World Cup hat-trick Hero Goncalo Ramos has previously made headlines for all the right reasons.
The young Benfica forward captured the limelight after being used as Cristiano Ronaldo‘s replacement by Fernando Santos in the World Cup.
Portugal had to face Switzerland in the last 16 of the FIFA World Cup when chief Portuguese tactician Fernando Santos made a brave call. Santos benched his captain and talisman, Cristiano Ronaldo, and played the 21-year-old Ramos in his stead.
Questions over this decision were raised by fans and pundits alike online since the moment the team sheet was announced.
🇵🇹The first hattrick of the tournament by Gonçalo Ramos!
🤝 The Cristiano Ronaldo replacement for the night, puts on an Immense show! pic.twitter.com/u2NhGtqz0V
— FIVE (@FIVEUK) December 6, 2022
Ramos, however, proved his worth by netting inside the first 17 minutes and gave Portugal the lead against Switzerland. It was the dream start for Ramos and Portugal. Next, he scored again in the 51st minute and then again in the 67th minute to complete his hat-trick.
Ramos stole the show and his class showing in front of the goal handed Portugal a dominant 6-1 victory over Switzerland to go through to the quarterfinals.
However, before the match against Morocco which Portugal would eventually go on to lose, Ramos captured the headlines yet again, albeit for a plethora of wrong reasons.
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The young Portuguese found himself right in the middle of an s*x scandal. Ramos reportedly sent a video of himself mast***ating which eventually got leaked.
Reports from several Portuguese media outlets started pouring in right before the quarterfinal game. The media had leaked his s*x tape, which translated into Ramos being at the receiving end of rigorous condemnation by fans online.
Goncalo Ramos did what Cristiano Ronaldo could never do at the World Cup
Cristiano Ronaldo is practically a record-breaking machine when it comes to goal-scoring statistics. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner has scored over 800 goals for club and country.
However, his performances in the World Cup have been less than humble, to say the least. Even though Ronaldo became the first player to score in five consecutive World Cups, he has never scored in the knockout stages of the World Cup. Apart from that, the soccer legend has never scored a hat-trick in the World Cup in the knockout stages.
If Cristiano Ronaldo scores at the World Cup in Qatar, he will become the first player to score at 5 World Cups.
🇩🇪 2006 – 1 goal
🇿🇦 2010 – 1 goal
🇧🇷 2014 – 1 goal
🇷🇺 2018 – 4 goalsHe keeps breaking records and making news ones. 🇵🇹 pic.twitter.com/Q2RdST5YiR
— FootballFunnys (@FootballFunnnys) November 1, 2022
Goncalo Ramos, on the other hand, is still just at the beginning of his career. Yet, he surpassed his legendary compatriot concerning both the aforementioned statistics in one go.
Ramos not only scored in the knockout stages of the World Cup against Switzerland but also scored a hat-trick in the same game. That’s how he achieved what one of the biggest names in World Soccer could never achieve.
How will Goncalo Ramos’ leaked video affect him?
There has been an increasing trend of young soccer players faltering when it comes to their primal side. They usually get passion and emotions get the better of them and end up getting caught in the middle of scandals.
Even though the incident has not yet completely blown out of proportion, there is every chance that this could happen in the days, months, or years to come.
Goncalo Ramos is a promising young player and an exciting prospect for many top European Clubs. However, it is unclear how these developments will complicate his transfer from Benfica.
There could also be repercussions at the international level, even though Ramos went on to start the game against Morocco.