Portugal and France will end their EURO 2020 Group F journey on Wednesday, June 23, when they clash at Puskás Aréna for the first time since November 2020. Having already qualified out of the group, France don’t need to win to advance into the knockout stage, but losing their spot at the top of the group won’t be an option.
Portugal vs France
When: Wednesday, June 23 – 21:00 CEST
Where: Puskás Aréna in Budapest, Hungary
Weather: Clear, 30°C
Referee: Antonio Mateu Lahoz (ESP)
France are already out of the EURO 2020 Group F with a 1-1-0 record and four points. However, their battle isn’t over yet as they can’t afford to lose their spot at the top of the group.
It’s essential for France to win the group and avoid meeting with England at Wembley, and the only way they can guarantee that is by defeating Portugal. The Navigators, however, need to end the day with something in their hands and as they look to advance into the knockout stage as the top-rated third-placed team.
There will be a lot on the line tonight; however, the pressure on Portugal to perform will be much greater.
France Want to Avoid England
France need to win Group F or face England at Wembley. Although the Three Lions haven’t been too impressive in international tournaments in recent years, facing them at their own stadium is not something any team at EURO 2020 would want to experience – at least not until the latter stages.
France will enter this match without Ousmane Dembele, who got injured against Hungary and will miss the entire tournament. Although a massive blow to Les Bleu, Dembele is also the only injury concern for Didier Deschamps.
The 52-year-old strategist has yet to reveal whether he’ll make any changes to France’s starting XI ahead of tonight’s game, but after a disappointing showing against Hungary on Saturday, it’s likely that France will look a bit different for their clash with Portugal.
Portugal Drag Their Way Through EURO 2020
Portugal kicked off third EURO title defence with a convincing 3-0 victory against Hungary but proved no match for Germany, who beat them 4-2 on Saturday. The fixture was quite controversial, with Portugal scoring two own goals, effectively helping Germany claim their first win of the tournament.
Ruben Dias and Raphael Guerriero were unfortunate enough to score an own goal that day, but it’s unlikely either of the two will miss tonight’s match. That is primarily because Fernando Santos doesn’t have many options due to the injuries of Joao Felix and Nuno Mendes.
Still, we can expect Santos to make some much-needed changes to avoid another humiliating defeat against France. Interestingly enough, Portugal have beaten France only once before in the EURO 2016 finals, yet even that match was decided with a 109’ goal.
Beating France definitely won’t be an easy task for the Navigators, but they’re left with no other choice than to do just that.
Portugal vs France Betting Picks
Both teams should be highly motivated to win tonight, albeit for different reasons. While France need a win to avoid meeting with England in the knockout stage, Portugal can’t afford to lose and potentially miss out on qualifying for the last 16.
Neither team impressed with their showings last time out, however, you have to like France better. They need to win, but they’re not under so much pressure as Portugal.
Prediction: France -0.50 Asian Handicap (same bet as France to win) – 2.16 at Sportmarket
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