Sunday, October 11 will be the last round of Euro qualifying matches for Serbia and Portugal, as both nations will look to wrap up their time in group I with a victory.
However, for Fernando Santos’ crew, the pressure is little if not non-existent, as Selecção das Quinas have already booked their spot in next year’s continental tournament, being held in France, thanks to Thursday’s win over Denmark.
Joao Moutinho’s 66th minute golazo earned Portugal a 1-0 win, and with second-placed Denmark having no remaining games, a top-spot finish was also secured.
Team news
As a result of having already sealed qualification, manager Santos looks to use the weekend clash as a golden opportunity to rest several key players, with Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo leading the pack.
The three-time Ballon d’Or winner has been influential in Portugal’s road to France, scoring 5 goals, leading his group’s goalscoring charts, out of his nation’s 11.
Other players who will be rested alongside the 30-year-old captain include the likes of Ricardo Carvalho and Tiago.
Ricardo Pereira and Rui Fonte are poised for a starting eleven berth, after receiving calls up to the squad.
Over to Serbia’s team news, and manager Radovan Ćurčić looks to be without Chelsea duo Branislav Ivanovic and Nemanja Matic after picking up injuries during last Thursday’s 2-0 away win over Albania.
Head-to-head + team form
In these two nations’ last three Euro qualifiers encounters, Serbia are yet to get the better of Portugal, drawing twice and losing in their last run-in.
Ćurčić’s men have won their last two matches, but prior to that, the Balkan nation were on a four-game losing streak and a five-game winless run, which resulted in them falling to second-to-last place in the standings.
Portugal, on the other hand, are in top form, leading the group with 18 points, courtesy of their impressive 6-game winning streak.
Match details, result and original broadcast info
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