Belgium and Portugal go head-to-head in Seville this evening as Euro 2020’s last-16 action continues.
The mouthwatering fixture will not only be a huge tie in shaping the competition – with the winners going on to face Italy in the quarter-finals – but also in the race for the golden boot. Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo is the competition’s top scorer so far with five goals – having equalled the all-time international goals record for a single player – while Belgium striker Romelu Lukaku has netted three times for his nation at the tournament.
Following Saturday’s games between Wales and Denmark – from which the Danes emerged 4-0 victors – and Italy and Austria, as well as this afternoon’s Netherlands vs Czech Republic match, tonight’s meeting between Belgium and Portugal marks the first real heavyweight clash of the Euro 2020 knockout stages. Belgium have been the world’s No 1-ranked team since overtaking world champions France in 2018, while Portugal are defending European champions.
In the group stage, Belgium were the more impressive of tonight’s opponents, though they did have an easier pool to navigate. Roberto Martinez’s men were 3-0 winners against Russia, beat Denmark 2-1 and saw off Finland 2-0 to top Group B. Meanwhile, Portugal qualified from the ‘group of death’ in third place, beating a stubborn Hungary 3-0 with a late flurry before losing 4-2 to Germany and drawing 2-2 with France.
Follow live updates from Belgium vs Portugal at Euro 2020 below:
