Ghana’s John Boye and Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo lie on the ground during the group G World Cup soccer match between Portugal and Ghana at the Estadio Nacional in Brasilia, Brazil, on Thursday, June 26, 2014.BRASILIA, Brazil – Cristiano Ronaldo’s first goal of the World Cup earned Portugal a 2-1 win over Ghana but couldn’t prevent his team being eliminated from the tournament along with the Africans on Thursday.
Portugal finished level on four points with second-place United States in Group G but with an inferior goal difference. Germany topped the group after beating the U.S. 1-0 in Recife.
Ronaldo slammed in the winner with his left foot in the 80th minute to break his drought in Brazil and give Portugal its first win.
Ghana captain Asamaoh Gyan’s 57th-minute header canceled out an own goal scored by teammate John Boye in the 31st.
It was a bittersweet ending to the World Cup for Ronaldo, who has been nursing a left leg injury and seen the likes of Brazil star Neymar and Argentina captain Lionel Messi upstage him.