It’s a brand new period for Portugal because it begins European Championship qualifying underneath a brand new coach and with Cristiano Ronaldo distant from soccer’s largest stadiums. Portugal begins its Euro 2024 qualifying marketing campaign at house towards Liechtenstein in Group J on Thursday, with Roberto Martinez debuting as coach and Ronaldo nonetheless within the squad.
It will likely be Ronaldo’s first look with Portugal since leaving Europe for Saudi membership Al Nassr after a principally disappointing stint with Manchester United. He is about to interrupt the all-time document of appearances with a nationwide group after tying Bader Al-Mutawa’s mark of 196 outings for Kuwait throughout final yr’s World Cup. (Watch: Kim Kardashian Son’s Video Waving At Lionel Messi During PSG Vs Rennes sport Goes Viral)
Martinez is taking up Fernando Santos, who stop in December after Portugal’s elimination by Morocco within the quarterfinals of the World Cup. Santos left amid the controversy of benching Ronaldo within the knockout stage of the match in Qatar.
Santos was answerable for Portugal for eight years, main the nationwide group to the Euro 2016 title the nation’s first main trophy and the 2019 Nations League title. He reached an settlement with the federation to go away two years earlier than his contract was to finish.
Lionel Pontes (ex Portuguese coach):
“Any smart coach knows that Ronaldo is a key player in the Portugal team.” pic.twitter.com/GKwIX3Aie1
— TCR. (@TeamCRonaldo) March 22, 2023
Martinez ended his six-year stint with Belgium after the group’s disappointing group-stage elimination on the World Cup. He arrived pledging to respect Ronaldo’s historical past with the nationwide group.
In addition to Ronaldo, Martinez will inherit a squad stuffed with proficient gamers reminiscent of Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes, Diogo Jota, Gonzalo Ramos and Joao Felix. The coach made few modifications to the squad, with 40-year-old defender Pepe additionally returning to play alongside the 38-year-old Ronaldo.
“We were briefly introduced to him on the training field,” Felix stated about Martinez. (India Vs Myanmar Match Preview, Live Streaming Details: When And Where To Watch Tri-Nation Football Opener Live In India)
“He explained to us some of his ideas, mainly for these two games, which are going to be very similar. He talked about the attacking dynamic, the connections between wingers and strikers.”
Felix downplayed Portugal’s possibilities within the matches towards Liechtenstein and at Luxembourg on Sunday.
“We always have to be prepared and not take any game lightly,” he stated.
“We have the recent example of the World Cup, when everyone thought we were going to get past Morocco and we didn’t. It’s always complicated, it’s always the best from each country, and everyone plays each game like it is a final. All games will be difficult, both at home and away. We have to be cautious.”
Portugal is unbeaten towards Liechtenstein, with six wins and a attract seven matches.
Portugal’s Euro 2024 qualifying group additionally consists of Iceland, Slovakia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. The high two nations from every of the ten teams qualify for the ultimate match in Germany.
