Portugal sounded a World Cup warning on Tuesday as they blew Switzerland away 6-1 in their last-16 clash at Lusail Stadium.
Goncalo Ramos, brought into the team for the dropped Cristiano Ronaldo, scored a brilliant hat-trick to more than justify Portugal manager Fernando Santos's controversial decision.
Ronaldo had angered his coach with his reaction to being substituted in the group game against South Korea.
But 21-year-old Benfica forward Ramos proved he is ready to take on the mantle of Portugal's talisman as he lashed a superb finish from an almost impossible angle past Swiss keeper Yann Sommer to get the ball rolling after 17 minutes.
At the other end of the age scale, 39-year-old Pepe headed Portugal into a 2-0 lead after 33 minutes. Ramos then bagged his second early in the second-half before defender Raphael Guerreiro made it four.
Manuel Akanji got one back for the Swiss just before the hour before Ramos completed his hat-trick with a lovely, chipped finish. Substitute Rafael Leao made it 6-1 with a thunderous shot in added time.
Portugal will now face Morocco in the quarter-finals on Saturday after the North Africans beat Spain 3-1 on penalties.
Walid Regragui's team are the fourth African side to make the World Cup last eight and the first from the north of the continent to do so. They are the first Arab team in history to reach the quarter-finals.
ONCE UPON A TIME IN GAZA
Starring: Nader Abd Alhay, Majd Eid, Ramzi Maqdisi
Directors: Tarzan and Arab Nasser
Rating: 4.5/5
Four-day collections of TOH
Day Indian Rs (Dh)
Thursday 500.75 million (25.23m)
Friday 280.25m (14.12m)
Saturday 220.75m (11.21m)
Sunday 170.25m (8.58m)
Total 1.19bn (59.15m)
(Figures in millions, approximate)
BEACH SOCCER WORLD CUP
Group A
Paraguay
Japan
Switzerland
USA
Group B
Uruguay
Mexico
Italy
Tahiti
Group C
Belarus
UAE
Senegal
Russia
Group D
Brazil
Oman
Portugal
Nigeria
Crazy Rich Asians
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Constance Wu, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeon, Gemma Chan
Four stars
Scoreline
Arsenal 3
Aubameyang (28'), Welbeck (38', 81')
Red cards: El Neny (90' 3)
Southampton 2
Long (17'), Austin (73')
Red cards: Stephens (90' 2)
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013