.
The statistic underscores a surprising gap in Cristiano Ronaldo’s otherwise illustrious career record.
Despite being the highest goalscorer in the history of men’s international football and appearing in several World Cups for Portugal, Ronaldo has yet to score a goal during the knockout stages of the tournament.
This statistical anomaly surfaces just as Ronaldo and the current Portugal side gear up for their own Round of 32 clash against Croatia in Toronto.
Earlier in the tournament, Ronaldo became the first male player to score in six different World Cups, following his brace against Uzbekistan in the group phase.
Here is a breakdown of his World Cup goal tally so far:
2006 (Germany): 1 goal (vs. Iran)
2010 (South Africa): 1 goal (vs. North Korea)
2014 (Brazil): 1 goal (vs. Ghana)
2018 (Russia): 4 goals (Hat-trick vs. Spain, 1 vs. Morocco)
2022 (Qatar): 1 goal (vs. Ghana)
2026 (USA/Mexico/Canada): 2 goals (vs. Uzbekistan)
An early exit to Croatia without finding the target would likely see CR7 conclude his World Cup career without a knockout-stage goal to his name.
In total, Ronaldo has scored 10 goals across FIFA World Cups, leaving him nine short of record-holder Lionel Messi.
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