The Portugal national team has seen many changes since winning the 2016 European Championship in France, but their goal this summer remains the same as at any tournament: to return home with the trophy.
Roberto Martinez has replaced Fernando Santos as manager of A Seleçãowith a host of new players flooding into the team from the country’s top clubs including Porto, Benfica and Sporting.
Nevertheless, some of the team’s stalwarts are still there, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes and even 41-year-old centre-back Pepe. This is a Portuguese side that, on paper at least, is the most talented and balanced they have had in decades, and Euro 2024 provides an excellent opportunity to add to a frankly disappointing international trophy cabinet.
One side joins Ronaldo and co. Group F features Georgia, who are competing in their first-ever international tournament after beating Greece on penalties in the qualifying play-offs. Led by Kvicha Kvaratskhelia, they hope to put their own unique stamp on the tournament.
The other two teams in Group F are a pair of mainstays in the European Championship. The Czech Republic, who won the tournament in 1976 as Czechoslovakia, should have a strong enough squad to challenge for qualification in the group stages after reaching the quarter-finals last time.
Meanwhile, Turkey will be hoping to make a statement after finishing bottom of the group at the 2020 European Championship. A side featuring Real Madrid wonderkid Arda Guler and established European players such as Hakan Calhanoglu and Orkun Kokcu should be enough to qualify for the knockout rounds. They will be hoping to emulate their performance at Euro 2008, where they managed to reach the semi-finals before being defeated by this year’s hosts, Germany.
Here’s everything you need to know about Group F:
Selection for Euro 2024
Portugal:
Goalkeepers: Rui Patricio (AS Roma), Jose Sa (Wolves), Diogo Costa (Porto)
Defenders: Nelson Semedo (Wolves), Antonio Silva (Benfica), Danilo Pereira (PSG), Joao Cancelo (FC Barcelona), Ruben Dias (Manchester City), Pepe (Porto), Goncalo Inacio (Sporting), Diogo Dalot (Manchester United), Nuno Mendes (PSG)
Midfielders: Joao Palhinha (Fulham), Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United), Matheus Nunes (Manchester City), Ruben Neves (Al Hilal), Vitinha (PSG), Joao Neves (Benfica), Bernardo Silva (Manchester City)
Forward: Goncalo Ramos (PSG), Joao Felix (Barcelona), Rafael Leao (AC Milan), Francisco Conceicao (Porto), Cristiano Ronaldo (Al Nassr), Diogo Jota (Liverpool), Pedro Neto (Wolves)
Czech Republic:
Goalkeepers: Jindrich Stanek (Slavia Prague), Vitezslav Jaros (Sturm Graz), Matej Kovar (Bayer Leverkusen)
Defenders: Vladimir Coufal (West Ham United), Tomas Holes (Slavia Prague), David Zima (Slavia Prague), Ladislav Krejci (Sparta Prague), David Jurasek (Hoffenheim), Robin Hranac (Viktoria Plzen), Tomas Vlcek (Slavia Prague), Martin Vitik (Sparta Prague)
Midfielders: Tomas Soucek (West Ham), Antonin Barak (Fiorentina), David Doudera (Slavia Prague), Michal Sadilek (Twente), Lukas Provod (Slavia Prague), Vaclav Cerny (VfL Wolfsburg), Ondrej Lingr (Feyenoord), Marej Jurasek (Slavia) Prague), Pavel Sulc (Viktoria Plzen), Lukas Cerv (Viktoria Plzen)
Forward: Patrik Schick (Bayer Leverkusen), Adam Hlozek (Bayer Leverkusen), Jan Kuchta (Sparta Prague), Mojmir Chytil (Slavia Prague), Tomas Chory (Viktoria Plzen)
Turkey:
Goalkeepers: Mert Gunok (Beşiktaş), Ugurcan Cakir (Trabzonspor), Altay Bayindir (Manchester United)
Defenders: Zeki Celik (Roma), Merih Demiral (Al-Ahli), Mert Muldur (Fenerbahçe), Ferdi Kadioglu (Fenerbahçe), Abdulkerim Bardakci (Galatasaray), Samet Akaydin (Panathinaikos), Ahmetcan Kaplan (Ajax)
Midfielders: Hakan Calhanoglu (Inter Milan), Kaan Ayhan (Galatasaray), Okay Yokuslu (West Bromwich Albion), Orkun Kokcu (Benfica), Salih Ozcan (Borussia Dortmund), Ismail Yuksek (Fenerbahçe), Arda Guler (Real Madrid)
Forward: Cenk Tosun (Besiktas), Yusuf Yazici (Lille), Irfan Kahveci (Fenerbahçe), Kerem Akturkoglu (Galatasaray), Baris Alper Yilmaz (Galatasaray), Yunus Akgun (Leicester City), Kenan Yildiz (Juventus), Semih Kilicsoy (Besiktas), Bertug Yildirim (Rennes)
Georgia:
Goalkeepers: Giorgi Loria (Dinamo Tbilisi), Giorgi Mamardashvili (Valencia), Luka Gugeshashvili (Qarabag)
Defenders: Guram Kashia (Slovan Bratislava), Otar Kakabadze (Cracovia), Solomon Kvirkvelia (Al-Okhdood), Lasha Dvali (Apoel), Jemal Tabidze (Panetolikos), Luka Lochoshvili (Cremonese), Giorgi Gocholeishvili (Shakhtar Donetsk), Giorgi Gvelesiani (Persepolis )
Midfielders: Gabriel Sigua (Basel), Nika Kvekverskiri (Lech Poznan), Otar Kiteishvili (Sturm Graz), Saba Lobzhanidze (Atlanta United), Zuriko Davitashvili (Bordeaux), Giorgi Chakvetadze (Watford), Levan Shengelia (Panetlikos), Giorgi Tsitaishvili (Dinamo Batumi )), Anzor Mekvabishvili (Universitatea Craiova), Giorgi Kochorashvili (Levante), Sandro Altunashvili (Wolfsberger AC)
Forward: Giorgi Kvilitaia (Apoel), Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (Napoli), Budu Zivzivadze (Karlsruher SC), Georges Mikautadze (Metz)
Fixtures
June 18
17:00 Turkey vs Georgia (Dortmund)
20:00 Portugal vs Czech Republic (Leipzig)
June 22
2:00 PM Georgia vs. Czech Republic (Hamburg)
17:00 Turkey vs Portugal (Cologne)
June 26
20:00 Czech Republic vs Turkey (Hamburg)
20:00 Georgia vs Portugal (Gelsenkirchen)
Four players to watch
Portugal: Joao Neves. It will be Ronaldo who draws the viewers, but with so much established talent in Roberto Martinez’s side it could be worth keeping an eye on a youngster. Joao Neves has had an impressive season in central midfield for Benfica, sparking several media rumors linking him with teams such as Liverpool and Manchester United. A good performance at this tournament could be the key to securing such a transfer.
Czech Republic: Patrick Schick. The Bayer Leverkusen striker has not been the club’s first choice this season, but if he can repeat his excellent performance at the 2020 European Championship – where he was joint top scorer with Cristiano Ronaldo with five goals – then the Czech Republic should doing. qualify, even if it is the best-placed third team.
Turkey: Arda Guler. The young Turkish midfielder was overlooked this season due to injury and Jude Bellingham’s performances, but he put in some impressive performances towards the end of the season, scoring four goals in three starts in LaLiga.
Georgia: Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. The Georgian enjoyed a brilliant 2022/23 season and played a crucial role in Napoli’s Scudetto victory, but the team’s disappointing season means he has disappeared from the spotlight of European football. Euro 2024 is the perfect opportunity to remind the continent of its undeniable talent.
Chances to win Group F
Portugal 2/5
Turkey 7/2
Czech Republic 11/2
Georgia 18/1
Prediction
Despite a disappointing departure to Morocco at the 2022 World Cup, Portugal returns with more experience and an even more talented squad. Roberto Martinez’s side are among the favorites to win the league, so they should easily top the group. Turkey has the next most talented team on paper, and it looks like a shootout between themselves and the Czech Republic for second place. You can’t completely write off Georgia in their first-ever international tournament, but it’s hard to imagine the Eastern European country causing any upset this time around.