The battle is expected to be closer as both teams, the National Team of Portugal and the National Team of Slovakia, vie for an increase in their standings of the qualifying campaign. As an offensive team, Portugal will be looking to dictate the course of the match; on the other hand, Slovakia is known for its structured defense, which will try to create the surprise of their lifetime.
This article gives you a full preview of the match, latest Portugal National Football Team vs Slovakia National Football Team Lineups, team news, predictions, and analysis. Dive in to find out what to expect from this tightly knotted match.
Portugal vs Slovakia: Match Preview
A Tense Match
This match is crucial for both Portugal and Slovakia. Rich in talent, the former will look to exploit the weaknesses of their opponents, while the latter will rely on their defensive structure and selective counterattacks.
Anyway, international football equals competition, which means that fans from each team will expect much from this clash.
Previous Matches
Portugal has fared better in the direct matches against Slovakia throughout its history, but Slovakia has been showing more tactical discipline and composure lately with counter-attacks. And it is on such counter-attacks that Portugal have not been able to do the trick so far when they have been up against teams which organize their defensive shape deep and unleash quick counter-attacks.
Portugal National Football Team vs Slovakia National Football Team Lineups
Portugal National Football Team predicted Lineup
Portugal is likely to play a very aggressive and efficient line-up of all its attacking strengths. With the experience of captain Cristiano Ronaldo, the Portuguese will start strong from the word go and masterminded the possession of the game. Here’s the possible starting 11 of Portugal lineup –
Formation: 4-3-3
- Goalkeeper: Diogo Costa
- Right Back: Diogo Dalot
- Center Back: António Silva
- Center Back: Rúben Dias
- Left Back: João Cancelo
- Midfielder: Vitinha
- Midfielder: João Palhinha
- Midfielder: Bruno Fernandes
- Right Winger: Bernardo Silva
- Striker: Cristiano Ronaldo (Captain)
- Left Winger: Diogo Jota
Key Men for Portugal
- Cristiano Ronaldo: The captain and all-time goal-scorer for Portugal will be at the center of the attack. His experience and leadership will play a great role, and his scoring can be a decider in this match.
- Bruno Fernandes: For Portugal, Fernandes’s creativity and vision from midfield make him pretty important. Breaking down Slovakia’s defense will most likely depend on orchestral play and goals and assists.
- Rúben Dias: One of the best defenders in Europe, Dias must be the man organizing defense, making sure Slovakia neutralize some of their counterattacks. He is Portugal’s key defensive leader.
Slovakia National Football Team predicted Lineup
Slovakia, famous for their defensive solidity and disciplined approach, will look to frustrate the attacking players of Portugal by likely setting up in this manner. Below is the probable Slovakia starting line-up:
Formation: 4-3-3
- Goalkeeper: Martin Dúbravka
- Right Back: Matej Tóth
- Center Back: Norbert Gyömbér
- Center Back: Milan Škriniar
- Left Back: Dávid Hancko
- Midfielder: Ondrej Duda
- Midfielder: Stanislav Lobotka
- Midfielder: László Bénes
- Right Winger: Róbert Mak
- Striker: Róbert Boženík
- Left Winger: Lukáš Haraslín
Key Players for Slovakia
- Milan Škriniar: The brains of Slovakia’s defense, it is in Škriniar that their leadership and interpretation of the game will seem most important to mark Portugal’s attacking line out. His awareness in defense is a good fit for Slovakia’s hopes of taking something from the game.
- Stanislav Lobotka: In the midfield, Lobotka has the job of breaking up and neutralizing the opponent’s attacks while sending the ball forward in Slovakia’s dangerous forwards. Possession-holding under pressure will be important.
- Róbert Boženík: Róbert Boženík is Slovakia’s number one striker to convert any half chances that come his way. His pace and position will be pertinent for Slovakia’s chances of scoring on a counter-attack.
Portugal vs Slovakia Latest Team News
Portugal Team News
Portugal will play with full strength for this game, as most of the players left out of the last match were returning to the pitch. Christiano Ronaldo should start, as he is still in his long international career. João Cancelo and Bruno Fernandes would both feature in vital roles, creative as well as defensive of their own imitation format. Portugal Manager Roberto Martínez is also expected not to change his favorite attacking line, as Slovakia’s defense was solidly organized.
Slovakia Team News
Slovakia also has no serious injury issues ahead of this game and should come out with a solid defensive team. Milan Škriniar is fit and will be the rock in the back for Slovakia. Ondrej Duda and Stanislav Lobotka should determine the flow of the game with the middle, but should have more shots on goal distribution for Slovakia. Francesco Calzona, coach for Slovakia, is most likely going to play it safe from the back and wait for his chances on the counter.
Prediction for the Match: Portugal vs Slovakia
Portugal possesses one of the better teams in football worldwide. It also possesses a great attacking threat with players like Cristiano Ronaldo, Bruno Fernandes, and Bernardo Silva. In simple words, Portugal is excellent at keeping possession, creating chances, and scoring them clinically. On the other hand, their defense is exposed many times while there’s no cover from the midfield due to rapid counterattacks.
The real core strength of this Slovakia side is that they really defend quite well as a unit. In fact, with Milan Škriniar marshalling the defense and Stanislav Lobotka making it hard for opposition, they will probably sit deep and invite pressure. One of the Slovakian weaknesses is that they have fewer attacking options and may find it hard to get clear goal-scoring chances going forward against Portugal’s defense.
Final Score Prediction
Portugal is expected to play out the first session of this game since they possess an offensive squad supplemented by Slovakia’s defensive approach. Portugal will find a way to break through into Slovakia’s defense and win the match narrowly.
Prediction: Portugal 2-1 Slovakia
Portugal would be dominating most of the play, but it may be not so easy to score in the early parts as Slovakia’s defense will be very organized. Slovakia would be trying to steal the points from Portugal, but at the end, it is going to be Portugal’s attacking genius that eventually make them win.
Conclusion
The Portugal vs Slovakia match is likely to be an exciting contest because both sides are coming out with unique strengths from their personal entities. The team of Portugal with the attacking fire power of Cristiano Ronaldo will test the solidity of Slovakia’s defense, led by Milan Škriniar. But Slovakia might have an ace up their sleeve in the up-market performance if they can manage to keep Portugal’s forwards at bay and strike on the counterattack.
It is going to be a very tricky match, thus full of battles between tactics and men’s proficiency. Such key players on both sides mean this one’s going to be quite an excellent spectacle for fans of football all around the globe.
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