Portugal World Cup lineup, starting 11 in Qatar 2022: Ronaldo benched again for Goncalo Ramos vs Morocco

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Cristiano Ronaldo Portugal World Cup
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Fernando Santos insists there is no rift between himself and Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo ahead of the World Cup quarterfinal against Morocco.

Santos dropped Ronaldo for the last 16 match against Switzerland, with his replacement Goncalo Ramos sensationally scoring a hat-trick in a 6-1 win.

"There is no problem with our captain," Santos told his pre-match news conference, a day on from Portugal's national federation releasing a statement to dismiss rumours that Ronaldo was on the verge of leaving the camp.

"We've been friends for years. We spoke before the game and he had no issue with my decision. He’s an example."

Morocco put paid to the prospects of an Iberian derby by beating Spain on penalties after a 0-0 draw. Walid Regragui's side have kept clean sheets in three of their four games in Qatar.

Portugal confirmed lineup vs Morocco

(4-3-2-1, right to left): 22. Diogo Costa (GK) — 2. Diogo Dalot, 3. Pepe, 4. Ruben Dias, 5. Raphael Guerriero — 10. Bernardo Silva, 18. Ruben Neves, 25. Otavio — 8. Bruno Fernandes, 11. Joao Felix — 25. Goncalo Ramos.

  • Injured: Nuno Mendes (thigh), Danilo Pereira (broken ribs)
  • Suspended: None.

Ronaldo is indeed on the bench once again following Ramos' heroics. Rafael Leao again came on to score against Switzerland, but a virtuoso display from Joao Felix means the AC Milan star is amongst the substitutes once more, left to a bench role.

Danilo Pereira (broken ribs) was not fit enough to start, while his PSG teammate or Nuno Mendes (thigh) is out for the tournament.

Mendes' absence was part of the reason for Raphael Guerreiro and Diogo Dalot starting against Switzerland. Guerreiro's goalscoring turn and an assist for Dalot means Joao Cancelo is again sitting down alongside Ronaldo once more, with Fernando Santos resisting a change there too.

The only alteration made from the win over Switzerland is the return of Ruben Neves to the starting lineup over William Carvalho.

MORE: World Cup 2022 top goal scorer: Updated rankings in the Golden Boot race

Portugal World Cup squad

Here are the 26 names on Portugal's World Cup squad in Qatar:

Position No. Player Club Age Caps
GK 1 Rui Patricio Roma (ITA) 34 104
GK 12 Jose Sa Wolves (ENG) 29 0
GK 22 Diogo Costa Porto (POR) 23 7
DEF 3 Pepe Porto (POR) 39 128
DEF 5 Raphael Guerreiro Borussia Dortmund (GER) 28 56
DEF 2 Diogo Dalot Manchester United (ENG) 23 6
DEF 24 Antonio Silva Benfica (POR) 19 0
DEF 4 Ruben Dias Manchester City (ENG) 25 39
DEF 19 Nuno Mendes PSG (FRA) 20 16
DEF 13 Danilo Pereira PSG (FRA) 31 63
DEF 20 Joao Cancelo Manchester City (ENG) 28 37
MID 25 Otavio Porto (POR) 27 7
MID 6 Joao Palhinha Fulham (ENG) 27 15
MID 8 Bruno Fernandes Manchester United (ENG) 28 48
MID 10 Bernardo Silva Manchester City (ENG) 28 72
MID 23 Matheus Nunes Wolves (ENG) 24 9
MID 14 William Carvalho Real Betis (ESP) 30 75
MID 16 Vitinha PSG (FRA) 22 4
MID 17 Joao Mario Benfica (POR) 29 52
MID 18 Ruben Neves Wolves (ENG) 25 32
FWD 7 Cristiano Ronaldo Manchester United (ENG) 37 191
FWD 21 Ricardo Horta Braga (POR) 28 5
FWD 15 Rafael Leao AC Milan (ITA) 23 11
FWD 11 Joao Felix Atletico Madrid (SPA) 22 23
FWD 26 Goncalo Ramos Benfica (POR) 21 0
FWD 9 Andre Silva RB Leipzig (GER) 26 51

READ: MESSI & RONALDO: DESTINATION MUNDIAL | THE FULL SERIES

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David Lynch is a freelance football journalist primarily covering Liverpool FC