Cristiano Ronaldo took just six minutes to silence the doubters and give Portugal an early lead against Uzbekistan in Houston this afternoon.The Al-Nassr superstar was under pressure to perform after a quiet display in the draw with DR Congo last week that led to speculation he could be left out by boss Roberto Martinez.But, having watched the likes of Lionel Messi, Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe shine in recent days, the 41-year-old stepped up with a trademark finish.Joao Cancelo surged down the right and his low cross was perfect for Ronaldo to get across his marker and fire home at the near post.The goal was a record-breaking effort as Ronaldo became the first man to score at six World Cup finals.Ronaldos effort capped a bright start for Portugal with Bruno Fernandes seeing a shot deflected over and Ronaldo also narrowly failing to get on the end of a superb Nuno Mendes centre.Portugals delight was doubled after 17 minutes when Pedro Neto was tripped on the edge of the area. Everyone expected Ronaldo to take the free-kick but, instead, Mendes whipped a left-footed effort into the bottom corner to hand Martinezs men a 2-0 lead.Table of ContentsPORTUGAL TEAM NEWSUZBEKISTAN TEAM NEWSWhere to watch Portugal v Uzbekistan: TV and online streamsStats for Portugal v UzbekistanPORTUGAL TEAM NEWSRuben Dias returned at the centre of defence after injury kept him out of the DR Congo game.Joao Felix came in for Bernardo Silva in midfield.Portugal: D Costa; Cancelo, Dias, Veiga, Mendes; Neves, Vitinha, Felix, Fernandes, Neto; RonaldoPortugal substitutes: Sa, R Silva, Semedo, Araujo, Dalot, Inacio, S Costa, Nunes, B Silva, Neves, Ramos, Trincao, Leao, Guedes, ConceicaoUZBEKISTAN TEAM NEWSUzbekistan: Nematov; Khusanov, Ashurmatov, Nasrullaev, Abdullaev, Karimov; Shukurov, Xamrobekov, Ganiev, Fayzullaev; ShomurodovUzbekistan substitutes: Yusupov, Ergashev, Alijonov, Sayfiev, Eshmurodov, Ulmasaliyev, Urozov, Mozgovoy, Iskanderov, Jiyanov, Urunov, Khamdamov, Esanov, Amonov, SergeevWhere to watch Portugal v Uzbekistan: TV and online streamsPortugal v Uzbekistan kicks off at 6pm UK time on Tuesday. It will be broadcast on ITV1 and STV and available to stream via ITVX and the STV Player. Sky subscribers can also stream the game via Sky Go.Stats for Portugal v UzbekistanThis is the first meeting between Portugal and Uzbekistan.Ronaldo has failed to score in each of his 10 major tournament games.The 41-year-old has not scored a non-penalty goal in his last 13 tournament appearances.Only once before have Portugal failed to win both of their opening two games at a World Cup. That incidence came in 2014, when they failed to progress to the knockouts.Portugal are winless in their last two World Cup games against AFC teams, losing to South Korea in 2022 following a draw with Iran in 2018.Uzbekistan have lost their last three games having suffered defeat in both pre-World Cup friendlies.Only one of Uzbekistans last 23 games against UEFA opposition has ended in victory (D10, L12). Topics Cristiano Ronaldo Portugal National Football Team Uzbekistan National Team Add us as a preferred source on Google If you enjoy reading this article, you can help support our independent football journalism by adding 101 Great Goals as a preferred source You Should Also Read LIVE Portugal v Uzbekistan: Commentary, updates, goals and stats as Ronaldo follows Messi, Haaland and Mbappe on to centre stage Jon Fisher 23rd June, 2026 Portugal v Uzbekistan: Confirmed line-ups as Ronaldo starts and tries to emulate Messi, Haaland and Mbappe Jon Fisher 23rd June, 2026 Portugal v Uzbekistan: Preview, predicted line-ups and where to watch Nicholas McGee 23rd June, 2026 Cannavaro faces Cristiano Ronaldo: Its not a head-to-head Ben Miller 23rd June, 2026 World Cup 2026: Full list of confirmed teams, fixtures, groups and results Ben Miller 23rd June, 2026 World Cup boss Martinez defends Cristiano Ronaldo decision: The straight line is not the quickest Ben Miller 18th June, 2026
