The latest and final round of international fixtures of the season is underway, with Thursday’s games kicking off with a meeting between Portugal and Sweden.
Portugal have made a number of changes to their squad for the friendly, with manager Roberto Martinez shuffling his pack.
Cristiano Ronaldo is among the players to be left out of the squad to face Sweden as the forward is rested and expected to return against Slovenia, with Diogo Dalot joining the forward in a group of players awarded a longer window of rest.
Bruno Fernandes is, however, in action tonight as the United skipper has been named in Portugal’s starting eleven alongside Joao Palhinha and Matheus Neves in midfield.
XI
Portugal: Patrício, Nélson Semedo, Pepe, Rúben Dias, Nuno Mendes, Palhinha, Matheus Nunes, Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva, Rafael Leão, Gonçalo Ramos
Sweden: Olsen, Holm, Hien, Lindelöf, Augustinsson, Svanberg, Cajuste, Kulusevski, Isak, Elanga, Gyökeres
— PortugueseSoccer.com ⚽️ (@PsoccerCOM) March 21, 2024
On the opposing side, Victor Lindelof captains his side in Jon Dahl Tomasson’s first game in charge of Sweden. Earlier this week, it was announced that Lindelof would continue as Sweden captain, having led his team since being promoted in 2021.
Anthony Elanga, the former United winger, also starts in what is an exciting frontline for Sweden, with Viktor Gyökeres leading the line.
Gyökeres is one of the hottest names in Europe right now as he leads the goalscoring chart in Portugal and is reportedly the subject of interest from some of Europe’s elite clubs.
