World Cup Now: Is Bruno Fernandes Portugal's most important player?
Portugal advanced to the Round of 16 after defeating Uruguay 2-0 at Qatar's Lusail Stadium on Monday as the 2022 FIFA World Cup continued with more action in the group stage.
Portugal's Bruno Fernandes was unstoppable, accounting for both the first and the last point of the match.
Is he shaping up to be Portugal's most important player?
Former USMNT players DaMarcus Beasley, Jimmy Conrad and Sacha Kljestan shared their thoughts on Fernandes' performance in Portugal's shutout vs. Uruguay on "World Cup Now."
Beasley: No risk, no reward
He's a guy that I really like. He can be frustrating at times, but he takes risks. A lot of his passes don't go to the attacker. He loses the ball sometimes in bad spots, but this is the reward that you get when you get him the ball. When he's on, and when he's being decisive in the final third, this is what you get.
Conrad: Showing up with it matters most
He had two assists in Portugal's first game against Ghana, and now he's got two goals — his first two World Cup goals — against Uruguay. It's pretty remarkable. We seem to talk about so many other players on this team outside of Bruno Fernandes, but yet here is being the most important, at least in the attacking side of the game. I think he's playing in a good spot for this team, too, right off where the strikers are in that space, where he can go find the game a little more opposed to being stationed in one particular spot.
Kljestan: Fernandes is a good Robin to Cristiano Ronaldo's Batman
He was Portugal's best player in the first game as well with two assists. When we talk about teams like Argentina or Portugal that have superstars, we say, ‘Other players have to step up.’ Fernandes has done that. Portugal is good. Portugal is deep. Uruguay is hard to play against.
Portugal vs. Uruguay Highlights
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Check out the full schedule for the World Cup and how to watch each match live here.
