Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo and Croatia's Luka Modric will likely be playing for the last time.
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Portugal will have a chance to silence their critics when they face Troia in the last 32 of the 2026 World Cup on Friday. But Croatia has a habit of putting on a great performance against a great team on a big occasion.
This match could also be the last performance of one of the two veteran players. This means that Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo and Croatia's Luka Modric will likely be playing for the last time.
Both will be aiming to taste World Cup success at the end of their playing careers. Portugal, led by coach Roberto Martinez, has been criticised for failing to perform as expected.
Portugal beat Uzbekistan 5-0 after drawing with DR Congo. Uzbekistan's third match was also a goalless draw with Colombia, which left them second in their group. Croatia often starts slowly at major tournaments.
Croatia's performance at the 2022 World Cup also depended on draws and penalty shootouts. After losing their first match against England, Croatia beat Panama 1-0. Croatia won 2-1 against Ghana.
