Fernando Santos’ facet journey to Qatar in what is perhaps Cristiano Ronaldo’s final probability to win the World Cup.
Portugal suffered a significant World Cup scare by qualifying for the event by means of the playoffs.
Nevertheless, their performances since then have solely generated extra doubts round Fernando Santos’ attainable lineup selections.
Cristiano Ronaldo got here underneath hearth after the workforce didn’t qualify for the Nations League finals in September. However Santos has far more to fret about forward of the Qatar event.
Let’s check out the primary lineup competitions in Portugal’s squad.
Changing Patricio?
Rui Patricio has remained Portugal’s primary keeper regardless of his occasional errors.
Nevertheless, not like final yr’s Euros, Santos has proven critical curiosity in offering Diogo Costa with extra recreation time.
The Porto goalkeeper began 4 of Portugal’s final 5 Nations League video games forward of World Cup. However Santos will probably choose to have Patricio’s expertise within the essential video games.
A strong back-four
Santos has primarily used a four-man line of defense led by Manchester Metropolis’s Ruben Dias.
Dias will probably play alongside Pepe, who has maintained his place in Portugals’ lineup regardless of competitors from the likes of Jose Fonte and David Carmo.
Joao Cancelo has a sealed beginning spot at right-back, with Diogo Dalot and Cedric Soares offering nice depth for the place.
Santos additionally has a number of dependable choices on the left-hand facet of his defensive setup.
Nuno Mendes has remained Santos’ first alternative for the place. Nevertheless, the Paris Saint-Germain star faces competitors from Raphael Guerreiro, who was a key participant for Portugal throughout their Euro 2020 marketing campaign.
Midfield: Fernandes and who?
Santos has examined out completely different midfield formations, aiming to stability out his lineup with a dependable midfield trio.
In an anticipated 4-3-3 formation, Fernandes will play as Portugal’s most attacking possibility.
Ruben Neves will probably keep as play behind the Man Utd star, offering Portugal with extra defensive stability.
This leaves Santos with two decisions for the remaining spot. He can both use William Carvalho as a box-to-box midfielder or belief Vitinha as a extra attacking possibility.
Having two dependable decisions for this place makes Portugal extremely unpredictable, because it additionally impacts their attacking setup.
Attacking line: The ‘Ronaldo issue’
Regardless of latest criticism, Santos have proven no real interest in enjoying with out Ronaldo in his lineup.
The 37-year-old has hardly ever didn’t ship in vital video games and might be extremely motivated to bounce again from his sluggish begin at Man Utd this season.
One other excellent news for Ronaldo is that he doesn’t have shut opponents in Portugal’s squad.
Joao Felix has failed to completely regain his greatest kind this season, whereas each Raphael Leao and Diogo Jota can play on the left-hand facet.
Much like Ronaldo, Bernardo Silva will most definitely proceed his key position in Portugal’s lineup.
For the remaining spot, Leao has probability of edging out Jota on account of nice begin to the brand new season at Milan.