Portugal vs Scotland
The UEFA Nations League contest between Portugal and Scotland is expected to bring fireworks this weekend, as it will feature some of the top goal-getters in football today.
If you’re a Manchester United fan like myself, then this is for you, as Cristiano Ronaldo, Bruno Fernandes, Diogo Dalot, and Scott McTominay will get to represent Old Trafford at Lisbon on Sunday night.
Portugal will be aiming for their second consecutive win in this tournament to go on top of League A Group 1. Roberto Martinez’s men are coming off a 2-1 win over Croatia to kick off their campaign.
On the other hand, Scotland suffered a heartbreaking 3-2 defeat against Poland, so they’re keen to bounce back to secure their first points in the league phase.
The UEFA Nations League 2024 odds predict that this is going to be a cracker, so SBOTOP is here to bring you the action.
Talking Points
Ronaldo remains central to Portugal’s success
Cristiano Ronaldo’s importance for Portugal has been a debate over the past few years because of his age. But as shown last night, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner still has a lot left on his tank.
Portugal got out to a 1-0 lead against Croatia when Diogo Dalot found the back of the net in the seventh minute. Shortly after the opening goal, Cristiano Ronaldo added his name to the scoresheet by tapping in a well-placed cross from Nuno Tavares.
Normally, you would see Ronaldo do his signature goal celebration, but this time, he fell onto his knees and became emotional since he knew the importance of the moment.
He now has 900 goals in his senior career, a remarkable milestone for one of the sport’s all-time greats.
Ronaldo was also the first to break the 800-goal barrier, as he did so in late 2021 while in his second stint with Manchester United.
As a testament to his uber-competitive nature, the 39-year-old now has his eyes set on reaching 1,000 goals for his career.
Ronaldo and Dalot are not the only Portuguese capable of producing UEFA Nations League 2024 highlights, as they still have Bruno Fernandes, Rafael Leao, Bernardo Silva, Diogo Jota, Joao Felix, Pedro Neto, and Vitinha.
Portugal are also solid at the back, with Ruben Dias, Goncalo Inacio, and Nuno Mendes joining Dalot at the four-man backline, covering goalie Diogo Costa.
Is Scotland’s offencive firepower enough?
After scoring only three goals in the Euros, head coach Steve Clarke installed a 4-2-3-1 formation against Poland, and it gave them two goals against Poland.
Sebastian Szymanski and Robert Lewandowski scored to give the Poles a 2-0 lead, but Billy Gilmour and Scott McTominay leveled the game with goals of their own in the second half.
Poland ultimately escaped with the victory, as Nicola Zalewski converted a 97th-minute penalty after a costly foul by Grant Hanley.
Even if they stayed winless, there are a couple of positives to take away for Scotland against Poland.
First is the fact that Billy Gilmour and Scott McTominay regained their scoring touch, and Steve Clarke was pleased with the contributions of substitutes Ryan Gauld and Ben Doak, with the latter assisting in McTominay’s equaliser.
If Steve Clarke is keen to mix things up, we wouldn’t be surprised if he installs Ben Doak in the starting XI against Portugal.
History
Sunday marks the 16th matchup between Portugal and Scotland across all competitions. As expected, Portugal has the edge in the overall head-to-heads with eight wins, while Scotland notched four wins and three draws.
Portugal’s last defeat against Scotland was a 4-1 rout during a 1980 Euro qualifying match in March 1980. Since then, the Selecao notched four wins and two draws in their last six meetings against the Tartan Army, including a three-game winning streak.
Portugal won the inaugural UEFA Nations League in 2019 after topping Group A3 and beating Switzerland and the Netherlands in the knockout phase. However, they failed to replicate their first success in the 2021 and 2023 editions of the tournament.
As for Scotland, they’ve made it to League A for the first time after being in Leagues C and B in the first three editions of the UEFA Nations League.
As mentioned, Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 900th career goal against Croatia. All in all, CR7 has scored five goals for Sporting, 450 goals for Real Madrid, 131 for the Portuguese national team, 145 for Manchester United, 101 for Juventus, and 68 for Al-Nassr.
Meanwhile, Ronaldo’s main rival, Lionel Messi, is right behind him in the all-time scoring list, as he has scored 867 career goals to date.
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