FIFA WORLD CUP 2018 RUSSIA : Portugal vs Uruguay, It's not only Ronaldo vs Suarez,battle of the defences could be decisive...

Donald Trump joked this week that Cristiano Ronaldo could run to become president of Portugal on the back of his outstanding performances in Russia.
A career in politics is unlikely for now but should Ronaldo lead his country to World Cup glory, then the 33-year-old would surely have an excellent chance of success were he to stand for office.
United States president Trump met with visiting Portuguese opposite number Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa on Wednesday, when he joked: “So could he ever run for president against you?”
Ronaldo has a nation believing. They face Uruguay in the last 16 on Saturday and although Portugal’s displays in the group stage were patchy, they will never give up hope of winning a first world title while Ronaldo is in their team. He has scored four goals and has been one of the players of the tournament.Yet, this will be a very tough test for Fernando Santos’s team, regardless of Ronaldo. Uruguay finished top of their group after winning all three games, including a 3-0 defeat of hosts Russia in their final match.

 Luis Suarez, who is as crucial to Uruguay as Ronaldo is to Portugal, has made a solid start to the tournament, scoring against both Saudi Arabia and Russia.

Just as significant as the duel between Ronaldo and Suarez, however, is the battle of the defences. Atletico pair Diego Godin and Jose Gimenez are two of the best in the business. Despite his irritating antics, Portugal’s Pepe is also a high-class performer and was one of the players of the tournament as Portugal surprisingly won Euro 2016.
However, Portugal defender Bruno Alves said: “I do not think it will be a duel between Suarez and Ronaldo. It is a match between the two teams. We all believe we can win, the team spirit is very strong — the spirit of supporting each other, and Portugal is always ready.  Uruguay have shown they are a strong, cohesive team who have played for long time together.

“We have to be faithful to our style of play, we have to believe we can create goals and win. I believe that we have enough going forward to score goals.”
The tie is also a battle of veteran coaches. At 71, Uruguay’s Oscar Tabarez is eight years older than his opposite number Santos,giving them a combined age of 134.
“Uruguay have a great team, with a coach, Oscar Tabarez, who has led them for 12 years,” said Santos, who took charge of Portugal in 2014.
“He knows what he wants from a game. Ahead of us is a great opponent and it will not be an easy game but I am confident in my players and I think we will be in the next round.”
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