Portugal vs Croatia Uefa Nations prediction and stats: Inaugural champions begin quest for second crown
Portugal and Croatia hope to put their disappointing Euro 2024 behind them when they meet in the Uefa Nations League on Thursday.
Roberto Martinez’s men went into Germany with much fanfare but after a bright start they were knocked out in the quarter-finals. Croatia, meanwhile, won one of their group games and didn’t make it into the knockout stages.
Three predictions for Portugal vs Croatia
Portugal 1-1 Croatia (6/1 with BetUK)
Portugal come into this game without a win in their past three international games. They drew the last two, winning one on penalties and losing the other. Croatia are on a similar run, so both teams could cancel each other out.
Bruno Fernandes to score anytime (9/4 with Sky Bet)
Bruno Fernandes is on a good scoring run for Portugal. The midfielder has scored in five of Portugal’s last eight home matches, netting seven goals during that run.
Half With Most Goals: 2nd Half (21/20 with Bet365)
There have been 13 goals scored in the past three games between this two sides, with 10 of those coming in the second halves of the matches.
BetMGM sign-up offer: Get £40 in bonuses when you bet £10
Not signed up to BetMGM yet? Here's how eligible readers* can take advantage of their welcome offer:
- Open an account at BetMGM using this link.
- Select the Sports Welcome Offer.
- Get the offer from the ‘My Offers’ page.
- Deposit and place a £10 bet at odds of 1/1 (2.0) or greater.
- When it settles, unlock £40 in bonuses
New customers only. 7 days to place qualifying bet of £10+ at 1/1 (2.0) to receive 4 x £10 Free Bets: 1 x £10 Acca, 1 x £10 Horse Racing, 1 x £10 Football, 1 x £10 Bet Builder. 7 day expiry. Exclusions apply. Stake not returned. 18+. T&Cs apply.
How to watch Portugal vs Croatia live
Portugal and Croatia kicks off on Thursday 5th September at 7:45pm (UK time) and will be broadcast live in the UK on Premier Sports.
How both teams go into Portugal vs Croatia
Euro 2024 started ever so promisingly for a Portuguese team laced with champions. However, the wheels came right off. Martinez’s insistence on continuing to play an out-of-form Cristiano Ronaldo was seen by many as a detriment.
Ultimately, the 2016 European champions were knocked out by France on penalties in the quarter-finals. Now, attention turns to the Uefa Nations League, which Portugal won in its inaugural campaign. Martinez is still at the helm and it feels as though there is a lot of pressure.
At least Portugal reached the knockout stages. Croatia, who have finished second and third at the past two World Cups, finished third in their group and didn’t do enough to make it out. Despite this disappointment, Zlatko Dalic remains in charge of Croatia.
Dalic has been in charge of Croatia since 2017, and many believe it’s time for the Blazers to move in a new direction. They’ll be hoping to build on their runners-up finish of the 2023 Uefa Nations League, when they were beaten on penalties by Spain in the final.
Portugal host Croatia on Thursday 5th September at 7:45pm (UK time) at Estádio da Luz in Lisbon.
Portugal team news
Cristiano Ronaldo has insisted that he will not retire from international football until he feels he can no longer contribute. The Al Nassr forward has been named in Portugal’s squad for their Uefa Nations League fixtures against Croatia and Scotland.
There is, however, no Pepe who did retire last month. Three players have been handed their first call ups for Portugal, including Chelsea‘s new left-back Renato Veiga.
Croatia team news
Luka Modric has been named in Croatia’s 24-man squad for the opening matches of their Uefa Nations League campaign. Following Croatia’s early Euro 2024 exit this summer, there was uncertainty over Modric’s international future.
But after team-mates Domagoj Vida and Marcelo Brozovic announced their retirements from international football, Dalic said he was “happy that our captain remains on board.”
Martin Erlic, Josip Stanisic and Lovro Majer have all had to pull out of the Croatia squad due to injury.
Portugal vs Croatia head-to-head
These two sides met in the build up to Euro 2024, with Croatia winning that friendly 2-1. It was their first ever win over Portugal, who had won six of the previous seven meetings.
| Portugal vs Croatia H2H | |||||||
| Date | Score | Ground | |||||
| 08/06/24 | Portugal 1-2 Croatia | Estadio Nacional do Jamor, Oeiras | |||||
| 17/11/20 | Croatia 2-3 Portugal | Stadion Poljud, Split | |||||
| 05/09/20 | Portugal 4-1 Croatia | Estadio do Dragao, Porto | |||||
| 06/09/18 | Portugal 1-1 Croatia | Estadio Algarve, Faro | |||||
| 25/06/16 | Croatia 0-1 Portugal | Stade Bollaert-Delelis, Lens | |||||
| 10/06/13 | Croatia 0-1 Portugal | Stade de Geneve, Geneva | |||||
BetMGM sign-up offer: Get £40 in bonuses when you bet £10
Not signed up to BetMGM yet? Here's how eligible readers* can take advantage of their welcome offer:
- Open an account at BetMGM using this link.
- Select the Sports Welcome Offer.
- Get the offer from the ‘My Offers’ page.
- Deposit and place a £10 bet at odds of 1/1 (2.0) or greater.
- When it settles, unlock £40 in bonuses
New customers only. 7 days to place qualifying bet of £10+ at 1/1 (2.0) to receive 4 x £10 Free Bets: 1 x £10 Acca, 1 x £10 Horse Racing, 1 x £10 Football, 1 x £10 Bet Builder. 7 day expiry. Exclusions apply. Stake not returned. 18+. T&Cs apply.
