Two brilliant strikes from Edinson Cavani on either side of half-time, fired Uruguay to a 2-1 win over Portugal in the round of 16.
Uruguay made it through to the quarterfinals of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, after defeating Portugal 2-1 at the Fisht Olympic Stadium, on Saturday, courtesy of a fantastic brace from star striker Edinson Cavani.
La Celeste came into the game with their 100% run intact, having won three in three in the group phases and were out of the blocks early when Cavani combined with his strike partner Luis Suarez in a devastating manner to head the ball past Rui Patricio.
Portugal hit back through Pepe’s header in the second period, which was the first goal conceded in the ongoing tournament by the Uruguayans, but Cavani made sure that the parity did not last for long as he scored another sensational goal, curling the ball into the net from just outside the box to make it 2-1 and send Portugal packing.
Without a doubt, Cavani was the star of the game in Sochi and his performance drew plaudits from every corner. And here we look at how the Twitterati reacted to the PSG striker’s match-winning display;
Boy oh boy, Uruguay punch above their footballing weight like no other country. Cracking finish from Cavani, one of their 3 million people.
— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) June 30, 2018
So happy for Cavani. I genuinely look up to this guy. Not only as a player, but as a sportsman. Always respectful and always gives 10000%. No one deserves this more than him
— Daniel Vittorio Russo (@danielrusso55) June 30, 2018
And oh yeah,
Cavani is the best pure #9 in the world.
Not Kane. Not Lewandowski. Not Falcao. Not Suarez.
It's Cavani. Hope he wins the Golden Boot going forward.
— They're still the 2 greatest (@daraab99) June 30, 2018
Cavani makes me root for Uruguay
— Sir Kyler (@KylerAmaze) June 30, 2018
Cavani proved all his doubters today he's a world class striker
— Andres Mendoza (@AndresM_chz) June 30, 2018
The partnership of Suarez and Cavani upfront, especially the way they combined for the first goal for Uruguay was hailed all over by the fans.
"A masterclass from the two strikers" – Gary Neville and Slaven Billic on the Uruguay performance tonight and the impact that Suarez & Cavani have with their work rate and mentality, as well as their skill. pic.twitter.com/KGS2ezcZgk
— Modern Soccer Coach (@msceducation) June 30, 2018
Cavani's lofted pass to Suarez. Suarez's return pinpoint cross for Cavani to finish. A moment of wonder forged by 2 men born within 3 weeks of each other in Salto. (Population 100,000) Just 2 kids from the same hood dazzling together on the world's greatest stage ??
— roger bennett (@rogbennett) June 30, 2018
Overlooked due to their world class quality but the sheer work rate of Cavani+Suarez is key to making the partnership successful.They share the defensive workload & run selflessly to create space+passing options for each other
See Lewandowski+Milik & their comparative work rates
— Premier League Panel (@PremLeaguePanel) June 30, 2018
I've never seen two strikers seem so in sync like Cavani and Suarez
— Ahmad (@ahmadf_o) June 30, 2018
Uruguaysecond goal was perfection. Suarez let it roll pass him and Cavani with the one time finish smh pic.twitter.com/dOUIFRhO9f
— Brandon (@MansLikeBrandon) July 1, 2018
While it Cavani’s moment to shine, the sight of him limping off with an injury soon after the second goal was a reason for worry for a lot of the fans.
I really hope Cavani's injury is not serious. Uruguay are pretty much toothless without him.
— #13 (@ZizouHuweidi) June 30, 2018
Rotten luck for Cavani though. He appeared to indicate it’s a muscle injury
— Joe Krishnan (@joekrishnan) June 30, 2018
Cristiano Ronaldo struggled to make much of an impact for Portugal as they were eliminated and there is a strong belief that it could be the last World Cup for the Real Madrid star who is 33 years of age. But his gesture of helping the injured Cavani off the field won a lot of hearts on the day;
Ronaldo helping injured Cavani in getting off the field ❤️ pic.twitter.com/cuXLaoQ3g0
— Troll Football (@TrollFootball) June 30, 2018
Edison Cavani on Cristiano Ronaldo: "We've played against the best player in the world. He's always going to be an idol for me."#URUPOR pic.twitter.com/JJs5QlClx6
— KroosT8 (@KroosT8) June 30, 2018
Cristiano Ronaldo helping an injured Edinson Cavani off the pitch. Touch of class. #WorldCup #URU #POR #URUPOR pic.twitter.com/UkHOZvU2XM
— ?? vs. ?? Football Tweet (@Football__Tweet) June 30, 2018
However, it was not lost on the Twitterati that arch-rivals and two of the greatest ever in the game, Ronaldo and Lionel Messi were sent home from the tournament on the same day. And there were some funny reactions that flowed in;
Rare Picture of Messi and Ronaldo at the airport pic.twitter.com/piOEvY2sXv
— Peco ? #PecohubMafian (@peco_yrn) June 30, 2018
Messi and Ronaldo fans united together in grief…..and the world is peaceful tonight…..This is how God wants humans to live
— Imoh Umoren (@ImohUmoren) June 30, 2018
When Ronaldo and Messi see each other at the airport pic.twitter.com/onkhlfPig2
— Luna (@Travishcott) June 30, 2018
At the same time, there were fans who were much in a much more sombre mood as it dawned that the Messi-Ronaldo era could be drawing towards an end;
The fact that Argentina and Portugal went home today reminded me that the Messi and Ronaldo era is coming to an end. What a depressing time.
— David (@daguzzzz) June 30, 2018
The saddest thing about this elimination is this might be the end of both Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo international careers and they’re probably not going to play for Argentina and Portugal again. Heartbreaking it ended like that. #URUPOR #FRAARG #POR #ARG #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/iqbVzwdbzT
— Walcott (@JrMoe_) July 1, 2018
Both Ronaldo and Messi go home. Both remain without a goal in the knockout stages of any World Cup. Remarkable for 2 of the games all time greats.
— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) June 30, 2018
I am not sad for Argentina or Portugal, i am sad for MESSI and RONALDO. The greatest of all time, the magicians.
Their dream of winning worldcup is finished, and now as the time come for their retirement, i am sad for not seeing these two in the worldcup ever againContinued* pic.twitter.com/Nu5ytgvRfZ
— Peekabu (@Talhyyy) June 30, 2018
