After winning their opening Group F fixtures, Portugal and Turkey are scheduled to go head-to-head in their second UEFA Euro 2024 fixture at the Signal Iduna Park in Dortmund. Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal will look to continue their winning run in the European championship while Turkey showed their intent in the first match and could pull off a sensational upset in the competition.
In the Euro 2024 Group F opening fixtures, Portugal defeated the Czech Republic by 2-1 while Turkey got the better of Georgia by 3-1. Due to the goal difference, Turkey clinched the top spot in Group F followed by Portugal, Czechia at third place, and Georgia at the bottom.
Turkey vs Portugal: Match Preview
Roberto Martinez’s side are set to face Vincenzo Montella’s men in the Euro 2024 at the Signal Iduna Park on Saturday. Portugal and Turkey have played nine matches so far with the 2016 Euro champions dominating the fixture with seven wins while the latter won two games. In their six competitive clashes, Portugal haven’t lost a single game against Turkey and will look to continue their one-sided dominance.
Apart from that, Turkey have never scored a goal against Portugal in the European Championship while Portugal have scored in every game against Turkey.
Turkey vs Portugal: Match Prediction
Considering the Portugal national team’s spectacular form and goal-scoring prowess, the Seleção are expected to put up a goal-scoring fest against Turkey in their next clash. The 6th ranked side in the FIFA men’s world rankings had a decent game against Czechia where 21-year-old Francisco Conceição scored his first international goal and the winner in injury time. While Cristiano Ronaldo couldn’t get his name into the scoresheet, the 39-year-old surpassed former Portugal and Real Madrid legend Luis Figo to become the player with the most key passes in the European championship with 43 passes.
Turkey, on the other hand, are a young and dynamic team led by Hakan Calhanoglu and showed their fearless game against Georgia. The Crescent-Stars received a huge boost with the startling form of the Real Madrid youngster, Arda Guler, who scored a goal against Georgia to beat Cristiano Ronaldo’s 2004 record as the youngest player to score on the European Championship debut. However, they faced an injury scare ahead of the Euro 2024 as their star defenders Caglar Soyuncu, Ozan Kabak, and Ridvan Yilmaz were ruled out of the competition.
Considering these facts, we predict Portugal will beat Turkey by 3-1.
Turkey vs Portugal: Predicted Lineups
Turkey: Mert Gunok; Mert Muldur, Samet Akaydin, Merih Demiral, Ferdi Kadioglu; Ayhan, Hakan Calhanoglu, Orkun Kokcu, Arda Guler, Kenan Yildiz; Baris Alper Yilmaz
Portugal: Diogo Costa; Goncalo Inacio, Pepe, Ruben Dias; Joao Cancelo, Bruno Fernandes, Vitinha, Nuno Mendes; Bernardo Silva, Cristiano Ronaldo, Diogo Jota