Goncalo Ramos of Portugal, who replaced Cristiano Ronaldo in the starting lineup, scored in the 17th minute of the Round of 16 match against Switzerland to give his team a 1-0 lead at the Education City Stadium in the Qatar World Cup 2022.
Goncalo Ramos, who started in place of legendary striker Cristiano Ronaldo, scored the opening goal for Portugal in the 17th minute of their Round of 16 clash against Switzerland at the Education City Stadium in the Qatar World Cup 2022 on Tuesday. This was Ramos' first goal for Portugal in the showpiece tournament and second overall for his country.
On November 17, 2022, Portugal defeated Nigeria in a friendly to secure a 4-0 victory, and he scored his first international goal in the match. Ramos has 14 goals and six assists for his team this year in the Primeira Liga (Portuguese League), where he plays for Benfica. The 21-year-old graduated from Benfica's youth academy, progressed through the ranks, and now holds a significant position in the senior team.
Ronaldo was left out of Portugal's starting line-up for their World Cup 2022 encounter against Switzerland, sending fans into a tizzy. The 37-year-old Portuguese talisman is the only player to have scored at five different World Cups, but he angered coach Fernando Santos with his reaction to being substituted in the last group game.
After Ramos' goal, it wasn't long before 39-year-old Pepe scored Portugal's second goal with a thumping header from a corner. At half-time, Portugal was up 2-0 in their clash against Switzerland.
A meme fest exploded after Ramos scored Portugal's opening goal, with several football enthusiasts trolling Ronaldo, who was not named in the starting XI of the game.
Here's a look at some of the memes and jokes on Twitter:
Ronaldo seeing Ramos score pic.twitter.com/mpgf46hyz8
— Danny (@DannyAaronsFUT)Ramos replaced Ronaldo and now has more World Cup knockout goals than him in his first ever World Cup start 😭😭😭😭
— lion 🇧🇷 (@JMNDComps)Well, if you’re going to take the place of Ronaldo, that’s the way you do it. What a goal from Ramos. What a call from Santos.
— Gary Lineker 💙💛 (@GaryLineker)Goncalo Ramos had the pressure of replacing Cristiano Ronaldo after only ever playing 33 minutes of international football.
It only took him 17 minutes to score for Portugal 🔥 pic.twitter.com/tRcwc6mRmc
Goncalo Ramos now has more World Cup knock-out goals (1) than Cristiano Ronaldo.
Explosive start. 💥 pic.twitter.com/tyGuuQyAP9
• Takes Ronaldo’s spot in the Portugal starting lineup
• Scores after 17 minutes against Switzerland
Goncalo Ramos is loving it 😍 | pic.twitter.com/RRcMMIShJD
Lmao Cristiano Ronaldo was totally frustrated after seeing gonçalo Ramos scoring a World Cup knockout stage goal. 😭😭😭
Most selfish player of all time. pic.twitter.com/8oi7wwCdzp
When you see the man who replaced Cristiano Ronaldo in the starting line-up give Portugal the lead.
What a hit from Gonçalo Ramos. | pic.twitter.com/3SvtdewkyO
Ronaldo watching this Ramos performance… pic.twitter.com/AEZRnGDXir
— 🎄Adz 🎄 (@AdzAgain)Ronaldo has just Whatsapp'd Piers Morgan to say it was a mis-hit from Ramos.
— Footy Accumulators (@FootyAccums)Ronaldo celebrating that 1-0 by Ramos before remembering that’s his replacement pic.twitter.com/tCiRWG04g2
— FPL_Pig (@pig_fpl)What a goal from Gonçalo Ramos, the man who benched Ronaldo 😮💨
pic.twitter.com/w3VnCbwezd
Goncalo Ramos with more World Cup knockout goals than Ronaldo in just his first World Cup appearance. pic.twitter.com/mIQpaHkNBP
— Dr. Neymar PR 🇧🇷 (@bagofnuts_)ronaldo in the dressing room at half time when they’re all huddling around goncalo ramos pic.twitter.com/GQgOwuDyUC
— Suleman (@namelus_)Ronaldo on the bench as Ramos scores the goal for Portugal. . pic.twitter.com/iNkRv6C9xT
— Aftab 🇦🇷 (@aft__tb)Ronaldo watching Ramos score a goal pic.twitter.com/0d9b1L0Fqd
— LakeShowYo (@LakeShowYo)ramos replaced Ronaldo and now has more World Cup knockout goals than him in his first ever World Cup start pic.twitter.com/ja21lny108
— ⚡🏴🇧🇷 (@UTDCJ_)Ronaldo watching that Ramos goal: pic.twitter.com/FdLhOMJQd6
— sp*nkphne (@Super_Spunk)Cristiano Ronaldo quand il saluera Gonçalo Ramos à la fin du match pic.twitter.com/oEJprX7PfQ
— Doug Mc Qued 🇫🇷🇲🇦 (@McQued2)Ronaldo looking at Ramos like… pic.twitter.com/j9aIsE1vre
— Horninho (@SlippyFC)Ronaldo Watching that Gonçalo Ramos goal from the bench pic.twitter.com/uMcezQWm1N
— Obi🇨🇲🇦🇷🇳🇱🇫🇷 (@DifonMD)