Ronaldo makes World Cup history as Portugal beat Ghana 3-2

• …As South Korea hold Uruguay, Embolo sinks Cameroon

Portugal captain, Cristiano Ronaldo, shrugged off his bitter split with Manchester United to claim yet another record as he became the first player to score in five world Cups with a penalty to help his team to a tense 3-2 victory over Ghana yesterday.

The first-half of the Group H clash was forgettable apart from a couple of Ronaldo chances, but it burst into life after the interval as Portugal belatedly began their campaign.

Ronaldo thumped home a dubiously-awarded penalty in the 65th minute after an innocuous coming together with Mohammed Salisu saw the referee point to the spot.

Ghana did nothing in the first half apart from defend deeply but gave their noisy bank of fans in the 974 Stadium something to cheer when Andre Ayew equalised in the 73rd minute.

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Joao Felix restored Portugal’s lead five minutes later, however, and Ronaldo then showed his class with a jinking run before sliding a pass to Rafael Leao to leave Ghana stunned.

Osman Bukari’s 89th-minute headed reply set up an anxious ending for Portugal but they survived nine minutes of stoppage time to win their opening game of a World Cup for the first time in their last four appearances.

In the same vein, Uruguay faltered in their World Cup opener against a lively and energetic South Korea after they were held to a 0-0 draw in a contest where both teams struggled to find the clinical edge despite plenty of attacking quality on show.

Clear-cut chances were rare for either side in the Group H clash at the Education City Stadium and although Uruguay created more opportunities, neither team managed a shot on target.

Also, Switzerland edged Cameroon 1-0 courtesy of a goal against the run of play by apologetic Breel Embolo versus the country of his birth for an opening win in World Cup Group G at the Al Janoub Stadium yesterday.

Embolo, born in Yaounde but raised in Basle, struck three minutes after the restart from a Xherdan Shaqiri cut-back to put the Swiss top of the group.

The 25-year-old refused to celebrate the goal on his 60th international appearance, lifting his hands in the air and frowning as the small group of Swiss fans cheered wildly at Al Janoub Stadium.

Daily Trust