Ronaldo scores twice at 41, the first to find the net at six World Cups, as Portugal close on the last 32

A near-post finish in the sixth minute

Portugal's game against Uzbekistan turned early. In the sixth minute Cristiano Ronaldo darted to the near post and steered a low ball home to open the scoring. The goal carried more weight than the scoreline. Ronaldo had gone ten matches in major tournaments without scoring, his last such goal coming back in November 2022, and Portugal had stumbled in their opener, held to a 1-1 draw by DR Congo — an upset, and a costly slip for one of the tournament favorites — with their captain unable to find the net. Before kickoff the questions were whether he would start and whether he could finally break the run. The sixth-minute strike answered both.

First to score at six World Cups

With that strike Ronaldo moved somewhere no one else has been. He is now the first player to score in six different World Cups: 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022 and 2026. This is his sixth World Cup appearance, and he has now scored at every one of them; counting from his debut tournament in Germany in 2006, that is two decades of scoring at the competition. At 41 years and 138 days, his goal is also the second-oldest in men's World Cup history. The oldest belongs to Cameroon's Roger Milla, who scored at 42 years and 39 days at the 1994 tournament in the United States; across the competition's long history, Ronaldo and Milla are the only players to have scored at a World Cup aged 40 or over. Ronaldo added a second before halftime, running onto a through ball to make it 3-0 — a brace. Offered a direct free kick, he stepped aside and let Nuno Mendes take it; Mendes scored. Portugal added more, and the match finished 5-0.

An answer to the doubts over his selection

There had been unease around Portugal going in. After dropping points to DR Congo, coach Roberto Martinez had been questioned for continuing to start Ronaldo at center forward — whether the 41-year-old captain could still lead the line, with some of the criticism tied to calls for a generational change. The manager kept him up front again, and with criticism set to grow louder had the result not come, the two goals against Uzbekistan were the day's answer to that question.

Where Group K stands

Portugal drew 1-1 with DR Congo in their opener, then beat Uzbekistan 5-0; Colombia, meanwhile, opened with a 3-1 win over Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan, at their first World Cup, have now lost both matches and are all but out. The rout leaves Portugal on the brink of the Round of 32. Group K still has a final round to play, but on points and goal difference Portugal are well placed to go through, and the open question is shifting toward whether they finish first or second in the group rather than whether they advance. How far the man who has just ended a ten-game drought can carry them into the knockouts is still to come.