Moscow: Cristiano Ronaldo brushed aside his off-field problems by scoring the winner as Portugal edged out hosts Russia 1-0 at the Confederations Cup on Wednesday.
Ronaldo’s eighth-minute header in Moscow gave Portugal their first win in the tournament and victory over New Zealand on Saturday would secure a semi-final spot.
Goals from Peralta and Raul Jimenez saw Mexico move top of Group A later in the day, above Portugal on goals scored, and knock New Zealand out of the competition.
Ronaldo let his football do the talking after the recent tax-evasion accusations that have left his Real Madrid future uncertain, with his second man-of-the-match performance following Sunday’s 2-2 draw with Mexico.
The forward said Portugal were worthy winners after surviving a second-half Russian fight-back.
“We’re very happy, it’s the first time Portugal have won in Russia. The team played very well against a side playing at home with the support of their fans. But we were better, we had more chances,” he said.
Ronaldo is accused by Spanish authorities of having evaded paying 14.7 million euros ($16.5m) in tax and has been summoned to appear in court next month in Madrid.
But he was all smiles, escorting a young mascot in a wheelchair out onto the Moscow pitch before netting his first Confederations Cup goal.
Portugal’s win came at a cost though, as Borussia Dortmund defender Raphael Guerreiro had to be helped off on 65 minutes with a suspected broken leg.
“He was hospitalised and we think he broke his leg,” said Portugal coach Fernando Santos.
Guerreiro’s towering cross from the left flank hung in the air and found Ronaldo, who rose at the far post to head back across Igor Akinfeev.
Only a superb one-handed reflex save from Akinfeev, who made his 100th international appearance, stopped Andre Silva’s bullet header just after the break.
The hosts were unlucky not to force an equaliser after a string of chances in a strong second-half display.
Defender Georgy Dzhikiya headed narrowly over the bar from the game’s final corner in added time.
Guerreiro, meanwhile, will miss the rest of the tournament after revealing on Thursday that he has been playing with a fractured leg for months.
The Borussia Dortmund defender had to be helped off in the second-half of Wednesday’s 1-0 win over Russia in Moscow when Cristiano Ronaldo scored the winner.
Guerreiro has confirmed he has a fracture and implies he has been playing with the injury for weeks, which he aggravated before going off in the 65th minute in Moscow.
“Thank you for your messages, I have a fracture, but it happened three months ago,” Guerreiro wrote on his official Instagram account.
“Fortunately, the fracture is not causing me any pain, but I can’t put my foot on the ground or move.
“I’ll be behind my teammates for the rest of the competition.”
It remains to be seen whether Guerreiro will be fit for the start of the season with Dortmund with the Bundesliga to kick-off on August 18.
