NEW YORK, July 6 (Xinhua) -- Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo bowed out as Spain and Belgium booked their places in the World Cup quarterfinals on Monday.
In Seattle, Charles De Ketelaere scored two goals and set up another as Belgium advanced with a 4-1 win over the United States.
De Ketelaere scored either side of Malik Tillman's goal from a free kick and the Atalanta midfielder then combined with Hans Vanaken for Belgium's third.
Substitute Romelu Lukaku put the result beyond doubt in stoppage time as Belgium set up a duel with Spain in Los Angeles on July 10.
"We played with desire and commitment. It was a great night for us and we're delighted to qualify for the quarterfinals," Belgium manager Rudi Garcia told reporters.
United States manager Mauricio Pochettino said he was proud of his team's campaign despite the round-of-16 exit.
"We didn't perform well today and that's the reality," the Argentine said. "At the same time, we should recognize what this team has achieved. We are very proud of our campaign together. We enjoyed the journey and today's result hurts because we believed we could go further."
Earlier, late substitute Mikel Merino scored in stoppage time as Spain ended Ronaldo's hopes of a fairytale career finale with a 1-0 win over Portugal in Dallas.
Spain broke the deadlock in the 91st minute when Fabian Ruiz picked out Ferran Torres, who threaded a pass for Merino to finish clinically past Diogo Costa.
It was the Arsenal attacker's first World Cup goal and 11th for the national team.
"He's one of the best in his position worldwide, and he has given us a fantastic result and a fantastic goal," Spain manager Luis de la Fuente said after the match. "I want to express the importance of substitutes that came in later in the game. Not just today, but the contribution in other games has been enormous."
Ronaldo, 41, had few chances to add to his three goals in this tournament, with his best opportunity coming late in the first half via a backward flick that was comfortably saved by Unai Simon.
"I'll wake up tomorrow like I woke up today, with a clear conscience," said Ronaldo, who reiterated earlier in the week that his sixth World Cup would be his last.
"I gave my best. I won three titles with Portugal. Before Cristiano, Portugal hadn't won any title. So, I'm happy. The biggest title that I won with the national team was in 2016 (European Championship), which for me had the same dimension as a World Cup, honestly."
Ronaldo, who has stopped short of announcing the end of his Portugal career, has 233 international appearances and 146 goals, both national records. ■
