Several Continental classics await as we enter the Quarterfinals of Euro 2024. After last night’s dramatic clash between Portugal and Slovenia, we finalized the candidates for this year’s Euro quarterfinals. So far, the matches have been pretty evenly matched, with heavyweights underperforming and underdogs shining. This means the quarterfinal encounters are only going to be more intense!
The match between Portugal and France is the quarterfinal encounter fans would be most eager to see. Portugal has been one of the revered teams for the Euro title. They have, by paper, one of if not the strongest squads in Europe. However, they haven’t been able to bring the best out of them. They almost let their Quarterfinal spot slip out of their hands against Slovenia. If not for Diogo Costa, then Slovenia would have been the one facing France.
France has been the favorite for any major tournament for the past several years, and they’ve been continuously showing why. However, they seem somewhat lost in the four matches they’ve played in Euro 2024. They won a not-so-convincing victory against a weakened Belgium in the Euro playoffs. They have struggled to score goals from open play.
The Portugal vs France encounter is set for Saturday, 6th of July. The match will take place at Volksparkstadion Hamburg and start at 1:00 am. Don’t forget to tune in for this upcoming European classic!
Portugal Team Preview
Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal may be having a better European campaign compared to their last one in 2021, but they are not playing as expected. The same goes for Ronaldo himself, as he is yet to score a goal in this Euro. However, they have certainly leveled up their gameplay since Fernando Santos bid farewell. Roberto Martínez’s new plans have transitioned Portugal into having a more attacking approach.
Portugal has the highest win percentage record (73%) in Europe for the last two years. They came into the tournament in flying form. However, they were held back by Czechia till the last minute until Francisco Conceição scored the winner for them. This was followed by a comfortable win against one of the Quarterfinalists, Turkey, by 3-0. Portugal seemed to be on their usual dominant gameplay, only to be beaten by Georgia in the next match. They conceded two goals and failed to score a single one. The same happened in their playoff match against Slovenia, where they failed to score within regulation time. They managed to win the game on penalties, which should have been a comfortable win for Portugal.
Under Martinez, Portugal has come to use their immensely potent attacking line more effectively. They also tend to hold more possession and build up attacks, which contrasts with Santos’s style of play. They are now more fearless and take the play to the opponent. Also, not to mention players like Bruno Fernandes and Bernardo Silva leading their midfield unit. As a result, Portugal’s forward line is continuously fed with great balls. However, the strikers have failed to convert those chances into goals in the last two matches, which should concern Robert Martinez.
Portugal has one of the most talented and pacey forwards onboard. Players like Rafael Leão, Diogo Jota, and not to mention the great Christiano Ronaldo, can wreak havoc on any team’s defense. The match is bound to end with multiple goals the day they click.
Predicted XI: Diogo Costa (GK), Mendes, Pepe, Diaz, João Cancelo, Vitinha, Palhinha, Raphael Leão, Bruno ardo Fernandes, Bernardo Silva, Christiano Ronaldo
France Team Preview
France is one of the favorite title contenders for this year’s Euro, as they have been for the last few. Their attacking strength has been unparalleled in recent years. But they have seemed to lose that tempo for the last few months. However, they have certainly tightened their defenses. They have been a great side defensively, conceding only once in their European campaign.
France was already a little shaky before coming to Euro 2024. They were not in their best form, and they aren’t now either. In their first match, they beat Austria 1-0 after a hard-fought match. They were forced to finish the match in a draw against the Netherlands in their next match. In their last group stage match, where they were expected to win against the already eliminated Poland, they were again held to a draw. And to everyone’s surprise, they finished second in their group under Austria.
It needs no saying that France has one of the best attacking lines in the world. Players like Antoine Griezmann and Oliver Giroud grace their forward line, not to mention Kylian Mbappe, one of the world’s best. In any major tournament they are expected to score several goals in their matches. Mbappe usually ends up scoring the most of them. But the opposite has happened in this Euro as the team is yet to score any open play goal. They have scored a total of 3 goals till now, out of which two are are own goals. Only one has come from the legs of Mbappe, and that too in a penalty. Deschamps will have to take a special look into it before they go up against Portugal.
A silver lining for France is that their defense has improved considerably. They have secured three clean sheets out of their four encounters, which is a great feat. The likes of Jules Koundé and William Saliba have done their job brilliantly. When it comes to strengths, France’s greatest weapon is its adaptability and ability to hold on to the match no matter how bad the scoreline is.
Predicted XI: Maignan (GK), Theo Hernandez, Upamecano, Saliba, Kounde, Kante, Tchouameni, Griezmann, Thuram, Mbappe, Dembele
Portugal vs France Betting Odds
Portugal 3.52 – 3.00 Draw – 2.39 France (PariMatch).
Portugal vs France Head-to-Head Stats
Throughout history, Portugal and France have faced each other for a total of 28 times, and Portugal has lost 19 of them. In the last 7 of their outings, France won in four of the matches, whereas Portugal won only once. This all indicates the superiority of France.
However, the last four times, the matches have been toe to toe. Both have one win to their name, while the other two matches ended in draws. Also, Portugal has had a higher win percentage record than France for the last two years. The last time they faced each other was in Euro 2021, when they both kept scoring goals until the score settled in a 2-2 draw.
Portugal vs France Betting Tips and Predictions
France vs Portugal is one of those Euro games that can go either way at any moment. But still, for the sake of predictions, France is more likely to triumph over Portugal because of their number of clean sheets and their unbeaten run. They are hard to differentiate in terms of strengths. Both have incredible attacking lines and midfield. Both have world-class players aboard. However, France edges out Portugal because of their defensive superiority.
Portugal might have been favored over France had they not displayed the inconsistency shown in their game against Slovenia and their shocking loss against Georgia. They have become unpredictable. The team will likely be low on confidence following their last match.
This will surely be a heavily contested match with the potential to go to extra time. I would not be surprised if the match goes to penalties, provided Portugal finds its form again.