Many have picked the Portugal versus Nigeria clash today, in Leiria, as Cristiano Ronaldo’s last chance to remind Portuguese fans of the ‘god’ he has been to their football for two decades or thereabouts.
 
The former Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus star has won every diadem in football except the FIFA World Cup, for which he is poised to give his all to get before calling it quits from the game “very soon.”
 
Today’s game against Nigeria could well be his last dance in front of his fans, and he is determined to make the best of it against a team they beat 4-0 the last time out.
 
But the Super Eagles have other ideas. Still sad that they will be absent from the World Cup, which kicks off tomorrow, the Nigerians have found succour in the recent victories against Zimbabwe and Jamaica, as well as the draw with Poland. But none of the aforementioned games comes close to a game against one of the teams tipped to win the World Cup in North America.
 
Coaches Éric Chelle and Roberto Martinez have their different reasons for not wanting to lose, with the latter aiming to extend an unbeaten run that will instil a winning mentality in his squad ahead of the FIFA World Cup finals, and the former unwilling to surrender a brilliant record with Nigeria since taking over the Eagles’ dugout 15 months ago.
 
In that period, Franco-Malian Chelle has overseen 24 matches, losing only once in regulation time – a pre-Africa Cup of Nations friendly in Cairo in December 2025 that he executed with an understrength squad.
 
Martinez, a wise old cock in the game, has taken the Seleção das Quinas through a four-match unbeaten streak during which they defeated the USA and Chile, and drew with Mexico.

Their last defeat was a two-goal reverse against the Republic of Ireland seven months ago.
 
Today’s encounter against three-time African champions Nigeria will be the Seleção das Quinas’ final preparatory game before they take on the Democratic Republic of Congo in their first match of Group K at the FIFA World Cup.
 
Martinez has expressed confidence going into tomorrow’s send-off encounter, considering that he has all his aces with him, including five-time Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo, goalkeeper Diogo Jota, defenders Nélson Semedo, Rúben Dias and Diogo Dalot, midfielders Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva and João Neves, and forwards João Félix, Gonçalo Guedes and Rafael Leão.
 
Against Chile at the Estádio Nacional in Lisbon on Saturday, Manchester United of England’s Bruno Fernandes scored a spectacular goal after supplying the assist for Guedes to score the opener.
 
There have not been too many encounters between the two countries at the senior level, but on November 17, 2022, Portugal spanked the Super Eagles 4-0 in a friendly at Lisbon’s Estádio José Alvalade. Portugal’s U20 team also denied Nigeria the trophy at the 1989 FIFA U20 World Cup, in Saudi Arabia, with the Flying Eagles suffering a 2-0 reverse in the final.
 
Chelle will not be concerned by all these as he sends his team out tomorrow at the 29,000-capacity Estádio Dr Magalhães Pessoa, in Leiria – a city halfway between Lisbon and Porto.
 
Before kick-off, Nigeria will honour midfielder Alexander Iwobi as the Trojan collects his 100th senior cap – an inspiration and occasion for him to exert dominion in the middle against Martinez’s World Cup-bound stars.
 
Even as he will be missing star strikers Victor Osimhen and Ademola Lookman, Chelle is focusing on his squad with confidence with the arrival of the mercurial Samuel Chukwueze (who missed the clash with Poland), the experience of Moses Simon, the forms of Paul Onuachu, Akor Adams and Terem Moffi, and the promising output of Philip Otele at the Unity Cup, in London and the friendly against Poland, in Warsaw, last week.
  
Wing-back Abdullahi Bewene had a dream debut against the White-and-Red in Warsaw, and could start today against the das Quinas, in the absence of Bright Osayi-Samuel.
 
Centre-back Igoh Ogbu departed the team camp yesterday morning due to injury, but Semi Ajayi, Calvin Bassey and Scotland-based Emmanuel Fernandez are all up for the big tie. Bruno Onyemaechi and Zaidu Sanusi are both available for the left wing-back role.
 
Captain Wilfred Ndidi will join Iwobi and any of Frank Onyeka, Tochukwu Nnadi, Fisayo Dele-Bashiru and Raphael Onyedika in the middle. And there is also the promising young KRC Genk midfielder Christian Akpan.
 
The game will kick off at 8.45 p.m. Portugal time – same time as in Nigeria.