Watch: Cristiano Ronaldo sets up Portugal teammate Bruno Fernandes with brilliant nutmeg assist

Cristiano Ronaldo produced a moment of quality in the 2022 FIFA World Cup play-off game against North Macedonia as he set up Bruno Fernandes with a sumptuous assist.

The Portugal captain exchanged passes with his Manchester United teammate and set him clean through on goal with a cheeky nutmeg. The move carved open the Macedonians' defense to allow Fernandes to score the first goal of the game.

Portugal looked the better side in the first half but didn't create too many chances. However, when North Macedonia let their guard slip, Fernando Santos' side capitalized in devastating style as Ronaldo and Fernandes combined to score a crucial goal.

North Macedonia captain Stefan Ristovski was guilty of making a poor pass which was latched onto by Fernandes. He then applied the finishing touches after a clever bit of play with Ronaldo. The Portugal captain missed a good chance earlier in the first half but made amends with a clever assist as the home side currently lead 1-0 at the Estadio do Dragao.

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Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal 45 minutes away from sealing World Cup 2022 qualification

Ronaldo produced another important moment for Portugal

Portugal secured a hard-fought 3-1 win against Turkey to set up an intriguing clash with North Macedonia. The Macedonians, meanwhile, dumped Italy out of the reckoning for a spot in the 2022 FIFA World Cup with a stunning stoppage-time winner last week.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal came into the clash against the Macedonians in good spirits after their win against Turkey and took a deserved lead in the first half. Can they hold on and secure qualification for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar?

Only time will tell. They lead at half-time, but as we've seen countless times before, we can't afford to take anything for granted in the beautiful game!