Portugal will surely be a team to be reckoned with as always. And talking about this team’s strength, you can’t help but immediately think of Cristiano Ronaldo, who is the continent’s best player.
Ronaldo’s 31 years old right now and it’s quite fair to say that he could already be past his prime. But even so, this guy can still carry any squad on his shoulders. Ronaldo is coming off another sensational 2015-16 campaign with Real Madrid, scoring over 50 goals for the sixth-consecutive season. He also scored five of Portugal’s 11 goals during the qualifiers, and is currently the country’s all-time leading scorer with 56 goals.
In a nutshell, expect a lot of positive results from this team so long as Ronaldo’s producing the goods. Portugal is the hands-down favorite (-115) to rise above Group F.
Team Weaknesses:
One big concern for the Portuguese is that they sometimes rely too much on Ronaldo to score their goals. There’s bound to be times when he doesn’t get himself going, which puts the pressure on somebody else to find the net or lead the offense. Hence, this is precisely where the likes of Pepe, Nani and Bernard Silva have to step it up and start playing with more initiative. Those three are bound to play integral roles in Portugal’s overall success in France.
Team Stats (During Euro Qualifiers):
Category
Stat
Goals Scored Per Game
1.38
Goals Conceded Per Game
0.63
Goal Attempts Per Game
15.13
Pass Completion Percentage
86%
Ball Possession Percentage
52%
Starting Lineup:
Position
Name (Age)
Career Caps
Goals
Goalie
Rui Patricio (28)
43
0
Defender
Vierinha (30)
20
1
Defender
Ricardo Carvalho (38)
84
5
Defender
Pepe (33)
70
3
Defender
Fabio Coentrao (28)
51
5
Midfielder
Tiago (35)
66
3
Midfielder
Joao Moutinho (29)
82
4
Midfielder
Miguel Veloso (30)
56
3
Forward
Nani (29)
94
18
Forward
Bernardo Silva (21)
6
0
Forward
Cristiano Ronaldo (31)
125
56
Writer’s Prediction
Portugal conquers Group F, but falls in the semifinal-round of the tournament.
