A fifth World Cup marketing campaign beckons for Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo, however there is no such thing as a place for injured Liverpool ahead Diogo Jota.
Cristiano Ronaldo will as soon as once more pull on the captain’s armband as Portugal head to the World Cup in Qatar. The star ahead has been named by head coach Fernando Santos to guide his nation in his fifth World Cup marketing campaign.
The 37-year-old could also be exhibiting a number of indicators of slowing down as his profession heads in the direction of its sundown years, and he won’t be the one veteran in Santos’s aspect, with 39-year-old central defender Pepe additionally named within the squad.
They are going to be joined by Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes and Joao Felix.
However Joao Moutinho, José Fonte and Renato Sanches have all been not noted of the 26-man squad getting on the airplane. There was heartbreak, too, for Liverpool ahead Diogo Jota, who has been dominated out of a Qatar run on account of damage.
“What can Portugal actually obtain?” Santos requested reporters gathered in Cidade do Futebol in Oeiras. “I’ll reply in a quite simple means – and that’s to be world champions. I imagine that’s attainable, my gamers additionally imagine in it, and subsequently that’s what this crew can obtain.”
It’s not that every one skilled gamers are making the journey to Qatar – 19-year-old Benfica defender Antonio Silva has acquired his first call-up and might be carefully watched by membership expertise scouts from world wide.
Portugal earned their first main worldwide trophy on the 2016 European Championship, and likewise received the inaugural Nations League at residence in 2019. However the crew did not get previous the spherical of 16 on the 2018 World Cup after which fell on the identical stage in Euro 2020.
Santos defended his choice selections for the Qatar 2022 marketing campaign, hoping both to shoulder the blame for failure, or bask within the glory of victory. “I do all of the selecting on this case so, naturally, I assume all duties,” he stated. “If all goes nicely, I’m accountable. If not, which won’t be the case, I may also be accountable.”
The Portugal crew in full:
Goalkeepers
- Diogo Costa (Porto)
- Rui Patricio (Roma)
- José Sa (Wolverhampton)
Defenders
- Diogo Dalot (Manchester United)
- Danilo Pereira (PSG)
- Joao Cancelo (Manchester Metropolis)
- Antonio Silva (Benfica)
- Pepe (Porto)
- Ruben Dias (Manchester Metropolis)
- Nuno Mendes (PSG)
- Raphael Guerreiro (Borussia Dortmund)
Midfielders
- William Carvalho (Actual Betis)
- Ruben Neves (Wolverhampton)
- Otavio Monteiro (Porto)
- Bernardo Silva (Manchester Metropolis)
- Matheus Nunes (Wolverhampton)
- Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United)
- Joao Mario (Benfica)
- Joao Palhinha (Fulham)
- Vitinha (PSG)
Forwards
- André Silva (Leipzig)
- Ricardo Horta (Braga)
- Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
- Joao Felix (Atlético Madrid)
- Rafael Leao (AC Milan)
- Goncalo Ramos (Benfica)