Starting this week, the World Cup qualifiers will be in full swing. At 3:45 a.m. Beijing time on March 25, the Semifinals of The World Preliminary Round European Zone Play-off Group C, Portugal hosted Turkey. For Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal, this is one of the battles of life and death: losing means being out, missing the World Cup! CCTV Sports Channel CCTV5 will broadcast the match live.
6 wins and 2 draws! Portugal is not afraid of Turkey
FiFA's latest ranking, Portugal ranks 8th in the world and Turkey is 39th in the world. Historically, the two teams have met 8 times, and Portugal have a clear advantage of 6 wins and 2 losses. In the distant 1965, the two teams met in the World Preliminary Round, forced to kill 5-1 at home and 1-0 away.
C Ronaldo's historical miracle: 19 consecutive years of national team scoring
For many fans, paying attention to the Portuguese team is actually paying attention to Cristiano Ronaldo. Ronaldo, 37, has scored 115 goals for Portugal, setting a world record for the world's national team top scorer. Cristiano Ronaldo has played Turkey twice:
In the group stage of Euro 2008, Portugal beat Turkey 2-0, with Pepe and Meireles scoring one goal each;
In the warm-up match in June 2012, Portugal lost 3-1 to Turkey, Ronaldo conceded a penalty and Pepe swung himself.
Robbie Keane
In two games against Turkey, Cristiano Ronaldo has not yet been able to score. In this world preliminary round life and death battle, can Ronaldo score as desired? If he scores, Ronaldo will continue the miracle: from 2004 to 2022, the national team has scored for 19 consecutive calendar years! That would tie the European record held by Robbie Keane.
Portugal defensive hazards: 2 main centre-backs absent
Pepe and Díaz
Manchester City's Ruben Díaz and Porto's Pepe are portugal's main centre-back pairs. The 39-year-old Pepe is experienced and has excellent frontal defensive skills; the 25-year-old Ruben Díaz is a first-class level of technique, physical and anticipation ability, and the premier league's top centre-back. Unfortunately, Pepe was isolated from the virus, Díaz was truncated due to injury, and Portugal's main partner was unable to play.
Lille's Fonte and Jallow may become centre-back partners, and such a configuration cannot be reassuring. Jallow, 22, has never played for the national team before; The 38-year-old Wundt has always been positioned as a substitute.
5 days 2 life and death battles, win to enter the World Cup
Portugal vs Turkey, such a showdown is unpredictable. For Portugal, if they win, it is only half the battle. After 5 days, Portugal will face Italy vs North Macedonia, if the final of Group C is Portugal vs Italy, it will mean that Ronaldo and the European Championship champions will have no chance of the World Cup, so the choice is really cruel.