Portugal will play Ghana in their first World Cup match at the 2022 World Cup. The Portuguese team will be looking to grab three points straight away in a relatively easy pool, with Uruguay and South Korea the other opponents.
Portugal World Cup 2022 – Latest Team News and Statistics
The 2022 World Cup is likely to be star player Cristiano Ronaldo’s (Manchester United) last piece of art. This will be Ronaldo’s fifth World Cup and for the first time he is not a regular base player ahead of the World Cup.
In recent weeks, Ronaldo was mostly in the news after his high-profile interview with Piers Morgan, for British television. In the last practice match against Nigeria (4-0), Ronaldo was missing with an alleged stomach flu. It is therefore highly doubtful whether Ronaldo will be at the kick-off against Ghana or if he will be ‘passed over’ again.
The disgraced striker has been playing more at Manchester United in recent weeks and has made up with coach Erik ten Hag. Éreally successful it is not yet, judging by one goal in the last four games. However, Portugal is more than just Cristiano Ronaldo. The other eye-catchers are Rafael Leão (AC Milan) and Bernardo Silva (Manchester City).
Ahead of the 2022 World Cup, Portugal lost its last Nations League match against Spain and with it the lead in the Nations League. The qualification series went even less well. The Portuguese finished second in their group behind Serbia and were thus condemned to play the play-offs. This was mainly because Portugal lost 1-2 to Serbia at home. In the play-offs, Portugal won consecutively against Turkey (3-1) and North Macedonia (2-0) to qualify for the 22nd World Cup.
It is the eighth time Portugal has attended a World Cup. The best result was achieved by the Portuguese team with Eusebio (1966), finishing third. The – along with Ronaldo – best Portuguese footballer ever scored nine goals in that tournament.
Coach Fernando Santos has an almost fully fit squad at his disposal for the time being. The most notable absentee is Renato Sanches (Paris Saint Germain), who dropped out after the pre-selection. Striker Diogo Jota (Liverpool) is also absent due to injury.
Ghana World Cup 2022 – Latest Team News and Statistics
The 2022 World Cup marks Ghana’s fourth time at a World Cup, with their best result being a quarter-final in 2010. The four-time African champions have been waiting for another success for more than 40 years. Their last triumph was in 1982 in the African Cup of Nations.
In the run-up to this World Cup, the Ghanaians narrowly survived the group stage, winning in the last match against direct rival South Africa. They then won against Nigeria in the play-offs. The home game ended 0-0 and in Nigeria it was 1-1. So on the basis of that away goal, Ghana is going to the 2022 World Cup.
Ghana does not seem to be in good shape. It even lost to Comoros (2-3), an archipelago ranked 129th in the FIFA world rankings. It also got an earwashing from Japan (4-1). The last practice match, however, was won over Switzerland (2-0).
Coach Otto Addo’s selection is missing two players for the encounter with Portugal (Kamaldeen Sulemana and Daniel-Kofi Kyerey). Both midfielders are expected to be fit again by the end of November and could presumably rejoin in the second or third match. Ajacied Mohamed Kudus is also along for Qatar. The 22-year-old Kudus has so far played 14 international matches, in which he scored five goals.
Striker Iñaki Williams plays an important role in Ghana’s attacking game. The Athletic Bilbao player has an insane record to his name. Williams last missed a game for the Basque club on 17 April 2016. More than six years ago, in other words.
Whether he can become as important for Ghana too remains to be seen. The Spanish-born Williams has a Ghanaian father and recently (September 2022) opted for his father’s native country. This way, Williams will still play at the World Cup, after last playing for Spain in 2016. Iñaki’s brother Nico Williams does play for Spain at this World Cup.
Portugal – Ghana previous encounters
Portugal and Ghana also met in the pool phase two World Cups ago (2014). Back then, it was 2-1 for Portugal in Brasilia, Brazil, through a winning goal by Cristiano Ronaldo in the 80th minute. Other than that, there are no previous encounters between these countries.
Portugal – Ghana, World Cup 2022: Betting Tip & Odds
A lot of information to factor into your decisions when betting on Portugal – Ghana at the World Cup 2022. Of course, we give you another betting tip with accompanying quote.
The Ghanaians are not in good form, and although it remains to be seen how important Cristiano Ronaldo can become, the Portuguese have some very good players besides him. We therefore think Portugal will win and keep the nil. At bookmaker Bet365, you get a quote of 5/6 for this, in our opinion a bet with an average risk.
- Betting Tip: Portugal wins and keeps the zero
- Odds: 5/6 at bookmaker Bet365
- Risk estimate: medium
- Recommended stake: 4/10