Portugal’s manager Roberto Martínez has made it clear that the upcoming friendly against Nigeria will not determine his starting eleven for the World Cup opener against the Democratic Republic of Congo. Speaking after a 2-1 win over Chile, Martínez stressed that squad preparation for the tournament as a whole takes precedence over any single match.
With all 26 players now assembled, the Portuguese squad is at full strength for the Super Eagles encounter. The quartet from Paris Saint-Germain—Nuno Mendes, Vitinha, João Neves, and Gonçalo Ramos—arrived ahead of the Chile friendly and are available for selection. Matheus Nunes is expected to resume full training on Sunday after sitting out the Chile game due to physical issues, while João Félix is also in contention to feature against Nigeria.
During his press conference, Martínez addressed whether the lineup against Nigeria would be shaped with the DR Congo game in mind. He responded: “No, no. We now have the four PSG players arriving, along with Matheus Nunes, and we expect to have all 26 or 27 players ready for the second game. We continue with individual preparation.” He added that Francisco Trincão did not play due to a red card situation affecting the end of the Chile match, but reiterated that the goal is to prepare every player for the World Cup, not just the first match.
Portugal will face the Democratic Republic of Congo at the NRG Stadium in Houston on June 17, a week after the Nigeria friendly.