Portugal Euro 2024 squad guide: Fixtures, predictions and best players

There’s a new sheriff in charge of the esteemed Portuguese national team, with Roberto Martinez now tasked with galvanising the 2016 European champions having failed to lead a mightily gifted Belgium generation to glory.

Martinez’s reign has started well enough with Portugal breezing through a tame qualifying group. Their kind route into this summer’s tournament renders Martinez’s side tough to assess, but there’s no doubt the Iberians have a great chance of enjoying a deep run in Germany.

Jose Mourinho is very bullish, lauding this Portugal squad as the best in the country’s history, so the pressure is on Martinez and his players to deliver. The former Premier League boss has the tools at his disposal.

Here’s 90min’s guide to Portugal at Euro 2024.

There are few weaknesses when taking a glance at Portugal’s squad.

Roberto Martinez’s roster is immensely balanced, with the only questions for the manager being how he will appease all of Portugal’s majestic attacking stars. He can’t cram them all into the starting XI.

The squad boasts youthful exuberance and experienced heads, as well as steel and guile. Martinez did have to make a change to his original squad, though, with Al Nassr’s Otavio pulling out through injury. Man City’s Matheus Nunes was picked as his replacement.

Portugal’s Euro 2024 squad

Fernando Santos may have guided Portugal to unlikely glory at Euro 2016, but he became distinctly unpopular by the end of his reign with many believing the wily old-timer’s antiquated ideals were inhibiting the talented squad at his disposal.

The Selecao weren’t the underdogs they were at Euro 2016 at Euro 2020 and the 2022 World Cup, but Santos seemingly failed to recognise that and they underperformed as a result.

Martinez is far from tactically pristine but Portugal are expected to assert themselves on matches this summer. The manager will certainly embrace the supremacy of his squad.

Martinez has drifted away from a back five in favour of a 4-3-3 formation, with Portugal adopting a fairly fluid build-up with rotations and interchanges aplenty. They have players capable of operating all over the pitch, ensuring such position switches are seamless.

Portugal have the ball-to-feet playmakers to receive between the lines, but direct balls in behind are a feature of Martinez’s team as well – especially when Rafael Leao’s involved. This variability makes them hard to defend and Portugal will be proactive without the ball to ensure they spend as much time in possession as possible.

Portugal aren’t exactly familiar with their Group F opponents, with the Selecao facing their group rivals a combined 15 times.

Portugal have won 12 of these games, losing once to Czechia and twice to Turkey. They’ve met Euro novices Georgia just once.

The Selecao recently battled Turkey with a spot in the 2022 World Cup at stake. Portugal beat their Group F opponents 3-1 in a play-off semi-final.

Portugal’s Euro 2024 group stage fixtures

Portugal’s record vs Euro 2024 group stage opponents

Portugal’s potential knockout stage opponents

Portugal are the strongest team in Group F and the clear favourites to top the group. Should they breeze through as expected, Martinez’s side will face one of three potential third-place finishers in the round of 16.

Portugal will face third place from Group A, B or C and also leave them on the ‘right’ side of the draw should France and England win their respective groups.

A second-place finish will want to be keenly avoided given that Portugal would likely face France in the last 16. The Selecao take on the winners of Group D, with the Netherlands and dark-horses Austria set to fight Les Bleus for top spot.

A third-place finish would be a major disappointment and Martinez’s men would take on the winners of Group B or C – potentially Spain or England – in the first knockout round.

36-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo has been named in the 26-man squad, although Portugal performed better when PSG striker Goncalo Ramos led the line in Qatar 18 months ago. Many will be clamouring for Ronaldo this summer, even if the superstar veteran isn’t a major contributor to the collective.

Still, Ronaldo is Portugal’s leading appearance-maker and top goalscorer. He’s footballing royalty and he’ll have a big say at Euro 2024, there’s no doubt about that.

If Ronaldo does start ahead of Ramos, Bruno Fernandes will be crucial to the 36-year-old’s success. The Man Utd star emerged as Portugal’s talisman in qualifying – recording 13 goal contributions in ten games. He can pick the lock of deep-lying defences and set Portugal’s counter-attacks alight with his passing range.

Rafael Leao should also benefit from Fernandes’ vision and execution, with the Milan star enjoying a productive end to the 2023/24 season. He’s yet to ignite for the national team, though, and has just four goals in 26 caps.

“The best way to judge a player is to look at the reaction in the changing room. Joao, at 19 years of age, earned the respect of the changing room in two days. I’d never seen that in my career. It was striking.”

That was Martinez discussing the precocious Joao Neves, who could play a major role for Portugal this summer having impressed in the warm-up matches ahead of the tournament. The start of the 19-year-old’s senior career was fairly subdued, but his subtle brilliance was on full display in a recent friendly against Finland.

Purists will appreciate his tucked shirt aesthetic, too.

Neves, however, will do well to break into a midfield that’s set to have Joao Palhinha operating as the screener, Bruno Fernandes functioning as chief creator and Vitinha working as the box-to-box technician. The PSG midfielder starred in Paris last season and is now aiming to break out on the international stage.

There may only be room for either Neves or Vitinha to start this summer.

The depth and quality of Portugal’s squad has been well-documented, yet not many have spoken about them as Euro 2024 winners. Why?

Their path to the semi-finals appears pretty straightforward, too. Should Martinez not overcomplicate things and ensure his starting XI is balanced, Portugal could advance into the last four without breaking a sweat.

Perhaps some don’t trust Martinez, who didn’t quite make it happen with Belgium. However, should Portugal reach the semi-finals, they’ve got as good a chance as anybody to win the whole thing.

Joao Neves has Young Player of the Tournament potential and Ronaldo will surely add a few more goals to his record tally.

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