Portugal are going to fight in the 2018 Russia World Cup, but there are few who have counted Portugal as one of the favourites. However Jose Mourinho thinks otherwise.
As long as Ronaldo is with Portugal, nothing is impossible for them: Mourinho
The former Real Madrid boss has told everyone no to take Portugal lightly as with the presence of Cristiano Ronaldo nothing is impossible for them, and they can also become a potential candidate to win the World Cup.
Portugal has won the previous Euro Cup in 2016 under the able leadership of Ronaldo who was a key figure for Portugal in the win.
Back at that time also, nobody had taken Portugal into account because of the lack of star quality players in the side, apart from the Real Madrid forward.
Portugal are currently fourth in FIFA’s rankings, but are not considered as favourites by many because of the presence of the likes of Germany, Spain, France and Brazil.
But Manchester United’s current boss thinks that his country Portugal–who are going to face Spain, Iran and Morocco in the group stage – and Argentina should not be taken lightly only because of the presence of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
Mourinho said to ESPN, "Portugal has an interesting squad. Without Cristiano, it would be impossible, but with him nothing is impossible.
"I believe that the Argentinian national team without Lionel Messi wouldn't be a contender, but with him, they are one of the favourites.
"I like very much the basic structure of Brazil, their tactical [approach] and mentality. There is a mixture between natural Brazilian talent and a serious approach, physically, tactically.
"It is a team capable of defending well, allowing few goals, with a good support base. And then up front with Willian, Neymar, [Philippe] Coutinho and [Gabriel] Jesus – they are all players with outstanding qualities.
"And then we have the traditional teams of Europe, but I believe Spain is once again a real team. They were able to get together players with the same game philosophy, adapted to that playing style.
"I would say that Spain is in better condition than any other European rivals. But let's see. It's going to be entertaining to me, I'll be in Russia for a week to follow the games and then finally vacation.