We are still reigning European Champions. No star (probably ever) but at least we've won something in our lives.
No one will ever take that Euro away from you. Your team found a way to win and did what they had to do. But as many have said you can't win the World Cup the way you won the Euro. It is a very different animal.
Since Portuguese are always a mixed bag of super talented individuals and scrubs. The country and it’s soccer clubs should invest into individual combat sports such as boxing and Mixed Martial Arts. I really can see talented individuals from Portugal having success into those sports and becoming champions. I also can see us winning more European Cups. Call me crazy, but I also can see Ronaldo’s son winning Portugal a World Cup trophy with his generation. His Generation are growing up watching Ronaldo play, and they are going to pursue life with his positive, champion like metality.
"the way we won the euro" Let's see dominate the group stage and by pure statistical fluke draw 3 games when we should have won, go toe to toe against "the best team at the Euro" and win. Beat Poland on pks (becuase World cups never have games decided by PK's) win the semi final convincingly and then beat the hosts after our star player was injured without said hosts being carded at all. We won despite horse shoes from our opponents is how I see it. France had control of a game where our best player was taken out. So you want to call the final luck that's fine but I didn't see anything special from Croatia (who everyone now forgets were the darlings and "best team" before we beat them) Poland or Wales who beat the other darling Belgium.
Not winning matches outside of the semis and focusing more on Defense rather than possession is a recipe for disaster in the World Cup. Could they have made a deeper run? Sure. However, The way Portugal played in the Euro was good enough to win the Euro. Not good enough for the World Cup. Especially since dynamic players like Nani and Renato Sanches were not used in this tournament.
Seems you are wrong, buddy. Of the current quarter final crop, Russia, Sweden, Croatia, France, Uruguay and Brazil all employ these very defensive tactics. So clearly these tactics do work in a world cup. We have seen all the attacking teams fail immensely: Peru, Mexico, Morroco, Argentina, Spain
Odds are against anyone being a top-flight professional athlete. Then again, I won't bet against Ronaldo's son being a pro. There are enough videos out there of his kid kicking the ball around and looking frighteningly like a miniature CR7 stalking the ball and showing way more skill than an eight-year-old should possess.
This is heavy insecurity, or an overly emotional female. But I know many Italian’s who grew up with Portuguese neighbors, schoolmates then worked with them, married into each other’s culture’s etc who enjoyed decades of being a soccer power, while Portugal was a 3rd soccer nation for all those years who have also witnessed Portugal undeniable 20yr climb, rivaled by no one in the same time period who also demonstrate the same insecurities. I wonder if she knows that it was in fact that 1st friendly win Portugal has over Italy was indeed the loss that knocked them into pot 2 for qualifying groups, putting them in Spain’s group and essentially knocking them out of the World Cup. If she didn’t know that, it’ll likely destroy her. https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/how-portugal-hero-could-blame-11524435.amp
Some say the European Championship is a more difficult tournament to win considering its all European teams, others say the world cup is more difficult because it includes the south American teams which add more difficulty. I personally think a WC win is something every national team should strive for. So I would love to see Portugal with one star in my lifetime and I'd take that over the euro win.
I think it was a more difficult tournament but adding 24 teams really watered it down. Now it worked to our advantage as we finished third and got an easier road to the final.
Recipe for disaster....tell that to Italy. Tell that to France who played on the counter this World Cup.