Bibhash Lodh, BS News Agency: Colombia faced Portugal in a high-voltage clash in the final group match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. In this thrilling Group K match at Miami's Hard Rock Stadium, the match was full of attacks and counterattacks, but in the end, the two teams shared the points in a goalless draw. As a result of this draw, Colombia entered the knockout stage as the group champion with 7 points from 3 matches. On the other hand, Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal secured a ticket to the last 32 or knockout stage as the runners-up with 5 points from the same match. From the beginning of the match, the footballers of both teams started playing attacking football. Colombia had a big chance in the first minute of the match, but John Cordoba's header went just over the goalpost. In the 16th minute, Cordoba's another powerful shot was saved with great skill by Portuguese goalkeeper Diogo Costa. Ruben Neves saved Portugal by clearing a shot from Jan Arias over the goal line in the 22nd minute of the first half. On the other hand, in the 39th minute, Colombia's goalkeeper Vargas stopped a bullet-speed shot from Bruno Fernandes. Cristiano Ronaldo was closely guarded by the Colombian defenders throughout the match, as a result of which he failed to create the desired opportunities after being caught offside several times. In the last moment of the first half, Costa saved a beautiful low shot from James Rodriguez to make the two teams equal at 0-0 at the break. Colombia increased the pace of the match by entering the field in the second half. However, in the 71st minute of the match, Portugal coach Roberto Martinez replaced Joao Felix and Vitinha with Rafael Liao and Samu Costa, increasing the edge of Portugal's attack. Portugal could have scored if Bruno's cross from Ronaldo's pass had not been cleared by Davinson Sanchez's header in the 81st minute. In the final moments of the match, Colombia's Sanchez headed the ball into the net in the 92nd minute, causing the crowd to cheer, but the referee ruled the goal offside. Rafael Leao missed a golden opportunity in the final minute of extra time, and the match ended in a goalless draw. Under the new knockout formula, Colombia will face Ghana in the last 32, while Portugal will face Croatia.
