When the sides last faced off in the competition four years ago, they split ten goals across two games at Estadio da Luz.
Portugal must recover from yet another quarterfinal loss after an exciting, but ultimately unsuccessful, run at Euro 2024.
They also lost in the last eight at Qatar
2022.
This summer’s Selecao will be best remembered for Pepe’s final stand and
Cristiano Ronaldo’s unrestrained sobbing after losing to France on penalties.
Ronaldo is eager to play for his nation again, and head coach Roberto Martinez has called up the Al-Nassr star for this month’s Nations League matches despite the 41-year-old defender’s decision to hang up his boots.
Portugal, having finished second to group opponents Spain in the previous round, will ultimately be looking to go all the way in a competition they won back in 2019.
With so much talent at his disposal,
Martinez will have even more pressure to contend for awards after his Iberian neighbors took home the trophy and went on to win more in the Euros.
The former Belgium manager will obviously need to aim for maximum points from a home doubleheader (Scotland travels to Lisbon on Sunday), but a mere second place finish in Group 1 would guarantee a trip to the quarterfinals.
Since UEFA decided to add a second knockout round to the Nations League, Croatia only needs to finish in the top two to advance.
Poland and Scotland begin as outsiders.
But Thursday’s opponents will be anxious to prevent any complacency after their heartbreaking summertime Euros loss, as they start their bid to advance farther than in 2023, when they were defeated by Spain in the championship game.
The Croatians had a history of coming close to winning, but they unexpectedly lost their opening match in Germany after giving up a late goal to Italy. This meant they were eliminated from the ‘Group of Death.
But there was no panic, and long-serving head coach Zlatko Dalic has been trusted; also, Luka Modric is following in the footsteps of his former Real Madrid teammate Ronaldo by prolonging his international career.
Croatia’s primary mid-term goal will be to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, but the chance to win some hardware at last should inspire them to compete fiercely in the Nations League this year.