FIFA World Cup: Who is Goncalo Ramos, replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo who scored first hat-trick in Qatar?

It was a night to remember for Goncalo Ramos on Tuesday as the 21-year-old forward, replacing Cristiano Ronaldo in Portugal’s starting XI, scored the first hat-trick of the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Portugal’s thumping 6-1 win over Switzerland to reach the quarter-finals in Qatar. Goncalo Ramos opened the scoring on the night for Portugal with his first goal in the 17th minute. He added two more in the 51st and in 67th minutes respectively.Let’s find out why Ronaldo was benched and who is the latest Portugal sensation, Goncalo Ramos. Who is Goncalo Ramos? Born in Olhao in Portugal, Ramos plays for Benfica as a forward in Primeira Liga. He currently leads the scoring chart in the Portuguese league with nine goals from 11 games. Overall, he has scored 20 goals in 45 matches for Benfica. Ramos is a product of Benfica’s youth academy. Coming to international football, Ramos had never played for Portugal before being selected for the FIFA World Cup squad in November. And he only made it to the squad as a result of an injury to Liverpool forward Diogo Jota. His international debut came last month in a friendly against Nigeria before the World Cup. Ramos was given the No 26 shirt in the 26-man squad and played for only a few minutes as a late substitute in Portugal’s group wins over Ghana and Uruguay. He had zero attempts on goal in those games. “Not even in my wildest dreams did I think about being part of the starting team for the knockout stage,” Ramos said after being named player of the match as Portugal decimated Switzerland.

Why was Ronaldo benched? Portugal coach Fernando Santos said after the match that the decision to bench Ronaldo for the crucial last 16 match against Switzerland was “strategic and nothing more". While Ronaldo has been struggling in Qatar, with only one goal so far, one cannot ignore his angry reactions after he was substituted in the last group game against South Korea. Ronaldo was seen reacting angrily after Santos substituted him. Before the Switzerland game, Santos was asked to react to how Ronaldo had responded to his substitution. He said: “I didn’t like it at all. I didn’t like it at all.” After the Switzerland game, Santos praised Ronaldo and said his decision was taken to strategically benefit the team. “I said that it was closed and it was closed. Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the best players in the world playing professionally and as a captain … so we have to just think about this team collectively,” he said. Ronaldo was used for a brief while against Switzerland after he came on in the 73rd minute as a replacement for Joao Felix. Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News ,  India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook ,  Twitter  and  Instagram .