Roberto Martinez in Liechtenstein recalls that a place in the Portuguese national team is “expensive”

Coach Roberto Martinez said this Wednesday that Portugal are in Liechtenstein for a win, even though everything has already been decided in the qualifying phase for Euro 2024 football, and reminded the players that a place in the team “is expensive.”

“We are here to win the game. The players know it’s expensive to be here. And hence, they know that their concentration and behavior should always be at their maximum. So I expect the same commitment that they had in the match. Other games. These are important games to be included in the list of players who will be at the European Championships,” said Roberto Martinez.

The Spanish coach spoke to reporters at a press conference on Thursday’s meeting at the Rheinstadion in Vaduz in the ninth round of Group J, qualifying for the next European Championship.

“We are going to fight for our ninth victory. Representing the national team is enough of a goal even when we have already qualified. We want our ninth win to then reach our 10th. We also want to grow and improve as a team. national team, and therefore we must also use these games for this,” he said.

Martinez played down the significance of the five losses that occurred in the national team (Nelson Semedo, Diogo Dalot, Pepe, Matheus Nunez and Rafael Lean) and reminded that this is something “normal” in the November window of international football.

“There is no reason to worry. This is a time when there are many games, when players participate in many competitions. This is normal. It is not a problem and we are ready,” the 50-year-old coach said.

The national team coach also spoke to goalkeeper José Sa, who will start against Liechtenstein and win his first cap after a long spell with the Quinas.

“He (Jose Sa) has been waiting for this moment for seven years. For seven years he spent a lot of effort and dedication to be able to take the field. In this historic qualification, it was important for José Sa to play the game.” , Martinez explained.

The Liechtenstein-Portugal match will take place at 20:45 (19:45 in Lisbon), and will be refereed by Swede Mohammed Al-Hakim.

Portugal, who also finished top of Group J, top the group with 24 points, eight more than second-placed Slovakia, and Luxembourg third with 11. Iceland is fourth with 10 points, ahead of Bosnia and Herzegovina with 11 points. nine, and Liechtenstein, last, without points.