PORTUGAL VS IRAN 2018 FIFA World Cup Group Stage [R]

Wow I can't wait to play these guys

Biggest loud mouths in this tournament

 

Not many options for the midfield but I would try

---------------------------Patricio---------------------------------
--------------Pepe------------------Fonte------------------------
Cedric----------------------------------------------------Guerreiro
--------------------William-------Adrien-------------------------
-----Bernardo Silva---------------------------Gelson/Quaresma
---------------------Andre Silva------Ronaldo-------------------------

 

This won't be an easy game. Iran will be playing for their lives regardless of their result vs Spain later today. Portugal will just see what CR7 will do and hope Patricio can pull off miracle saves again.

 

Tbh I had this one as a 1-1 draw before the games started.

 

Spain and Morocco both caused tons of problems for Portugal by pressing and winning the ball back, but that's not Iran's style of play (right?). Because of that, I can't possibly be as worried about a team against which Portugal should be able to hold on to possession and build its attack.

It'll be a nervy match, though, because the winner will advance.

 

Lopes could not have possibly been more in form, nor could've Neves. We should all know at this point that Portugal's not going far with William and Moutinho playing 90 minutes next to each other each match, but I don't know the solution. Fernandes is worth a try there - not sure what other mover there is to make in the central midfield.

 

Honestly, moving forward.. as crazy as it sounds since a lot of these guys have had bad games.. in a typical 4-4-2 i would go with:

Cedric-----Pepe-------Fonte(Dias)-------Guerreiro
---------------------William
-Gelson/Qtip-----------Mario---------------Guedes
----------------A.Silva-CR7

B.Silva looks like he cant handle the pressure to be honest.. i wanna give him all the chances in the world.. but, we can not afford bad performances after bad performances.. he just looks like he has no confidence and is trying to hard..

 

I honestly don't think the above lineup is crazy. Moutinho is a quality player who brings calm to the team, but he is limited. At this point and on this team, he's great for qualifying, but not someone who should be starting if you want to win a World Cup. That said, he saved Portugal on Morocco's two most dangerous attacks of the first half.

Sometimes the best solution is not the one you apply directly to the problem, but one you can apply elsewhere to force the opponent to turn its focus away from your problem area - in this case, put your best goal-scoring threats out there and see what happens. I still don't see how Portugal's best 11 wouldn't include Bernardo, but he has been bad.

 

Honestly, I think this is our best option for the next game:

------------------------Rui Patricio-------------------------------
---------------Pepe------------------Dias------------------------
Cedric-------------------------------------------------Guerreiro
-----------------Adrien-----------William------------------------
B. Silva-----------------------------------------------G.Guedes
--------------Andre Silva------Ronaldo-------------------------

Screw it... Let's go on attack mode and score plenty. Adrien to support William in defensive midfield duties while we have Bernardo & Guedes making the flank runs to feed Andre & Cristiano. Guedes & Silva also do a lot defensively to cover for Cedric & Guerreiro respectively.

 

we going to need a stronger midfield against them

Adrien-----------William------------mario/manuel fer

 

I watched that second half and you guys are right, Iran is no joke. It will basically be an elimination game and we traditionally make things VERY hard in these situations. Our hearts will take a beating

 

They better win, the game Is on my birthday against my wife’s birth country. I will never ever live down this lost.

 

Iran defend well. Portugal will have a tough game :-(

 

My concern is more with the coaching. Iran coaches know the Portuguese team like the back of his hand. People were killing Portugal but they were facing a desperate team that needed a win. I was impress watching Morocco play against Iran. They have a good squad.

 

Iran needs a win, they can be hurt on the counter.

 

The more I read about Iran beating Portugal, the more confident I am in a 2-0 victory for the latter. Why does the average World Cup watcher have the memory of a gold fish? Iran has one fluke victory over Morocco, one moral victory against Spain, and remains the worst team in the group.

Honestly, I think Portugal is better equipped to find goals against Iran than Spain. I think Andre Silva will play and score a goal like many he had in qualifying.

 

The only difference in the last game with Iran is that they need a win to go through( we just need a draw or a win) which means they have to come out a bit more than they did against Spain. Still no taking them for granted. Spain got lucky that Iran didn't finish just like we got lucky with Morocco. Our midfield looks slow(Moutinho and Willy) and weak (Bernardo and Fernandes/Joao). What can we do? Manny Fernandes? This final game we need some stability and maturity in the midfield. We need control. Both games we have had no control in the midfield. Nada. No spells of long possession. This builds confidence and we are just not getting this from our boys.