Ronaldo’s team narrowly escaped. (Photo- GETTY)
Portugal vs Colombia, Portugal vs Colombia: The Portuguese team came back from the brink of defeat in an exciting and breath-taking match of the FIFA World Cup 2026. In this high-profile match played at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, the Colombia team was very close to registering a historic victory against Portugal, but a close and dramatic decision by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) dashed Colombia’s hopes. Due to which the match ended with a goalless (0-0) draw between both the teams.
Sanchez’s header and Colombia’s celebration
In fact, in the last moments of the match, the crowd of Colombian fans present in the stadium jumped with joy. At the end of the match, on a set piece, Colombia took the ball to the edge of the penalty area. After this the cross came and star defender Davidson Sanchez played an excellent header shot while jumping in the air and the ball went straight into the net, bypassing the Portuguese goalkeeper. After which Sanchez and the entire Colombian team started celebrating, because they felt that they had forced Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal to kneel. But the linesman’s flag and VAR check changed everything.
VAR’s ‘thumb’ drama
Colombia’s players were still celebrating when the on-field referee stopped the game after receiving a signal from the VAR team. The Portuguese players had appealed for offside. After this, the goal was examined closely through replays and digital lines on the big screens installed on the field. What came to light in the investigation broke the hearts of the Colombian camp. The VAR image clearly showed that Sanchez’s toe was in the offside position by a very slight margin. According to the rules of football, if any part of the player who can score a goal is ahead of the ball and the last defender of the other team, it is considered offside. In this case, Sanchez scored the goal by touching the ball, so according to the rules the goal was canceled. This difference of offside was so slight that it was impossible to see it with the naked eye.
Colombia team remained on top
Even though this match ended in a draw, Colombia remained on top in Group K with 7 points. At the same time, Portugal qualified in second place with 5 points. DR Congo also made it to the round of 32. Now Portugal will face Croatia in the round of 32. At the same time, Colombia team will face Ghana.
