Fonte: Portugal can get out of the group stage

World
Europe

05:04

Portugal earned a 3-3 draw with Spain in the first round. On June 20, they will meet Morocco and struggle for a dominant position in Group B.

Regarding Portugal, the 34-year-old defender Jose Fonte, who played for CSL league team Dalian this season, said that what matters for the national team is not only the Iberian Peninsula derby, but also the next two matches against Iran and Morocco, as they need to make sure to prepare well for each of the games and play at their best in order to get out of the group stage.

And for Fonte, it was not an easy job to claim the title, especially when the country had never won a major competition before, but having a star player like Cristiano Ronaldo in the squad helped boost their confidence.

Jose Fonte competes in the quarterfinals against Poland in Euro 2016. /VCG photo

In the past years, Portugal did not get satisfying results with an elimination in 1/8 quarters in 2010 South Africa World Cup, and an early out in the group stage in 2014 Brazil World Cup. Selected by coach Fernando Santos to play at Euro 2016, the Portuguese player was considered the tournament's dark horse but went on to beat France in the final to claim their first-ever major tournament victory.

Fonte started his professional career in Portugal at the age of 19 before moving to England. He admitted that things were becoming difficult for him as time went by. His first two years at Southampton of Premier League saw him have a great opportunity to make the Portugal squad to the 2014 World Cup due to his amazing performance in that season, but it didn’t happen.

Jose Fonte in training with the Portugal national football team ahead of the World Cup. /VCG photo

This time, as an experienced player on the team, Fonte will probably not have a position in World Cup 2022, but he will fight for Portugal in this one.