Selection with an open path to European

Placed in Group J, Portugal are the clear favourites. The Quinas team has already played 37 times with five opponents and lost only once, back in 1961: on October 8 in Luxembourg, Eusebio scored a goal in his first game for the national team, but did not avoid a 4-2 defeat. The remaining 36 games ended with 31 wins and 5 draws, with 118 goals scored and 19 goals conceded.

As if history weren’t enough, the FIFA rankings amplify the potential gap: Portugal sits in 9th place, well ahead of Slovakia (55th), the better-placed rival. In this context, qualification for the final stage appears to be mandatory, not least because the first two in each group qualify.

“Favorite” Santos thinks only about the World Cup
“Optimistic? Yes, Portugal is clearly the favourite, but let’s not think about it. Let’s think about the World Cup,” said Fernando Santos. In the first reaction after the draw, the coach made it clear that he was only interested in the World Cup, which will be held in Qatar starting November 20: “This is the first competition we are going to play and not pretend to be European, as it would be natural and normal. Now the most important thing is the world championship. I’m going to put this lottery in my suitcase and forget about it. Only in January I’ll think about it.” The Euro 2024 qualifying round runs from March to November 2023, followed by the Nations League playoffs.