Overview
The Portuguese team is looking forward to its first international match since winning the UEFA Nations League for the second time in history in June.
In that tournament, the "European Selecao" defeated host Germany 2-1 in the semi-finals before overcoming the EURO 2024 champions of Spain on penalties (5-3) after a dramatic draw of 2-2 in the final.
This is their third major title in nine years and also their first trophy under coach Roberto Martinez. Since taking charge in January 2023, the Spaniard has achieved an impressive 70% win rate in 30 games (21, 5 draws, 4 losses).
Ranked 6th in the world by FIFA, Portugal have lost only one of their last 10 international matches, since their defeat to France in the quarter-finals of EURO 2024. Their attack has also shown improvement when scoring 2 or more goals in 7 matches in this period.
Entering the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, Portugal is considered the brightest candidate in Group F. They have certainly won at least one play-off thanks to their achievements in the Nations League. However, the clear goal is to win the top spot to get a direct ticket to the football festival in Canada, Mexico and the US.
Martinez is looking forward to a smooth start, especially as Portugal have played the play-off in three of the last four World Cups. Confidence is reinforced by the fact that they have never lost to Armenia in their history of confrontation (4 wins, 2 draws).
Meanwhile, Armenia started 2025 under the leadership of Dutch coach John van 't Schip. However, after four consecutive games without a win (D1 L3) the 61-year-old was sacked in August, less than six months after taking charge.
The replacement was Yegishe Melikyan - a former player who played 29 times for the Ukraina national team between 2002-2007. After 4 years leading FC Pyunik, he took over the hot seat with the task of reviving a team that was falling to 105th place in the FIFA rankings.
Ukraine have won just two of their last 10 games in all competitions (D2 L6). They opened 2025 disappointingly with a 1-9 overall defeat to Georgia in the UEFA Nations League promotion/relegation play-off series. Including a heavy 1-6 away defeat in March.
In the June friendly series, Armenia continued to winless, losing Kosovo 2-5 and drawing Montenegro 2-2. However, scoring 5 goals in the last 3 matches is still a bright spot for Melikyan to hope to get the team back on track.
Ukraine has never played in a major international tournament as an independent country. They will enter the match against Portugal as a lower goal. However, the memory of a commendable confrontation against Portugal - a narrow 2-3 defeat at home in the EURO 2016 qualifiers - can still bring some confidence to Melikyan's team.
Personnel situation
Midfielder Narek Grigoryan is absent from Melikyan's 25-man list due to injury. Meanwhile, Norberto Briasco withdrew for family reasons. In contrast, Lucas Zelarayan and Grant-Leon Ranos have returned to the squad.
It is unclear how Melikyan will arrange personnel, but it is likely that Vahan Bichakhchyan will be assigned the task of creating a breakthrough in midfield. Up front, Tigran Barseghyan is aiming for his 10th goal for Armenia.
On the Portuguese side, AC Milan confirmed that Rafael Leao could not participate due to a calf injury, while Diogo Dalot also had to withdraw due to fitness problems.
This opens up opportunities for Joao Cancelo and Joao Neves to compete for the right-back position. Up front, Francisco Conceicao and Pedro Neto can both support Cristiano Ronaldo.
In midfield, Ruben Neves and Vitinha will compete for a starting position.
Expected lineup:
Armenia: Cancarevic, Hovhannisyan, Mkrtchyan, Arutyunyan, Muradyan, Tiknizyan, Iwu, dashyan, Bichakhchyan, Zelarayan, Barseghyan.
Portugal: Costa, Cancelo, Dias, A. Silva, Mendes, Fernandes, R. Neves, Bernardo, Conceicao, Ronaldo, Neto.
The match between Armenia and Portugal takes place at 23:00 on September 6 (Vietnam time).
