Ronaldo reaches World Cup landmark as Portugal hit five
Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo became the first player to score in six different World Cups on Tuesday as his side thrashed Uzbekistan 5-0, while England were held to a frustrating goalless draw by Ghana.
Ronaldo, 41, had faced criticism following Portugal's underwhelming 1-1 draw with DR Congo in their opening Group K fixture.
The veteran forward responded in emphatic fashion in Houston, scoring twice as Roberto Martinez's side recorded their first victory of the tournament.
A jubilant Ronaldo, who had gone 10 matches at major tournaments without finding the net, mouthed "I'm back, I'm back" after opening the scoring in the sixth minute.
He added a second just before half-time after Nuno Mendes had doubled Portugal's advantage with a well-struck free-kick.
Portugal never looked back, adding two further goals after the interval, including a spectacular effort from Rafael Leao, to complete an emphatic victory.
"I can say it was a very tough week, a difficult week, a week in which public opinion was very harsh on us, on all the players, especially on the coach," Ronaldo said afterwards.
"But it's always like that. Whenever things don't go well it's, 'Cristiano, he's finished, he's old'."
The victory leaves Portugal two points behind Group K leaders Colombia heading into Saturday's meeting between the two sides.
Colombia secured their place in the knockout rounds with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over DR Congo in Guadalajara.
Daniel Munoz scored the only goal of the game in the 76th minute to maintain Colombia's perfect start to the tournament and move them onto six points.
A draw against Portugal in their final group match would be enough for the South Americans to finish top of the group.
- England frustrated by Ghana -
England, meanwhile, missed the chance to join France, Argentina and Germany in the knockout rounds after being held 0-0 by Ghana in Foxborough.
After producing one of the most impressive attacking displays of the opening round in their 4-2 victory over Croatia, Thomas Tuchel's side struggled to find the same fluency against a disciplined Ghana defence.
The best opportunity fell to Harry Kane late on, but the England captain fired over with the goal at his mercy.
England were also relieved to avoid conceding a penalty when Ezri Konsa challenged Prince Adu inside the area in the closing stages.
The draw leaves England and Ghana level on four points at the top of Group L, with Croatia a point behind following a 1-0 victory over Panama.
Jude Bellingham insisted afterwards there was no cause for concern despite the disappointing result.
"It's important for us not to get too negative, not to get too worked up on it," Bellingham said.
"No worries, no stress, no drama at all in there."
