Cristiano Ronaldo hit his 53rd career hattrick to fire Portugal into the inaugural Nations League final.
The 34-year-old captain blasted Portugal ahead from a free kick in the 25th minute of Wednesday night’s semifinal 3-1 win over Switzerland in Porto.
It was his first goal for his country for nearly a year, but the Swiss equalised with a penalty after halftime which will raise more questions over the use of the VAR system.
After a largely anonymous second half, CR7 scored twice in the last three minutes to set up a Sunday final with either England or Holland, who faced off on Thursday evening.
It took his Portugal goal tally to an incredible 88 and with his first strike of the night, he broke the record for scoring in the most international tournaments – 10.
MAYHEM IN THE MIDDLE: Referee Felix Brych. Photo: Armando Franca/AP.
The match will, however, be remembered for a strange VAR decision.
Switzerland got back into the tie in extraordinary circumstances after halftime.
Swiss midfielder Steven Zuber, running on to a pass from Granit Xhaka, went down under a challenge from defender Nelson Semedo and appealed for a penalty but play continued.
Portugal then went straight down the other end and were awarded a penalty for a foul on Bernardo Silva.
The referee Felix Brych, after consulting the video assistant, then decided to review the Swiss incident on the pitchside monitor and awarded them the spot kick.
The incident seemed to unsettle Portugal and Zuber and Haris Seferovic both missed chances before they were destroyed by Ronaldo at his most deadly.