FIFA World Cup 2026: Can Portugal and Ronaldo find a way to fire against Uzbekistan?

For a team that had 75 percent possession, completed 783 passes and spent much of the afternoon monopolizing the ball, Portugal emerged from the World Cup opener with remarkably little to show for it.

The numbers from the 1-1 draw against DR Congo are uncomfortable to read as Portugal managed just seven shots, only one of which was on target. DR Congo, despite only seeing a quarter of the ball, produced eight shots and had a superior xG of 0.87 compared to Portugal’s 0.65.

The result has inevitably put the focus on Cristiano Ronaldo.

The 41-year-old remains one of football’s biggest draws, especially against an Uzbek side whose players grew up idolizing him. Shirts with Ronaldo’s name remain commonplace on the markets and streets of Uzbekistan.

But Ronaldo failed to find the target in any of his three attempts against DR Congo and is now without a goal in his last 10 appearances at major tournaments.

The concern for Roberto Martínez is whether Portugal is too focused on finding him. There were moments against DR Congo when the attacks seemed to focus on the experienced striker, rather than the most dangerous options available.

Four years ago, Portugal’s most complete performance came after Fernando Santos left Ronaldo on the bench against Switzerland and Goncalo Ramos scored a hat-trick in a 6-1 win.

It is highly unlikely that Martínez will push for such a move. Instead, it seems more likely that he will renew the squad around Ronaldo. Ruben Dias has returned to training after missing the opener and should replace Tomas Araujo in central defence, while Francisco Conceicao’s lively cameo against Congo could see him earn a starting spot ahead of Bernardo Silva.

Uzbekistan, meanwhile, arrives encouraged, despite the 3-1 defeat to Colombia. The World Cup debutants scored an expected goals rate of 1.16, the highest by a country in its first-ever World Cup match since Slovakia in 2010 and the highest by an Asian debutant since Kuwait in 1982.

Led by Eldor Shomurodov, supported by Jaloliddin Masharipov and Abbosbek Fayzullaev, and backed by Manchester City defender Abdukodir Khusanov, Fabio Cannavaro’s side have shown enough to suggest they will not go down without a fight against a side that is finding it increasingly difficult to strike a balance between team play and its talisman.

(Opta statistics)

Published on June 22, 2026