It’s June…School is out, vacations to the Azores and Portugal are beginning…and the Seleção is preparing to add some more hardware to its trophy case.
The quest for a 2nd European Championship is on the hearts and minds of almost every fan of the Portuguese National Team. However, the lead up to this tournament for the Seleção has been very unfamiliar in comparison to previous tournaments and qualifications.
First off, this will be the first tournament since 2016 (do we remember who won that one?) that Portugal will not be led by manager Fernando Santos. As you recall, Santos and the Federação Portuguesa de Futebol (FPF) mutually agreed to part ways in December 2022 following Portugal’s quarter final exit in the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Enter Roberto Martinez, appointed as the new manager in January 2023. A surprising hire according to many soccer/futebol pundits (myself included), Martinez was available after resigning from the Belgian National Team following its disappointing exit in the group stage of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
The questions and criticisms that came following Martinez's hiring were merited, but what ensued in EURO 2024 qualification was something never before seen in FPF history: a PERFECT qualification for a major tournament, as Portugal won all 10 of its group matches, scoring 36 goals and only giving up 2 en route to winning their group.
The unfamiliar feeling of this dominant qualification was due in part to the Seleção making qualifying for the last couple of major tournaments much more difficult than a team of its caliber and talent should have ever had made it. Thankfully, it was not the case this time.
And as we fast forward to EURO 2024 in Germany, another unfamiliar sight is Portugal NOT being in the dreaded "Group of Death". Much like its qualifying group, Portugal should come out of Group F in first place, ahead of their opponents: Turkey, Czech Republic, and Georgia.
On May 21, with a deep talent pool to choose from, Roberto Martinez called up his 26-player squad tasked with bringing Portugal its 2nd European Championship. The squad is a balanced mixture of veterans (Cristiano Ronaldo, Pepe), players in their prime (Rúben Dias, Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes), and young, promising talent (Vitinha, Rafael Leão), among others.
If Portugal plays up to its talent and skill, there is no reason why the Seleção should not make it to at least the semi finals of EURO 2024...perhaps even making it to the final and winning the whole thing.
I cannot wait for EURO 2024 and what could be another magical Seleção summer...FORÇA PORTUGAL!!!
Portugal’s Euro 2024 squad
Goalkeepers: Diogo Costa (Porto), José Sá (Wolves), Rui Patrício (Roma)
Defenders: António Silva (Benfica), Danilo Pereira (PSG), Diogo Dalot (Manchester United), Gonçalo Inácio (Sporting), João Cancelo (Barcelona), Nélson Semedo (Wolves), Nuno Mendes (PSG), Pepe (Porto), Rúben Dias (Manchester City)
Midfielders: Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United), João Neves (Benfica), João Palhinha (Fulham), Otávio Monteiro (Al Nassr), Rúben Neves (Al-Hilal), Vitinha (PSG)
Forwards: Bernardo Silva (Manchester City), Cristiano Ronaldo (Al Nassr), Diogo Jota (Liverpool), Francisco Conceição (Porto), Gonçalo Ramos (PSG), João Félix (Barcelona), Pedro Neto (Wolves), Rafael Leão (AC Milan)
Preparation Matches for EURO 2024
June 4 v. Finland (Lisboa – Estádio José Alvalade)
June 8 v. Croatia (Oeiras – Estádio Nacional)
June 11 v. Ireland (Aveiro – Estádio Municipal de Aveiro)
EURO 2024 – Group F Matches
June 18 v. Czech Republic
June 22 v. Turkey
June 26 v. Georgia
Photo Cred: Armando Franca - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
