Cristiano Ronaldo honors Diogo Jota after dramatic win against Croatia

Diogo Jota was on everyone's lips after Portugal's comeback win over Croatia in the round of 32 at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Shortly after the final whistle, star Cristiano Ronaldo donned Jota's number 21 jersey to honor his former teammate, marking the one-year anniversary of Jota's death. "Unbelievable. We knew it before the game. It was such a special moment," Ronaldo told FOX Sports. "We talked about it in our group today. The coincidences in life are incredible. I was amazed because today's events mean a lot to us. Not only because we won the game, but also because of the way we did it." Ronaldo also congratulated Jota in an Instagram post shortly after the game, in which he posted a picture of himself in Jota's jersey along with his teammates. "We won for us, Diogo and Portugal!!! LET'S GO!!!!" Ronaldo wrote in the post. Before the game, an image of Jota was shown on one of the screens at Toronto Stadium as Portugal's national anthem was played. Jota died in a car accident in Spain on July 3, 2025. The striker, who was 28 at the time of his death, was previously a fixture in Portugal's squad and would likely have been part of the squad for the 2026 World Cup. He scored 14 goals in 49 games for Portugal. When Portugal announced their list for the World Cup

b, Jota was listed as a "perpetual plus-one". "The final list includes 27 names plus one," Portugal coach Roberto Martínez said in May. "Experiencing the loss of Diogo Jota was an unforgettable and very difficult moment. But the next day it was our responsibility to fight for Diogo Jota's dream and for the example he was in our national team. The spirit, the strength, the example of Diogo Jota will forever be our plus one." About the game itself: Ronaldo scored his first goal in the knockout stages of the World Cup to help Portugal equalize against Croatia. Striker Gonçalo Ramos scored the winning goal four minutes into stoppage time. "It was a difficult game," Ronaldo added in his comments. "We knew Croatia was a fantastic team. In the first half we dominated. In the second half, after the goal, we panicked a little. But that's football. After my goal was ruled [as] offside, people started to believe. I asked the fans for help and after the penalty it was a little better for us. We created a few chances and I think at the end of the day we deserved to win the game.",