Portugal’s midfield had been found wanting in its previous outings and thus it comes as no surprises that Fernandes and Carvahlo have made way for Moutinho and Sanches in the eleven.
Felix, who had been ruled out of the match against Germany on Saturday because of muscle pain, is back, albeit as a sub. World champion France hopes its attacking stars finally align against defending European champion Portugal on Thursday in an intriguing finale to Euro 2020’s heavyweight group.
Tournament favourites Les Bleus dominated Germany in their opener but only won through an own goal, then looked short of ideas and stamina in a surprising 1-1 draw against Hungary.
The side does top Group F – after Portugal was humbled by Germany – but the fearsome attacking trio of Antoine Griezmann, Kylian Mbappe and Karim Benzema will be disappointed to have only found the net once so far.
Mbappe has looked as fast and tricky as ever, pressuring Germany’s Mats Hummels for the own goal and setting up Griezmann for the equaliser against Hungary. Benzema, though, has now failed to score from 30 shots over three European Championships.
But Deschamps was keeping faith with the man who bagged 29 goals in all competitions for Real Madrid this season, to earn a spot in the national team for the first time since 2015.
“With his experience, I don’t think he has doubts. He’s been doing some good things. He knows a lot is expected from him but it’s not just about goals,” the coach said.
A draw against Portugal, which beat France in the Euro 2016 final, may be enough for Didier Deschamps’ side to go through as group winner. It has four points, one more than Germany and Portugal, while Hungary is bottom with one.
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