Defender Diogo Dalot said on Monday that the aim of the Portuguese football team is to qualify for Euro2024 “as soon as possible”, already at the reception in Slovakia in Porto, where a victory will be enough.
“Our goal is to solve this as quickly as possible and this concerns the next game. We know it will be complicated, but we have our weapons and all the conditions to achieve this in the next game”the Portuguese defender said on Friday at a press conference on the first day of preparation for the match against the Slovaks.
The English defender of Manchester United assured that the Portuguese team will do so “do your best to win matches” stay in group J to be able to do that “prepare as best as possible for the European Championships”.
Dalot is a right back from scratch, but he often plays on the left side of the defense, so it won’t be a problem if selector Roberto Martínez decides that way, taking into account that there are no more original players for that position, after Raphaël Guerreiro was fired due to injury.
“Yes, I have shown that I am available to represent my country in any position. If the manager understands, I will be ready. I would like to take this opportunity to give Raphael and Nuno a hug to steer [Mendes] also, who underwent the operation. I hope you come back as soon as possible”desirable.
Regarding the debut of midfielder João Neves in the squad for the main team of the ‘quinas’, Dalot praised the Benfica player and recalled that he has already experienced the same situation.
“I have been in his role and there is a normal nervousness when I represent the national team. He has all the qualities and has shown at Benfica that he deserves to be here. That is why he is here today.”he expressed.
Portugal will face Slovakia on Friday at 7.45 pm in Estádio do Dragão in Porto and if they win, they will automatically guarantee qualification for the final phase of the next European Championship. Three days later, on the 16th, the national team will play in Bosnia and Herzegovina, at 7:45 PM (Lisbon time).
After six rounds, the Portuguese team remains completely victorious and leads Group J with 18 points, five more than Slovakia, which is in second place. Luxembourg is third with 10, followed by Bosnia and Iceland, both with six, and Liechtenstein, still without points.
In addition to six wins in the same number of matches, Roberto Martínez’s team has a record of 24 goals scored and none conceded.
In November, Portugal will conclude the qualifying phase with a trip to Liechtenstein and a welcome to Iceland.
The first two places in the group give direct access to the final phase of Euro2024.
Source: DN
