‘A beautiful moment’
Ronaldo the first man to score in five World Cups
Cristiano Ronaldo says he is “very proud” to have become the first man to score in five World Cup final tournaments. Ronaldo opened the scoring from the penalty spot in Portugal’s 3-2 victory over Ghana in their opening Group H match.
Speaking in Portuguese, which was translated by Fifa, Ronaldo said: "This was a beautiful moment in my fifth World Cup.
"We started with our good foot. It is very important to win. We know that in these competitions our first match is crucial.
"But also, on the record of being the only first player in five World Cups to score, that is something which makes me very proud.
"I am very happy that the team got a good result, it was a tough game but a good result."
Portugal coach Fernando Santos praised the influence of his captain. "He is one of the best players in the world, one of the finest goalscorers of all time," he said. “In 50 years' time we will continue to talk about him."
Cristiano Ronaldo made World Cup history two days after severing ties with Manchester United as Portugal opened their campaign in Qatar with a 3-2 win over Ghana.
Ronaldo, who is a free agent after his acrimonious Old Trafford breakup, became the first player to score in five World Cup final tournaments when he tucked away Portugal's first from the penalty spot.
Andre Ayew's equaliser briefly looked like it would spoil Portugal's party, but a quickfire double from Joao Felix and substitute Rafael Leao gave them a two-goal advantage.
Osman Bukari halved it with an 89th-minute header but Portugal held on through nine minutes of injury time to seize the initiative in Group H, where Uruguay and South Korea earlier played out a goalless draw.
The erstwhile Manchester United No 7 was the first to get the crowd on their feet in the tenth minute, racing onto an Otavio pass after Mohammed Kudus was caught in possession. However, the ball just ran away from him and goalkeeper Lawrence Ati won a 50-50 foot race to block Ronaldo.
Ronaldo had the ball in the net after half an hour but the goal was disallowed for his shove on Ghana defender Alexander Djiku.
However, the goal he craved arrived in the 65th minute, after the referee judged that Ghana's Southampton defender Mohammed Salisu had tripped the 37-year-old superstar in the box.
Almost every fan in the Portuguese end behind the goal had their smartphones poised as Ronaldo stepped up and made World Cup history, with Ati guessing the right way but not getting close to the ball.
Ghana responded positively though and equalised in the 73rd minute.
Kudus stung Diogo Costa's palms with a thumping leftfoot shot and seconds later broke clear on the left side of the area. Danilo Pereira got in a tangle trying to clear his low cross and it fell to Ayew, who swept home from close range.
However, Portugal were gifted the chance to restore their lead when Baba Rahman allowed Bruno Fernandes' through-ball to reach Felix, who advanced on goal before clipping the ball beyond Ati.
The game appeared to have been put to bed when Fernandes burst forward again from deep, this time picking out substitute Leao to his left who rolled an angled shot home.
But Bukari's header made the final moments more tricky, and Portugal only held out after a late moment of madness from goalkeeper Costa, who failed to spot Inaki Williams lurking behind him. Williams nipped in but agonisingly slipped as he was about to pull the trigger.
Elsewhere in Group H, Uruguay twice hit the woodwork through Diego Godin and the best player on the pitch, Federico Valverde, but they were held to a 0-0 draw by South Korea.
In Group G, Cameroon born forward Breel Embolo was Switzerland's matchwinner in a largely uninspiring contest against the Indomitable Lions. Embolo's close-range finish just after half-time sealed a 1-0 win and his celebration was understandably muted.