For the best part of an hour, this was Croatia's night. Then, deep into the fourth minute of added time, Rafael Leão swung in a cross and Gonçalo Ramos rose to bury it into the bottom right corner. BMO Field, split down the middle in colour, erupted in one half and fell silent in the other. Portugal 2, Croatia 1, and a Round of 32 tie that had drifted away from them was suddenly, gloriously theirs.

It was a result forged in the last possible moment, the sort that defines tournaments and haunts the beaten. Croatia had led, had defended with the discipline that has carried them so far in World Cups past, and had been within touching distance of the last 16. Portugal simply refused to accept it. Cristiano Ronaldo dragged them level from the penalty spot, Ramos delivered the killer blow, and a side that had toiled found the ruthlessness that matters most.

There was cruelty in the timing and inevitability in the outcome. Portugal have long carried the burden of expectation without always meeting it, but here, with the clock against them, they discovered a resolve that had been missing for long stretches. Croatia, for their part, will replay those final seconds for a long time to come.

Perisic strikes first

Croatia's plan had been simple and beautifully executed: absorb, frustrate, and strike. It worked to perfection eight minutes after the interval. Ivan Perisic, that most reliable of big-match performers, collected possession on the left side of the box and lashed a left-footed shot low into the centre of the goal. It was a finish of pure conviction, the kind Perisic has been producing on the grandest stages for over a decade.

The goal reshaped everything. Croatia dropped deeper, content to let Portugal come, and for a while the men in red looked short of ideas against a defence that has made a habit of suffocating the flair of others. Every Portuguese surge broke on the rocks of Croatian organisation, and the frustration began to gnaw at the favourites.

For Perisic, it was a moment to savour, a reminder that experience counts double in the knockout rounds. His goal threatened to be the difference, the single decisive stroke that sent Croatia through and Portugal home. That it ultimately counted for nothing will make it all the more painful.

Ronaldo levels

Portugal's response arrived, as so many of their responses do, through Ronaldo. In the 68th minute a penalty was awarded, and there was never any doubt about who would take it. He stepped up and sent his right-footed strike straight down the middle, the goalkeeper committing early, the ball nestling in the centre of the net. The relief on Portuguese faces was written large.

The goal changed the emotional weather. Where Croatia had been comfortable, they were now anxious; where Portugal had been ragged, they found rhythm and belief. Ronaldo's finish was not spectacular but it was certain, the mark of a player who has spent a career refusing to blink in these moments. It dragged his side back into a contest that had been slipping through their fingers.

From there the game opened, both teams sensing that a single moment would decide it. Croatia pushed for a winner of their own, wary of the lottery that would follow if the scoreline held. Portugal pressed higher, hungrier, gambling that their attacking talent would eventually tell. The tension became almost unbearable as the minutes ticked away.

The killer blow

When it came, the winner had the fingerprints of Portugal's substitutes and youthful energy all over it. Rafael Leão, all pace and menace down the flank, delivered a cross into the centre of the box, and Gonçalo Ramos met it with a header that arrowed into the bottom right corner. The clock read 90+4. There would be no time for Croatia to answer.

It was a goal that spoke to the depth of Portugal's squad, the sense that they can hurt opponents from any angle and in any minute. Leão's delivery was inch-perfect, Ramos's movement and conviction the finishing touch. In a single passage of play, months of preparation and ninety minutes of Croatian defiance were undone.

For Croatia, the anguish will be sharp and slow to fade. To lead a World Cup knockout tie and lose it in the last breath is among football's most brutal fates. They gave everything, matched Portugal for long spells, and still walked off beaten. The margins at this level are merciless, and they fell the wrong side of them.

What comes next

Portugal march on into the last 16, their reputation for late drama enhanced, their sense of destiny quietly restored. This was not their most fluent performance, and they will know it, but tournaments are won by teams who find a way even on their difficult nights. To trail, level through their talisman, and win at the death is precisely the kind of experience that hardens a side for the rounds to come.

There will be questions for the coaching staff about why it took so long to break Croatia down, and about the anxious spells when the tie was slipping away. Yet those are the concerns of a team still standing, still dreaming, still very much in the conversation. Ronaldo and Ramos delivered when it mattered, and Leão's contribution off the flank offers a tantalising glimpse of what this squad can be.

For Croatia, the road ends here, and the reckoning begins. A generation that has delivered so much on the world stage must now weigh what remains and what must change. They can leave with their heads high for the manner of their resistance, but that will be cold comfort on a night when they held the winning hand until the final card was dealt. Portugal took it from them, and moved on.