"I don't believe that" - Portugal boss Fernando Santos evaluates Argentina's 2022 FIFA World Cup hopes after Saudi Arabia defeat

Portugal manager Fernando Santos has shared his thoughts on Argentina's chances of winning the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

La Albiceleste suffered a shock 2-1 defeat against Saudi Arabia in their tournament opener on November 22. Lionel Messi scored via a penalty to give his side the lead. However, Saled Al-Shehri and Salem Al-Dawsari scored within five minutes of each other in the second half to cause a major upset.

While Argentina came as the favorites to win the FIFA World Cup, they currently sit at the bottom of Group C, being the only team in the group with zero points.

Speaking ahead of Portugal's opener against Ghana on November 24, Santos claimed that Messi and Co. are still favorites for the trophy. He said (via Roy Nemer):

"England and France are favorites because they won and Argentina stopped being because they lost? I don't believe that and nothing is defined."

England registered a stunning 6-2 victory over Iran in their FIFA World Cup opener on November 21 while France beat Australia 4-1 on November 22.

Argentina, meanwhile, will likely need to win both of their remaining games to qualify for the Round of 16. They will next face Mexico on November 26 before clashing against Poland on November 30.

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Fernando Santos insists Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal are focused for their FIFA World Cup opener

Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo has been in the news in recent weeks following his explosive interview with Piers Morgan. He slammed Manchester United, Erik ten Hag, and former United striker Wayne Rooney in the interview.

This led to immense media scrutiny and eventually Ronaldo and the club parted ways on November 22.

The forward is now set to lead Portugal into the 2022 FIFA World Cup as they face Ghana today. Speaking ahead of the game, Santos stressed that Ronaldo's situation isn't a distraction to the side (via Mirror):

"The situation with Ronaldo hasn’t even been discussed during all of our time together as a squad. The conversation hasn’t come up - not even from Ronaldo. Whether he talks to the other players in the privacy of their rooms, I cannot say. They are able to do whatever they want then."

Portugal also have Uruguay and South Korea in their group. They will face the former on November 28 and the latter on December 2.