Euro 2025: Portugal team guide – can they justify their status as dark horses?

New York Times

3 hours ago

Having qualified for a third European Championship on the trot, Portugal were an obvious choice to be considered this summer's dark horses — and for good reason.
Getting to their first World Cup in 2023 was the apex — so far anyway — of the team's evolution under Francisco Neto, who has been in charge since 2014. Portugal are now at the stage where you try to move from being a side who reach tournaments consistently to one bidding to compete in their latter stages.
That plan looked on track until some painful results in the two recent international windows but Portugal's decade of growth has been built around a core group of players who have made this journey together. A strong sense of team remains.
Neto took the Portugal job aged only 32 and proceeded to guide them to qualification for the 2017 European Championship (the team's first major tournament), the pandemic-delayed next Euros in 2022 and the World Cup a year later.
Despite being 43, Neto's touchline career spans nearly two decades. He ended his coaching training with one of the best grades on his course — ahead of Sergio Conceicao, former boss of the men's first teams at Porto and Milan.
Known for his faith in youth and his in-game tactical nous, Neto has been fundamental in Portugal's evolution.
Portugal have departed from their previous 4-4-2 (diamond) or 4-3-3 system and now favour a back three, a decision that has coincided with them playing stronger opponents in the Nations League, including the 2023 World Cup's two finalists Spain and England.
But do not be surprised if this shifts during the tournament. Neto and this group of players know each other very well. The chemistry affords fluid in-game adjustments.
Tatiana Pinto and Diana Silva are the obvious choices here. Pinto, who plays for Atletico Madrid, is one of the most reliable creative forces at Portugal's disposal, while Sporting CP's Silva is a menace for any defence with her blistering pace.
But Real Sociedad's Andreia Jacinto is swiftly establishing herself as a key member of this team. The 23-year-old tops myriad passing charts in Spain's La Liga last season, including assists, key passes and progressive passes, despite being in a team that finished seventh in the 16-strong table.
'If I had to choose one of our players to make people pay more attention to, it would be Andreia Jacinto,' Pinto said in April.
It might be worth heeding that advice.
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Portugal are quick, something England learned first-hand during a 1-1 away draw in February. But their biggest strength is their cohesion.
The core of this group has risen through the national team and club scenes together, meaning that, on and off the pitch, they share a deep understanding. Equally, these players feel they can compete at the top level, and want to prove it.
Portugal's evolution in women's football has occurred at breakneck speed, but their individual quality is not always a match for some of their more established counterparts. Particularly in the final third, they have struggled to make the most of their chances and can leave observers wanting for a little more grace and precision in the 18-yard box.
Without Kika Nazareth (more on her below), Portugal lose a key part of their goal threat. Defensively, they have been exposed against bigger and stronger nations such as Spain (a 7-1 loss in April) and England (a 6-0 defeat in May).
Nazareth. The 22-year-old Barcelona midfielder underwent surgery on ligament damage in her left ankle in March and was to be sidelined for 'approximately four months', according to the club. For Portugal, the news came as a serious blow. Nazareth moved to the Spanish side in summer 2024 from Benfica for €500,000 (£426,000, $577,000 at current rates), a record fee for a Portuguese player in the women's game.
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In her first season, she established herself as a creative force in a squad teeming with attacking flair. Since making her debut for her country in 2020, Nazareth has made 43 appearances, scoring 10 goals.
There was some concern over Jessica Silva after the Gotham FC forward, who has 121 international caps and has scored 19 goals, suffered a damaged retina in her eye during training with her NWSL club in March. However, she has since returned to Portugal's line-up.
The past year has produced mixed results. Competitive displays against Spain and England, along with a February victory against Belgium, have been juxtaposed with more recent thrashings by those same teams. Their final three Nations League matches were lost by an aggregate score of 16-1, with Spain and England scoring 13 of those goals.
However, Portugal had been on a 14-game unbeaten run between the start of 2024 and April, and the hope is they will take those heavy defeats on board and be more pragmatic in the group stage.
Drawn with Spain, Belgium and Italy, Portugal will surely be battling to advance to the quarter-finals in second place, given the Spanish are world champions. And the good news is that, apart from Spain, qualification looks wide open.
Portugal have experience against the Belgians, having defeated them in the Nations League at the start of this year, before losing 3-0 in the return fixture. Italy showed themselves to be surprise candidates in their Nations League campaign, finishing as group runners-up behind Sweden. We recommend staying tuned to Group B.
Portugal has increased its investment in women's football over the past two years, with the Portuguese FA (FPF) pouring in €7.8million to enhance competitiveness at both national-team and club levels.
(Top photo of Dolores Silva: Getty Images; design: Eamonn Dalton)