World Cup 2026: Portugal are On the Brink

Portugal vs Armenia

The European Selecao are almost there. Canada, Mexico, and the USA beckon, and when the World Cup 2026 qualifying match between Portugal and Armenia is played out on Sunday, Roberto Martinez and his players may well have already booked their flights.

The Selecao have a match against the Republic of Ireland on Thursday night, when a win will see them through. But if it all goes wrong for Portugal and they still need another result, it will be the bottom team, Armenia, which stands in their way in a Group F clash at the Estadio do Dragao on Sunday, and it’s hard to see any other outcome than a home win. The World Cup 2026 betting odds certainly agree. As the top seed of Group F with 10 points and five clear of Hungary in second, I’ll say with all confidence that Portugal will be at the World Cup finals.

The Selecao’s place would already be confirmed had they beaten Hungary last time out. But after Cristiano Ronaldo had scored a brace to put Portugal in charge, an injury-time leveller scored by Liverpool star Dominik Szoboszlai delayed the celebrations.

While Armenia are bottom of the pile, they are managed by Yegishe Melikyan, a former defender for the national team. After he took over at the beginning of August, he led his team to a sensational victory over the Republic of Ireland.

Can Meilkyan do it again in Portugal? Will lightning strike twice? It’s probably a no.

Talking Points

Portugal are ranked fifth in the world, and the SBOTOP odds say they will not only be at the finals, but they will go deep into the competition. And when you look at the Selecao’s squad which is dripping with quality, you can see why.

Manchester City’s resurgent team is well represented with the defencive duo of Matheus Nunes and Ruben Dias likely to start, and experienced midfielder Bernardo Silva is available to feature alongside Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes. The PSG duo of Vitinha and Joao Neves also have a claim, with Joao Palhinha, now back in the Premier League with Tottenham Hotpsur, in the engine room.

But it is up front where the star quality has been for two decades and still remains, with skipper Ronaldo sure to dominate the World Cup 2026 news off-field, and/or the highlights on it. CR7 is now 40 and playing for Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League, and he is aiming to add to his eye-watering total of 143 international goals from 225 matches.

Goncalo Ramos, who has scored nine in 20 internationals, and Juventus’ young gun Francisco Conceicao are also pushing for a place up front, but they will have to wait a little longer to grab the limelight.

Yegishe Melikyan’s Armenia side suffered defeat against Ireland in a tightly fought World Cup 2026 qualifying match — Armenia boss Yegishe Melikyan saw his team lose to Ireland after a hard battle in the World Cup 2026 qualifiers

So who are the Selecao up against on Sunday?

Armenia are captained by Krasnodar’s 25-year-old midfield star Eduard Spertsyan, and he has an eye for a goal, bagging 46 in 130 games for his club and 10 in 38 for his country.

Other players to watch out for are left-back Nair Tiknizyan, who plays for Red Star Belgrade and 22-year-old Grant-Leon Ranos, who is attracting attention at Borussia Monchengladbach, scoring five goals in 21 games.

History

Portugal are the UEFA Nations League champions, were European Champions in 2016, and have been at the World Cup finals eight times. They face a side which has not yet reached a major finals and is ranked 104^th by FIFA, and with the likes of the Kyrgyz Republic and Mozambique snapping at their heels.

These two nations have met seven times, first in 1996 when they played out a 0-0 draw. And since then, Portugal won five games and drawn one, most recently delivering a 5-0 hammering in Armenia in September, as Ronaldo scored twice. Joao Felix also bagged a brace, and Joao Cancelo rounded off the scoring.

Armenia have suffered six defeats this year while picking up a 2-2 draw with Montenegro and that historic 2-1 victory over the Republic of Ireland.

Portugal have won five and drawn two, losing just one game, a 1-0 defeat to Denmark in the UEFA Nations League quarter-final first leg, in March. The Selecao rectified that by slapping the Danes 5-2 in the second leg on their way to the title.