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In modern football, Portugal occupy a unique place. They have turned up at every World Cup and Euro in the 2000s; they usually make it to the knockout rounds, exiting only by narrow margins. Few teams have been as consistent during this period. The Portugal team-sheet is star-studded: a Who’s Who of players from Europe’s best clubs.
Yet, despite being a top 10 team, Portugal never win anything, and in Brazil are likely to be no more than a nuisance. It will be hard knocking them out – and that team would have a strong chance of winning the title – but as a unit, Portugal are not yet among the very best in world football. They lack a world-class centre-forward, their midfield needs imagination, and they are too dependent on Cristiano Ronaldo to score goals.
Of course, the latter point is understandle to an extent. As a footballer, the Portuguese captain is currently matchless, and his counter-attacking abilities are simply brilliant. His masterclass against Sweden (more on that in a bit) saw him single-handedly confirm qualification. For Portugal to get anywhere near the quarter-finals, the Real Madrid man will need to be at the top of his game.
Road to the World Cup
In a group that included Russia, Azerbaijan, Israel, Northern Ireland and Luxembourg, Portugal would have fancied their chances of automatic qualification. Instead, they took the longer route; after going behind against Luxembourg in the opener (eventually clawing a 2-1 victory with goals from Ronaldo and Postiga), they beat Azerbaijan before losing 1-0 to Russia.
Paolo Bento’s men won the return fixture, but draws with Northern Ireland and Israel followed. After another draw with Israel, the gap with Russia had increased to 3 points: 18 to Russia’s 21. Despite beating Luxembourg 3-0 on the final day, Russia’s draw with Azerbaijan meant the Selecção das Quinas had finished 2nd, and would now have to defeat Sweden in a do-or-die play-off.
What followed wasn’t really a clash of football XIs: it was an individual contest, Ronaldo vs Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Both sides had one aim throughout the 2 legs: get it to the monkey. Between them the pair scored all 6 goals, with Ronaldo edging the PSG hitman 4-2 to see his side through.
Portugal played 12 matches (in total), winning 8 games and losing 1. They scored 24 goals and conceded 11.
Squad
Portugal’s traditional strengths and weaknesses are obvious – good on the flanks (as befits the homeland of Luis Figo and Ronaldo), a rock-solid defence and a combative central midfield. They are weak up front, where their options in front of goal – Hugo Almeida and Helder Postiga – have been decent for country but uninspiring for their clubs.
Paolo Bento has accordingly picked a side laden with power and pace, but perhaps lacking creativity in midfield, where Joao Moutinho is the only sure starter. Nani and Ronaldo will occupy either flank, with Fabio Coentrao reprising his Real Madrid supporting role for Ronaldo on the left.
Goalkeepers: Beto (Sevilla FC), Rui Patrício (Sporting Clube de Portugal), Eduardo (SC Braga).
Defenders: André Almeida (SL Benfica), Bruno Alves (Fenerbahçe SK), Fábio Coentrão (Real Madrid CF), Pepe (Real Madrid CF), João Pereira (Valencia CF), Ricardo Costa (Valencia CF), Neto (FC Zenit).
Midfielders: João Moutinho (AS Monaco FC), Miguel Veloso (FC Dynamo Kyiv), Raúl Meireles (Fenerbahçe SK), Rúben Amorim (SL Benfica), William Carvalho (Sporting Clube de Portugal), Rafa (SC Braga).
Forwards: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid CF), Éder (SC Braga), Hélder Postiga (SS Lazio), Hugo Almeida (Be?ikta? JK), Nani (Manchester United FC), Silvestre Varela (FC Porto), Vieirinha (VfL Wolfsburg).
Coach
Paolo Bento was appointed Portugal manager in September 2010. His first match in charge was a 3-1 home defeat of Denmark. The highlight of his tenure has been a 4-0 drubbing of neighbours Spain in a 2010 friendly, the heaviest defeat the world champions had suffered in 48 years.
As Portugal manager his record has been reasonably good, if unspectacular. He is a pragmatist who was criticized during his Sporting tenure for over-defensive football, but he has proved that he can get results. His only international test yet came at Euro 2012, where after a slow start Portugal made it to the semi-finals, losing to Spain on penalties after dominating the contest.
Bento has a long history with Sporting Lisbon, where he retired after a 4-year spell in 2004. Later as manager, he steered the club through the most successful period in its recent history, winning 4 trophies. His double career at Sporting presents several parallels with Diego Simeone’s at Atletico Madrid. They had concurrent careers as CDMs in the 1990s, and both were noted for their high work rate.
He also has a personal equation with several players. In his final seasons as a player, Bento played alongside a young Cristiano Ronaldo at Sporting; later as manager, he brought Nani, Joao Moutinho and Miguel Veloso into the first team. In a 2012 interview, Nani declared that he owed Bento his “whole career”.
Formations and Tactics
Over the last 4 years, Portugal’s attacking style has followed the traditional pattern: pace on the wings and physical power in central midfield. In Moutinho and Carvalho they have two technically sound players capable of spreading the play while protecting the defence. However, everything still goes through Ronaldo, which can make Portugal seem blunt if he’s up against a good full-back or has an off day. Against the Czech Republic at Euro 2012, the entire match was about Ronaldo vs Petr Cech; the Czech goalkeeper kept him out for most of the game, but worryingly, Portugal had nothing else to offer.
In midfield, Moutinho is an important creator, as is the winger Nani Nani. Both are adept at slipping through-balls for Ronaldo to run onto from a distance. Up front, both Postiga and Almeida know their job: to keep the centre-backs busy and create space for Ronaldo to run into from the left, shooting at goal with his stronger right foot.
Midfield
Bento’s only selection dilemma comes in central midfield. His favourite formation is 4-3-3, the one in which he has excelled as a player and manager.
The 3-man midfield here comprises of Veloso, William Carvalho and Moutinho. Carvalho has had a good club season and seems likely to replace Raul Meireles as a holding midfielder: he is strong, good on the ball and can run a midfield. However, Veloso wasn’t quite convincing as a deep-lying midfielder in the play-offs against Sweden. The deep-lier in a 4-3-3 has to be a capable tackler: Claude Makalele is perhaps the best-known example of a destroyer CDM. Veloso probably lacks the raw physical attributes required for that role.
So Bento could probably try a 4-2-3-1:
This allows for Carvalho’s rugged physicality to free up Veloso to get forward. Conversely, this could affect Portugal’s ability to press in midfield, making them too defensive without the ball.
Out wide, Pereira and Nani can link up well on the right, and Nani offers more defensive protection than Ronaldo, so this side of the formation is compact. The other flank is a different story: with Coentrao frequently getting forward to support Ronaldo, one of the midfielders may need to drop back to the left to provide defensive cover. This could be a tricky area for Portugal; if they lose the ball in their own half, an unprotected Alves could be quickly overloaded down the left.
Against better sides, Portugal will nullify attacks, but might fail to score themselves if Ronaldo is properly marked. Against lesser sides they will depend on sheer weight of quality to get through.
Best Starting Lineup
Goalkeeper: Rui Patricio
Defenders: Coentrao, Pepe, Bruno Alves, Pereira;
Midfielders: Veloso, Carvalho; Ronaldo, Moutinho, Nani;
Striker: Postiga
Ideal Formation: 4-2-3-1
History at the World Cup
Barring their splendid 1966 performance, Portuguese World Cup history is mostly derived from the last decade. In the late 90s, young Portuguese footballers such as Luis Figo, Pauleta and Manuel Rui Costa burst into prominence on the European club scene. The term ‘golden generation’ was coined for these players. During this period, Portugal went from the footballing backwaters of Western Europe to a powerhouse: semis at Euro 2000 and the final at Euro 2004, although their World Cup return in 2002 ended in the group stage.
Figo, who in his mid-20s was rivaled by only David Beckham as the best right midfielder of the age, returned from retirement to guide the side at World Cup 2006. In the semi-finals they met France, led by another returning great, Zinedine Zidane, whose penalty put Portugal out of the competition.
It is common to speak of ‘golden generations’ in football, and it often results in anticlimax – look at the last generation of English footballers - but in the Portuguese context it’s totally accurate. (A possible parallel can be found in the current crop of Belgian players.)
| Year | Performance |
| 1966 | 3rd |
| 1986 | Group stage exit |
| 2002 | Group stage exit |
| 2006 | 4th |
| 2010 | Round of 16 |
Best Performance at a World Cup
In 1966, the Selecção das Quinas made their World Cup debut.
Fired by the Mozambique-born Eusebio, arguably the best centre-forward of the 1960s, Portugal defeated Hungary and Brazil by identical 3-1 margins to qualify for the knockouts. In the quarters they ran into another debutant, North Korea, who stunned Goodison Park by racking up a 3-0 laed within 22 minutes. But then the Portuguese got going: Eusebio scored, converted a penalty, then repeated the process. In the 79th minute, Jose Augusto netted Portugal’s 5th to round off a highly improbably comeback. Portugal’s dream debut campaign ended in the S/Fs, losing 1-2 to hosts and eventual champions England. By all accounts it was a spectacular run, one that would take 40 years to match.
Prediction – How far can they go?
Even a unidimensional team can do well if that one dimension happens to be good enough, and there is no doubt that Ronaldo is good enough. The question that should concern Bento is whether the other 10 – all classy footballers in their own right - can step up in case their captain has an off day or is injured.
In a group with Germany, USA and Ghana, Portugal should qualify for the knockouts, but they will need to start better than they did at Euro 2012. Neither USA nor Ghana will be pushovers, and Germany are among the favourites, with more talented individuals than Portugal. With their defensive strengths, scoring the first goal ought to ensure they do not lose. Bento is not the most imaginative manager around, but is tactically intelligent and uses his resources well. Even getting to the last 4 with such a strong field would be tough – Brazil and Spain are also favourites, while Italy and Uruguay can be formidable on their day.
Prediction: A 2nd round exit at worst; quarterfinals at best.
To see other Team Previews : 2014 FIFA World Cup Team Previews
