Portugal vs. Ukraine: Euro 2020 Qualifying Odds, Live Stream, TV Info
March 21, 2019
Portugal begin their 2020 UEFA European Championship qualifying campaign at home to Ukraine on Friday at the Estadio da Luz in Lisbon.
The titleholders have been boosted by the return of Cristiano Ronaldo to the squad. The Juventus star has not featured for his country since the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
Portugal are heavy favourites to begin their campaign with a victory but face a Ukraine side fresh from an impressive Nations League campaign.
Andriy Shevchenko's side topped Group B1 with three wins from four games and sealed promotion to the top tier.
Date: Friday, March 22
Time: 7:45 p.m. GMT, 3:45 p.m. ET
TV Info: Sky Sports Premier League (UK), Univision Deportes en Vivo (U.S.)
Live Stream: Sky Go (UK), ESPN+, Univision NOW (U.S.)
Match Odds (via Oddschecker): Portugal 2-5, Ukraine 15-2, Draw 10-3
Preview
Ronaldo should go straight back into Fernando Santos' team, although Portugal have fared well during the 34-year-old's absence from international football.
The team are unbeaten in six games without Ronaldo, but the return of the country's all-time top goalscorer will add extra firepower to the attack:
Portugal and Juventus team-mate Joao Cancelo explained how important Ronaldo is to the team:
Meanwhile, Santos says Portugal are keen to defend the title they won in France in 2016, per Brian Homewood at Reuters.
"Any team would be stronger with Ronaldo," he said. "We have a great responsibility and our aim is to defend our title. We have to maintain that united spirit."
Ronaldo is not the only star player in a Portugal squad packed full of talent. Bernardo Silva, Goncalo Guedes, Cancelo and Joao Moutinho are all expected to start against Ukraine.
However, Ukraine will not lack for confidence against the defending champions. They have lost just one of their last six matches and are a team on the up.
Shevchenko could give a debut to Shakhtar Donetsk striker Junior Moraes. The Brazilian-born forward has been called up to the national squad after being granted a Ukrainian passport:
The 31-year-old should add goals to the team after topping the scoring charts in the Ukrainian Premier League this season with 16 from 22 appearances.
Shakhtar showed what to expect from Moraes:
Meanwhile, Shevchenko has spoken about the size of the task facing his team in Lisbon:
Portugal should have too much quality for Ukraine, particularly at home, while it would be little surprise to see Ronaldo continue his excellent international goalscoring record on his return to action.