Ronaldo Set to Appear in Record Sixth Euro
Portugal vs Czech Republic Betting Preview, Odds
Talented Portugal Favorites to Win Group F
Cristiano Ronaldo has scored the most goals in European Championship history and he’s set to make his record sixth appearance at the tournament. International soccer’s all-time leading scorer should lead the line for Portugal on Tuesday as they take on the Czech Republic. Portugal are the favorites in Group F and they’re one of the best teams in the tournament.
Last time around, Ronaldo and Czech Republic’s Patrik Schick both scored five goals and they could be Golden Boot candidates once again. In our Portugal vs Czech Republic betting preview, we’ll take a look at the odds for Tuesday’s match.
Portugal vs Czech Republic
Date & Time: Tuesday, June 18th, 3:00 p.m. ET
Location: Red Bull Arena, Leipzig, Germany
Portugal vs Czech Republic Head-to-Head
In their first-ever meeting, at Euro 1996, the Czech Republic defeated Portugal 1-0. Since then, these teams have met four times and Portugal have come away with a victory on each occasion. They last met in Group 2 of the 2022-23 UEFA Nations League. Portugal trounced the Czech Republic 4-0 in Prague as Diogo Dalot scored twice. The Portugal national football team also won the reverse fixture, 2-0.
Portugal Among Tournament’s Best Teams
Portugal’s roster is one of the most complete in the tournament. Like France and Spain, Portugal don’t have any glaring weaknesses. Portugal have one of the best attacking units in the tournament. Along with Cristiano Ronaldo, Roberto Martinez can call on Joao Felix, Bernardo Silva, Rafael Leao, Goncalo Ramos and Diogo Jota. In qualifiers, they scored more goals than any other team and Ronaldo scored 10 goals in nine games.
For Portugal, Cristiano Ronaldo’s career stats are simply ridiculous. He’s scored 130 goals in 207 matches for the national team, including 14 goals in 25 UEFA Euro matches. Portugal won their first and only Euro title in 2016 but there’s real optimism surrounding this team despite some up and down results in recent friendlies. They’re -260 favorites to win Group F and show +700 odds to win the title.
Goalkeeper Diogo Costa kept a qualifying-leading six clean sheets. Meanwhile, Bruno Fernandes led the field with eight assists and he’s one of the best playmakers in the tournament. In defense, we expect to see Joao Cancelo, Goncalo Inacio, Ruben Dias, Antonio Silva and Diogo Dalot. In a favorable group, with Czech Republic, Georgia and Turkey, the sky’s the limit for Portugal.
Czech Republic on Five Game Winning Streak
At Euro 2020, Czech Republic reached the Quarter-Finals and striker Patrik Schick scored five goals in the process. There are a number of holdovers from that squad here but the Czech Republic were not that convincing in Euro 2024 qualifiers. Czech Republic went 4-3-1 and finished behind Albania in Group E but only conceded six goals in eight matches.
Schick was injured during qualifiers, so winger Vaclav Cerny and midfielder Tomas Soucek picked up the scoring slack. They both managed three goals during qualifiers, which led the team. The Bayer Leverkusen duo of Schick and Adam Hlozek will be Czech Republic’s most important attackers.
However, it’s unclear how their defense will hold up against some of the best teams in Europe. Granted, Czech Republic have won five straight games heading into Euro 2024, but they’ve conceded in each of their four matches in 2024. On their Euro 2024 schedule, Czech Republic take on Portugal, followed by Turkey and Georgia.
Portugal vs Czech Republic Match Analysis & Odds
The Portugal vs Czech Republic betting odds list Portugal as -200 favorites for their Euro 2024 opener. Portugal should qualify for the knockout stage regardless of Tuesday’s result but will want to build momentum. Meanwhile, Czech Republic are +550 underdogs and take a four game losing streak vs. Portugal into this fixture.
Currently, the best price on a draw is +340 around when Portugal won the Euros in 2016 they drew all three of their Group Stage matches. Portugal’s athleticism on the wings could cause problems for Czech Republic and the Selecao are one-goal favorites. Portugal -1 sits at -115 odds, while Czech Republic +1 comes in at +105.
Portugal’s defense hasn’t been great lately, as they’ve conceded twice in three of their last four games. With Fernandes spraying passes to Portugal’s attackers on the other end of the pitch, there could be a number of goals. The Portugal vs Czech Republic betting odds list over 2.5 goals at -125 odds for this one.
