Quaresma's 117th-minute goal gives Portugal win in humdrum affair with Croatia

On behalf of the football world, thank you, Ricardo Quaresma.

The second-half sub scored in the 117th minute against the run of play to turn one of the most monotonous major tournament matches into a 1-0 victory for Portugal against Croatia Saturday in Lens.

With minutes left in extra-time, teenage stud Renato Sanches surged through the midfield before finding Nani on the edge of the area, with the Fenerbahce winger spotting a wide-open Cristiano Ronaldo. The Real Madrid star then fired at Danijel Subasic's goal, with the Monaco shot-stopper to parrying it into the path of a streaking Quaresma.

Related - Watch: Quaresma breaks Croatian hearts with cruel, late winner

Match done.

Portugal have now reached the last eight for the sixth time, more than any other nation.

Croatia sported its trademark checkered kits, but it was the performance of both the Group E winners and Portugal that made for a dubious episode.

Following Croatia's stunning form in beating twice-defending champ Spain and Ronaldo's inspired two-goal performance against Hungary, expectations were high for Saturday's clash for good reason, as both sides displayed flashes of brilliance through a trio of group fixtures.

Those expectations were left painfully unfulfilled, as the two sides played 120 minutes of humdrum football that was as tedious as it was dire.

Clutching at straws, the best chance of the first half was a speculative header from Pepe off a Ronaldo cross that sailed metres above Subasic and out of play.

That's about all the opening stanza offered.

Saturday's closer in Lens was the 19th match at the Euros to be scoreless at the half through 39 tilts. That is just one of several metrics conveying how excruciating the last-16 tilt was.

Croatia started the second half on the front foot, and appeared the better side before Fernando Santos' introduction of Renato Sanches gave the 2004 finalists a more direct approach.

Pepe's first-half miss was mirrored 15 minutes after the interval, when Croatian centre-back Domagoj Vida headed a set-piece delivery narrowly wide.

If Poland's penalty defeat of Switzerland was at-best engaging, and Wales' narrow victory over Northern Ireland a tolerable exercise in patience, Saturday's nightcap in Lens was a trial in all-things heinous.

Hard not to fault both sides for looking ahead, as victory at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis would offer a straightforward trip to the finals. As such, both Portugal and Croatia were equal parts apprehensive and petrified by the prospects of conceding first.

The stars who were supposed to boss the match did little. Ronaldo was largely inconspicuous, and Croatia's midfield tandem of Ivan Rakitic and Luka Modric were light years from their bests.

Portugal will now face Poland on Thursday in Marseille.