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14.06.2021 » Analyzing Portugal squad for the EURO 2020
Portugal are determined to prove that their success in the 2016 European Championship wasn't a fluke and judging by the quality of the opponents they'll face in the group stages of the tournament, they are going to be tested from day one! It's easily one of the toughest groups we've ever seen in the Euros, mostly because of the inclusion of teams like Portugal, France and Germany.
The Portuguese National Team might be stacked with talent, but so are the German and especially the French team, who are huge favorites to get their hands in the trophy next July 11. If you think it's too difficult to bet in this EURO 2020 though, not all hope is lost, as you can always turn your attention to an online cricket betting guide and try your luck on a more predictable sport. Nevertheless, tournaments like these are always prone to surprises and that's what makes this game so beautiful and exciting to watch...
Portugal - All goals in their EURO 2020 qualifiers:
Defence
The defence is a sector where the Seleção is typically strong and this year it won't be any different, despite the absence of João Cancelo, who was ruled for this tournament last week, after testing positive to COVID-19 in routine procedures.
In goal, Portugal will count on Rui Patrício as their last man to hold the fortress and it seems like it should turn out to be a good bet. The Portuguese goalkeeper has been delivering great performances in the Premier League over the last years and he's a very solid player on the pitch.
The back-four should be formed by Nélson Semedo on the right, Pepe and Rúben Dias in the centre and either Nuno Mendes or Raphael Guerreiro on the left. With Cancelo unavailable, Nélson Semedo is the logical replacement, even though Fernando Santos called in Diogo Dalot in order to have an additional option for the right-back position. In the centre, the experienced Pepe should partner up with the Premier League's best defender of the season, Manchester City's Rúben Dias. These two can very well become the very best defensive partnership in the tournament, as they present the perfect combination of experience and youth. The only question in defence lies on the left-back position, as the manager will have to choose between Sporting's rising talent Nuno Mendes and Dortmund's solid left-back, Guerreiro.
Midfield
If there's any area of the pitch where Fernando Santos won't worry about the lack of solutions, that's definitely the midfield. The European champions brought a lot of players with different skill sets to try surprise their opponents and at this point, it's almost impossible to guess who will start at each game of the upcoming Euro.
Nevertheless, we think we can point out a few candidates to make the cut to the starting lineup, especially if we assume that Fernando Santos will play in a 4-2-1-3 formation. In the games against Germany and France, the first two midfielders will most likely have a more defensive role and we should see the following two players starting: Danilo and William Carvalho. They are both strong, reliable in the air and great at linking the defence with the team's attacking midfield.
The third midfielder should be a player with more freedom to make runs upfront and should necessarily give the team a more attacking mindset. For this position, Fernando Santos will probably pick Manchester United's star, Bruno Fernandes. He has been impressing fans in England with multiple MOTM performances for Manchester United week in and week out and if he finds his best football in this Euro, he can be the player that Portugal needs to go all the way to the final.
Attack
Finally, but not necessarily the least important, the attack... Here, there is one player who should start in every game in the tournament and that's obviously Cristiano Ronaldo. Despite being 36 years old coming into this Euro, the Juventus superstar has proven his critics wrong for another season, after finishing the Serie A campaign as the competition's top scorer, with 29 goals in 33 appearances.
The big question however, is more about who will play next to Ronaldo in Portugal's attack. Believing that Fernando Santos will maintain his 4-2-1-3 formation, the two players in Ronaldo's orbit should be Man City's Bernardo Silva and then, one of the following two: Liverpool's Diogo Jota or Atletico Madrid's João Félix. The safest choice should rely on Jota though, as he tends to be more regular and better adapted to his teammates style of play.
Cristiano Ronaldo next game for Portugal is on June 15, against Hungary. You can watch Portugal vs Hungary, Italy vs Switzerland, Denmark vs Belgium, Turkey vs Wales, Poland vs Slovakia, and France vs Germany, all matches provided from our live streaming game pages.
Portugal next game:
Portugal vs Hungary kick-off time (15-06-2021):
Beijing (China) | UTC/GMT+8: 00:00
Jakarta (Indonesia) | UTC/GMT+7: 23:00
India (New Delhi) | UTC/GMT+5.30: 21:30
Italy (Turin) | UTC/GMT+2: 18:00
Spain (Madrid) | UTC/GMT+2: 18:00
Portugal and England (Lisbon/London) | UTC/GMT+1: 17:00
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) | UTC/GMT-3: 13:00
New York (United States) | UTC/GMT-4: 12:00
Los Angeles (United States) | UTC/GMT-7: 09:00
Sources: ronaldo7.net / skysports.com / theguardian.com
