Bruno Fernandes said he thought Cristiano Ronaldo got a touch on the ball for the midfielder's first goal in Portugal's 2-0 win over Uruguay on Monday, a result which sent his side through to the World Cup last 16.
Fernandes was credited with the goal after it was initially awarded to Ronaldo, who leapt to glance the ball past Uruguay goalkeeper Sergio Rochet in the 54th minute. However, the officials deemed the ball had sailed just over Ronaldo's head, denying the Portugal captain the chance to draw level with Eusebio as his nation's record World Cup goalscorer.
"The feeling I had was that Cristiano touched the ball. I was passing the ball to him," Fernandes said. "What matters is that we're going through to the next round after playing a very tough opponent."
Portugal have won their opening two games at the World Cup in Qatar, beating Ghana 3-2 last week before Monday's win over Uruguay, the team that knocked them out of the tournament held in Russia in 2018.
Fernandes, who was a teammate of Ronaldo's at Manchester United until last week when the five-time Ballon d'Or winner and the club parted ways acrimoniously, got his second goal in added time. With Ronaldo already substituted, Fernandes took over penalty-taking duties and scored from the spot.
Portugal manager Fernando Santos brushed aside suggestions from the media that, having already ensured qualification for the knockout phase, he might field a weakened Portugal side against South Korea to give key players a rest.
"First place isn't guaranteed," Santos said. "We will go for top spot, and not just because of Brazil."
Brazil are likely to win Group G which would mean they would then play the runners-up in Group H which is currently topped by Portugal.
Santos' men are due to play their third and final group match against South Korea on Friday.
Portugal v Uruguay player ratings
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PORTUGAL PLAYER RATINGS: Diogo Costa 7 - An important save kept the game goalless after Bentancur broke through, with Costa denying the Uruguay midfielder. Didn’t have much else to do. EPA -
Nuno Mendes 7 - Uruguay struggled to deal with Mendes who looked to get forward as frequently as possible. Linked play well with Carvalho and Felix. Replaced before half-time after sustaining an injury. Getty -
Pepe 7 - Had little to do against an underwhelming Uruguay. Played his role well as the defender who dropped off into the spaces and marked opponents when the ball was in crossing areas. A straight-forward outing for the 39-year-old centre-back. EPA -
Ruben Dias 5 - Poor defending left the Manchester City centre-back with his goalkeeper to thank after Bentancur turned him inside out with ease, but he impressed outside of that moment. EPA -
Joao Cancelo 6 – Hasn’t got going at the tournament so far, with many expecting him to produce his form for Manchester City, though his defensive work was impressive against Uruguay. AP -
William Carvalho 6 - Broke up the play and kept things ticking in midfield amid a difficult battle against Bentancur and Valverde. Had an effort on goal in the first half that was skied. AP -
Ruben Neves 6 - Transitioned the ball well from midfield but was messy with his defensive work at times. Booked for a careless foul on Varela in the 38th minute. EPA -
Bernardo Silva 7 - Often looked to play positively and was able to thread his teammates into promising areas on several occasions. A bright display from the Manchester City midfielder who was difficult to mark. Getty -
Bruno Fernandes 8 - Linked play impressively from midfield and was credited with the goal for the opener. Dispatched his penalty comfortably after winning it with a clever nutmeg. Denied his hat-trick by the post. Getty -
Joao Felix 6 - Bright in spells when cutting inside and played with intent, but things didn’t come off for him much on the night. EPA -
Cristiano Ronaldo 7 - Came close to levelling Eusebio’s World Cup record before he was deemed to not have got a touch on Fernandes’ ball into the box. Getty -
SUBS: Raphael Guerreiro (Mendes 42') 6 - Portugal didn’t seem to lose anything from the like-for-like switch. Picked up an assist after Fernandes was credited with the opener. PA -
Rafael Leao (Neves 69’) 6 - Played with freedom and looked bright but didn’t have too many standout moments. EPA -
Matheus Nunes (Felix 82’) N/A - Introduced with Portugal looking to see out the game. AFP -
Goncalo Ramos (Ronaldo 82’) N/A - Held the ball up well and allowed others to be brought into play. Getty -
Joao Palhinha (Carvalho, 82) N/A. AP -
URUGUAY PLAYER RATINGS: Sergio Rochet 4 - Didn’t make a notable save across the 90 minutes. EPA -
Jose Gimenez 5 - Quick to react to the danger and was able to close down Felix in times when he was cutting inside onto his stronger foot. Gave away a penalty late on that could have been seen as harsh. Committed too many fouls. AP -
Diego Godin 6 - Out of the spotlight for most of the game which is normally a good thing for a defender. Replaced just after the hour-mark in the 62nd minute for De Arrascaeta. AP -
Sebastian Coates 5 - A strong block stopped a Fernandes strike from hitting the target, but only looked comfortable when sitting deep. EPA -
Mathias Olivera 7 - Made an impact on both ends of the pitch but his level of intensity wasn’t matched by his teammates. EPA -
Rodrigo Bentancur 7 - Booked early for a late challenge on Dias, but that didn’t slow him down as Bentancur maintained his aggressive approach in midfield. Produced Uruguay’s best chance of the first half as he broke through Portugal’s line, only to get the finish wrong. Getty -
Matias Vecino 4 - Couldn’t get near the opposition, and usually committed a foul when he did. AP -
Federico Valverde 5 - Not as influential as he was in the first game against South Korea, with the match passing the Real Madrid star by. Brightened up in the final stages when they finally decided to attack. AP -
Guillermo Varela 5 - Didn’t get forward enough in a Uruguay side that was too deep for large parts of the game and restricted their attacking players. EPA -
Edinson Cavani 4 - Anonymous for most of the match before being replaced by Luis Suarez. Wasn’t helped by an overall negative Uruguay approach. Getty -
Darwin Nunez 5 - Made instinctive runs in-behind the defence to help stretch them, though his link-up play could have been better. Didn’t have the required service to make an impact on the game. Getty -
SUBS: Giorgan De Arrascaeta (Godin 62’) 6 - Wasteful with his passing at times, but he did try to play progressively. AFP -
Facundo Pellistri (Vecino 62’) 7 - Confident in looking to beat his man and get balls into the box. Also linked well with Nunez. Pellistri, arguably, should have started the game. Getty -
Luis Suarez (Cavani 73’) N/A - Had a chance to equalise but could only find the side-netting with a quick strike from inside the box, though it was a similar story to his first game with Suarez struggling to make an impact. EPA -
Maxi Gomez (Nunez 72’) N/A - Bright when introduced and was able to help fashion a number of chances with positive movement in behind. Unlucky when hitting the woodwork. AP -
Matias Vina (Olivera 86’) N/A - Introduced late-on but it never looked like Uruguay would get back into the game. AFP
Asked about the severity of an injury to left-back Nuno Mendes, who was substituted early in the first half, Santos said he would wait and see the result of medical tests.
Portugal centre-half Danilo Pereira missed the Uruguay game after breaking three ribs in training and midfielder Otavio, who was an injury concern before Monday's game, was also left out.
Uruguay, backed by many to make a deep run in Qatar, now face early elimination unless they can beat a Ghana side buoyed by their thrilling 3-2 win over South Korea.
The South Americans sit bottom of the group on one point after two games, while Ghana occupy second on three points as the two sides prepare for a rematch of their infamous 2010 World Cup clash.
In South Africa 12 years ago, Uruguay reached the semi-finals after ousting Ghana on penalties.
Uruguay forward Luis Suarez deliberately handled the ball on the goalline deep into extra time to prevent a certain goal, with Asamoah Gyan then missing the subsequent spot-kick. Despite Suarez's dismissal, Uruguay made Ghana pay in the shootout.
However, Uruguay manager Diego Alonso dismissed the importance of that controversial match and insisted his side will improve for what will be a do-or-die encounter.
"It's a different story, for both of us," he said. "We will both go looking for qualification. Friday will be decisive but it's a very different story to what happened 12 years ago.
"The team has to loosen up and motivate itself more to play, like we did in the second half today. We need to take risks, to be the brave team of the qualifiers and the second half today."
