Team Preview – Portugal
Portugal qualified for this year’s World Cup through the playoffs against Sweden of whom they beat 4 – 2 over the two legs. Portugal made things difficult for themselves in their qualifying group, drawing away to Israel twice and losing to Russia early on who would go on to win the group by a solitary point.
Brazil will be the sixth World Cup appearance for the Selecção who will go into the tournament ranked fourth in the world. They have been drawn in a competitive Group G that includes European heavyweights Germany, CONCACAF top qualifiers the United States and African powerhouses Ghana.
Leading the Portuguese will be the illustrious, Cristiano Ronaldo who will be hoping to finally bring glory to the Iberian nation who came as close as fourth back in 2006 and 3rd way back in England 1966.
Manager – Paulo Bento took charge of Portugal shortly after their 2010 World Cup. Bento guided Portugal through the 2012 European Championship qualification. The former Sporting Lisbon manager took the side to the semi finals in Ukraine and Poland where they were knocked out against arch rivals and eventual champions, Spain in a penalty shoot out.
The 44 year old was linked with a coaching role at Manchester United in his early managerial career and in his four years at Sporting he managed to win two Portuguese Cup and two Portuguese Supercups. Bento’s priority will be arranging a side to play to the strengths of captain Ronaldo.
Star Player – No player is bigger than the team but if any one player represents Portugal it is the indomitable Cristiano Ronaldo. The 29 year Real Madrid star is the key factor for Portugal’s qualification for Brazil 2014 having scored all 4 goals in their two legged win over Sweden, including a hat trick in the second leg.
The former Manchester United winger will captain the side and in typical Ronaldo fashion he will be confident of adding to his 49 goals in 111 matches. National glory is the final frontier for the superstar who has won it all.
There is no point trying to convince people otherwise, if Portugal is to make it further than the Round of 16 they will need CR7 to be at his best because while there is talent in this Portuguese squad, none of them really come close to the player of whom I believe is the best in the world.
The biggest concern is that he is currently under the same injury cloud that had Real Madrid concerned that he could miss the Champions League final, which he did eventually play the full 120 minutes in.
Players to watch
Joao Moutinho – The 27 year old Monaco midfielder is the closest player Portugal have to Spain’s pass master Xavi. Standing 5ft 7, Moutinho is the player that Portugal will rely on to control the tempo of the match and play the key balls for the Portuguese front three.
Moutinho made his debut for Sporting Lisbon when he was only 17 before going on to captain them at the tender age of 20! His box to box dynamism saw him snapped up by rivals Porto in 2010 before money stacked Monaco forked out 25 million Euros for him last year.
Rui Patricio – Portugal has never really had a settled number 1 since Vitor Baia in the late 1990s and early 2000s but since the emergence of Rui Patricio that has all changed. The 26 year old has gone from strength to strength and has now played 280 competitive matches for Sporting Lisbon.
Patricio made his debut for Portugal in 2010 and has gone onto to earn 30 caps and is set to hold the number 1 jersey for a long time since in “goalkeeper years” he is only about 20 or 21. He has already been linked with big money moves to Serie A and the Premier League and if he manages a glove full of clean sheets in the World Cup, a move abroad could be very much on the cards.
William Carvalho – Another product of Sporting Lisbon’s renowned youth academy, Carvalho is a dominative midfielder who is akin to Manchester City’s Yaya Toure. For Sporting his is often deployed behind the two play making midfielders but he has a versatile passing game and he is not afraid at having a crack at a worldie.
The 22 year old is capped for all of Portugal’s youth team and has 4 senior caps and could be a bolter for Portugal’s starting line-up against Germany on the 17th of June.
Their draw
Their first match is up against Germany in Salvador before taking on the USA in the heat of the Amazon before facing off against Ghana in what could be the crucial match to ensure that Portugal go through to the knockout phase.
Previous Best and Prediction
Portugal, lead by Benfica ace Eusebio made it all the way to third place in the 1966 World Cup while their 4th place finish in 2006 is also deserved of a mention. Many have Portugal finishing runners up in Group G and I am going to go along with the prediction however I think it will be very tight. I can see them picking up a point against Germany and Ghana and beating the USA which will see them sitting on 5 points and into the Round of 16. 2nd spot will see them most likely up against Belgium or Russia, both tough opponents but both beatable. Portugal is decent once they get through the qualifying campaign so I wouldn’t be shocked if they made a dash to the quarter finals.
World Cup Record
23 matches 12 wins 3 draws 8 losses 39 goal for 22 against top scorer Eusebio (9)
FTSAUS Fact – The 2004 European Championship final is the closest that Portugal have ever come to winning a senior international tournament, losing 1 nil to Greece on home soil. In the youth teams however Portugal has a rich history of success with 2 under 20s World Cups and 9 European Championships across different ages. The Selecção will be desperate to turn their fortunes around in Brazil.
Extra time – I know it probably isn’t too professional of me, but my international team is Portugal so I really want to see them make something out of this year’s World Cup. Whether they can do that is unlikely because even though their squad has some credible European experience they are too set up to play for Cristiano Ronaldo and even though he is the best player in the world, he won’t be able to pull out 5 or 6 man of the match performances in a row. Portugal’s best chance was around a decade ago with the likes of Luis Figo and Rui Costa in the side and now Paulo Bento is overseeing a transitioning faze. Saying that I am excited to watch them play as they play a fast tempo style, similar to the Premier League.
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