Portugal Back with Martínez as Coach, Ronaldo in the Squad

Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo during a training session of the national team at Soccer City, Oeiras, Portugal, 20 March 2023. (EPA)
Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo during a training session of the national team at Soccer City, Oeiras, Portugal, 20 March 2023. (EPA)
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Portugal Back with Martínez as Coach, Ronaldo in the Squad

Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo during a training session of the national team at Soccer City, Oeiras, Portugal, 20 March 2023. (EPA)
Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo during a training session of the national team at Soccer City, Oeiras, Portugal, 20 March 2023. (EPA)

It’s a new era for Portugal as it begins European Championship qualifying under a new coach.

Portugal starts its Euro 2024 qualifying campaign at home against Liechtenstein in Group J on Thursday, with Roberto Martínez debuting as coach and Cristiano Ronaldo still in the squad.

It will be Ronaldo’s first appearance with Portugal since leaving Europe for Saudi club Al Nassr after a mostly disappointing stint with Manchester United. He is set to break the all-time record of appearances with a national team after tying Bader Al-Mutawa’s mark of 196 outings for Kuwait during last year's World Cup.

Martínez is taking over Fernando Santos, who quit in December after Portugal’s elimination by Morocco in the quarterfinals of the World Cup. Santos left amid the controversy of benching Ronaldo in the knockout stage of the tournament in Qatar.

Santos was in charge of Portugal for eight years, leading the national team to the Euro 2016 title — the country’s first major trophy — and the 2019 Nations League title. He reached an agreement with the federation to leave two years before his contract was to end.

Martínez ended his six-year stint with Belgium after the team’s disappointing group-stage elimination at the World Cup. He arrived pledging to respect Ronaldo’s history with the national team.

In addition to Ronaldo, Martínez will inherit a squad filled with talented players such as Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes, Diogo Jota, Gonçalo Ramos and João Félix. The coach made few changes to the squad, with 40-year-old defender Pepe also returning to play alongside the 38-year-old Ronaldo.

“We were briefly introduced to him on the training field,” Félix said about Martínez. “He explained to us some of his ideas, mainly for these two games, which are going to be very similar. He talked about the attacking dynamic, the connections between wingers and strikers.”

Félix downplayed Portugal’s chances in the matches against Liechtenstein and at Luxembourg on Sunday.

“We always have to be prepared and not take any game lightly,” he said. “We have the recent example of the World Cup, when everyone thought we were going to get past Morocco and we didn’t. It’s always complicated, it’s always the best from each country, and everyone plays each game like it is a final. All games will be difficult, both at home and away. We have to be cautious.”

Portugal is unbeaten against Liechtenstein, with six wins and a draw in seven matches.

Portugal’s Euro 2024 qualifying group also includes Iceland, Slovakia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. The top two nations from each of the 10 groups qualify for the final tournament in Germany.



Liverpool's Mohamed Salah Signs Contract Extension to 2027

(FILE) - Mohamed Salah of Liverpool celebrates scoring the 2-1 goal during the English Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Southampton FC, in Liverpool, Britain, 08 March 2025.  EPA/ADAM VAUGHAN
(FILE) - Mohamed Salah of Liverpool celebrates scoring the 2-1 goal during the English Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Southampton FC, in Liverpool, Britain, 08 March 2025. EPA/ADAM VAUGHAN
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Liverpool's Mohamed Salah Signs Contract Extension to 2027

(FILE) - Mohamed Salah of Liverpool celebrates scoring the 2-1 goal during the English Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Southampton FC, in Liverpool, Britain, 08 March 2025.  EPA/ADAM VAUGHAN
(FILE) - Mohamed Salah of Liverpool celebrates scoring the 2-1 goal during the English Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Southampton FC, in Liverpool, Britain, 08 March 2025. EPA/ADAM VAUGHAN

Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah has ended months of speculation about his future by signing a two-year contract extension at Anfield, the Premier League club said on Friday.
The 32-year-old, who joined the club in 2017 from AS Roma, could have left the league leaders for free in the summer with his contract expiring in June.
"Of course I'm very excited. We have a great team now. Before also we had a great team. But I signed because I think we have a chance to win other trophies and enjoy my football," Reuters quoted Salah as saying in a club statement.
"It's great, I had my best years here. I played eight years, hopefully it's going to be 10. Enjoying my life here, enjoying my football. I had the best years in my career.
"I would like to say to (the fans), I am very, very happy to be here. I signed here because I believe we can win a lot of big trophies together. Keep supporting us and we’ll give it our best, and hopefully in the future we’re going to win more trophies."
Salah is third on Liverpool's all-time goalscoring list with 243 goals in 394 games. In his eight years at the club he has won a Premier League title, one Champions League crown, an FA Cup, two League Cups, as well as the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup.
He has been a stand-out performer for Liverpool this season, scoring 32 goals in all competitions.
He leads the race for the Premier League's golden boot with 27 goals and has helped the club open up an 11-point gap to second-placed Arsenal with seven games left to play.
British media had reported on Wednesday that Liverpool had made a breakthrough in negotiations over a new deal for the Egypt international after months of deadlock.