Portuguese Football in English
Portugal boss Roberto Martínez says Bruno Fernandes will be vital for Portugal at the upcoming European Championships, after the Manchester United man ended the season with glory for his club.
Fernandes won rave reviews for his efforts in helping United win the FA Cup final against Manchester City last month at Wembley, and the midfielder is expected to take on a similarly important role for his country at the Euros.
Roberto Martínez has been recounting his first meeting with Cristiano Ronaldo after taking the Portugal job last year, where he says the Seleção captain demonstrated his unquestionable hunger to keep playing for his country.
Martínez was appointed Portugal manager last January and Ronaldo has remained a central figure ever since. Speaking to Rio Ferdinand’s FIVE podcast, the Spaniard was asked about his first encounter with Ronaldo ahead of European Championship qualifiers last March.
Portugal’s 2024 UEFA European U17 Championship campaign came to a close in the final where they suffered a disappointing 3-0 defeat to Italy.
Federico Coletta headed home Cristian Cama’s cross in the 7th minute, the lead doubled nine minutes later when Francesco Camarda got past Rui Silva and Edgar Mota before beating Diogo Ferreira.
The Equipa das Quinas finished the first half strong but the contest was effectively ended five minutes after the restart when Camarda converted a fine pass from Mattia Mosconi.
João Santos emptied his bench but there was no way back against an Italian wide who had conceded just two goals in five previous matches in Cyprus.
It will be a long way back to Portugal for Santos and his side, an invaluable learning experience as they continue their development on and off the pitch.
Portugal played the first of three friendlies ahead of the European Championship in Germany starting later this month, beating Finland 4-2 in an entertaining match in Lisbon tonight.
In a controlled first half the Seleção built a 2-0 lead through goals by Rúben Dias and Diogo Jota (from the penalty spot).
Roberto Martínez made five changes at the break leading to a more anarchic second half, Bruno Fernandes and Finland’s Teemu Pukki both scoring beautifully taken braces for a 4-2 final score.
Al Nassr midfielder Otávio is out of the 2024 European Championship. The 29-year-old midfielder, who has 20 caps for Portugal, picked up a muscle tear in his final club game of the season on Friday.
Curiously it is another Brazilian-born midfielder, Matheus Nunes, who has been called up as replacement.
