Germany meets Portugal in the match that might decide the fate of the entire championship. A lot is at stake here. Who will win? Read our full match preview
Germany meets Portugal in the match that might decide the fate of the entire championship. A lot is at stake here. Who will win? Read our full match preview
Portugal and Germany headline the entire second round of the EURO 2020. Their meeting will be without any doubts the biggest match over the next couple of days which is why we decided to make the preview of the same. Germany heads into this event after a nasty loss against France, while on the other side, Portugal defeated Hungary in the opening leg. The reigning European champs can settle for one point in this event, which can’t be said for Germans, who have to take all three points.
Selecao struggled to crack Hungary in front of 65 thousand spectators in Budapest, but they eventually managed to secure a 3-0 win. Once seeing the result, many would believe that Portugal routinely won. However, all three goals came in the finals six minutes plus the stoppage time.
The reigning champions had a few mice chances in the first half, but Diogo Jota couldn’t hit the target from several very promising positions. Liverpool’s attacker was also selfish in one situation where he could pass the ball to Ronaldo, who was pretty much one-on-one with the keeper.
This was the third match for Fernando Santos’ side not to allow a single goal and fourth in the past five in which they scored at least twice.
Mats Hummels hit the back of his own net, deciding the match against France. His mistake was the difference on Tuesday and a pivotal moment of the event. Following that, the French team parked a bus in front of its goal, waiting for counter-attacks, not even trying to make some organized actions.
What Die Mannschaft lacks is a target man in the box, a player like Mario Gomez or Miroslav Klose. It is obvious that their current strikers can’t break the rival’s defenses, who are physically endowed. We are free to say that this presents the critical problem of German football at the moment.
Also, this was the fourth consecutive game in which Germany concedes, which is something unusual for the four-time world champions.
Portugal: PatrIcio; Semedo, Dias, Pepe, Guerreiro; Danilo, W Carvalho, Fernandes; Bernardo, Ronaldo, Jota
Germany: Neuer; Ginter, Hummels, Rudiger; Kimmich, Kroos, Gundogan, Goretzka; Sane, Muller; Gnabry
The last time Portugal defeated Germany was 21 years ago, back in 2000, at EURO. Following that match, four games had been played, and in all four, Germans won, with the most recent being at the 2014 World Cup once they rolled over Ronaldo and the boys, 4-0.
Santos will set up pretty much the same tactics as Deschamps did against Germany. Tight backline and midfield, with Ronaldo and Jota waiting to hit on a break. We really doubt that Low might change something radically in Germany’s tactics and find a solution. That is why we believe that the best betting solution would be to pick under 2.5 goals. The odds are quite solid, while on the other side, the risk is low.