Portugal all set for a glorious epoch

Even before the summer's Euro 2016 triumph, Seleção fans had been getting more and more excited as a seemingly endless flow of extravagantly talented players steadily progressed from the Portugal youth ranks all the way up to the senior team.

Seven players who featured in the destruction of Andorra and the Faroe Islands in this weekend's World Cup qualifiers are aged 23 or under: João Cancelo (22), Raphael Guerreiro (22), André Gomes (23), Bernardo Silva (22), João Mário (23), André Silva (20) and Gelson Martins (21).

How has this happened? In an article written for ESPN, Tom Kundert explains why a prodigious number of outstanding young footballers are now emerging in Portugal and argues that it is a trend that is set to continue and augurs well for a glorious epoch for Portuguese football.

 

As usual, Cristiano Ronaldo stole the headlines in Friday's 6-0 win over Andorra. He joined the select group of Eusebio, Nuno Gomes and Pauleta by scoring four goals for the Seleção in a single match. More significant, though, was the 86th-minute strike by Porto centre-forward Andre Silva... 

To read the article headlined "André Silva proves that Portugal's Euro 2016 triumph is just the beginning" click here.

 

Related: André Silva hat-trick dispatches Faroe Islands

Related: Portugal smash nine-man Andorra