At 3 a.m. on July 2, a key match in the quarterfinals of the European Championship will be played between Portugal and Slovenia. In the group stage, Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal won 2 wins and 1 loss and accumulated 6 points to qualify for Group F, while Slovenia successfully advanced to the round of 16 with a wave of three consecutive draws in Group C with England, Denmark and Serbia.
There is a huge gap between the two teams, with the total value of the Portuguese team being as high as 1.05 billion euros, and striker Rafael Leao, midfielders B Fei and B seats, and defender Ruben Dias and others are all worth more than 70 million euros. The Slovenian team is worth only 142 million euros, only 1/7 of Portugal, and the top value in the team is Sheshko, the 21-year-old RB Leipzig striker is worth 50 million euros.
The top 10 teams in the European Cup by total value
There is also a big difference between the world rankings between the two teams, with Portugal in the latest FIFA national team ranking at 6th and Slovenia ranked 57th, just above the already eliminated Georgia in the round of 16, and are considered one of the underdogs in this European Cup.
But it is such a team with few stars and a pragmatic style of play, but it was able to draw with England, the runner-up of the last European Championship, and Denmark, the semi-final team, Sheshko and Oblak performed outstandingly, the old and young, the first and last two stars are an important guarantee that Slovenia can advance to the knockout round, and the team is good at playing high and good at defending the tactical specialty, which also makes the strong England team at a loss.
Portugal, which has accumulated a lot of technical players, whether it is Leao, who is good at speed, B-seat with delicate skills and smart running, or Cristiano Ronaldo, who is nearly 40 years old and still has first-class marksmanship, it is difficult to have the strength and strength required to play "hand-to-hand combat" with opponents.
In the only meeting between the two teams, Portugal were also a clear underdog. In March, the two sides met for a friendly and Portugal lost 2-0. Cristiano Ronaldo, Pepe, Diogo Dalot, Joao Cancelo, Vitinha and goalkeeper Diogo Costa, six regular starters, all played in that game. And the two players who helped Slovenia to score, Chelin and Elshnik, are both expected to make their debuts against Portugal.
At the last European Championship, defending champions Portugal fell in the first knockout round, losing 1-0 to the Red Devils Belgium. Although the number one star Cristiano Ronaldo scored 5 goals and tied for the top scorer in the whole competition, he still couldn't prevent the team from going home in the 1/8 finals.
At present, the starting line-up of the two sides for this game has also been basically determined, and the Portuguese side will roughly continue the lineup of the 3-0 victory over Turkey in the second round of the group stage, and continue to send Palhinha in the midfield position to increase the competition for high-altitude balls and the midfield sweep. Cristiano Ronaldo, Rafael Leao, B and B Fei will be responsible for the team's attack, while Neto, Felix, Jota, Conceição Jr. and other players will be on standby at any time.
For Slovenia, Sheshko, who is 1.95m tall and has a blazing fast sprint speed, will be their hope in attack. The 21-year-old has already scored 11 goals for Slovenia and is eager to prove himself against a strong team like Portugal. The 31-year-old Atletico goalkeeper Oblak has been a reliable guarantee for the Slovenian backline, having performed well in all three of his group stage games, rating above 7.0 in each of them.
With a meagre population of just 2.13 million, Slovenia have reason to hope for a successful 1/8 final clash against favourites Portugal due to their excellent form.
Cristiano Ronaldo, who has yet to score in this tournament, is also looking to break a number of records in this game:
After providing one assist in the 1.3-0 win over Turkey, Ronaldo is now tied for the all-time assist leader of the European Championship with eight assists, and he is expected to set another record with nine assists.
2. Cristiano Ronaldo has scored 14 goals in the European Championship and is the all-time leading scorer in the European Championship, and he is also hopeful of improving this goal record again.
3. This game will be Ronaldo's 29th appearance in the 6 European Championships, of which 27 have been the starts. At 39 years old, he is expected to continue to create a legend of his own.