LISBON: For the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, Portugal's coach Fernando Santos has named a 26-man roster, with two seasoned players, Cristiano Ronaldo and Pepe, continuing to serve as the team's captains.
After representing his country in each World Cup since 2006, Ronaldo will compete in his fifth World Cup. The two young Benfica players, Antonio Silva and Goncalo Ramos, are making their World Cup debuts.
The injured Liverpool attacker Diogo Jota is replaced by Andre Silva of RB Leipzig.
The lineup includes three players from each of the English Premier League's Manchester City, Manchester United, and Wolves, the Portuguese Premier League's Benfica and Porto, and French Ligue 1 powerhouse Paris Saint-Germain. All of the guys I've called up have a burning desire to succeed and crown Portugal as world champions, according to Santos.
Nigeria and Portugal will square off in a pregame match on November 17 in Lisbon.
Portugal's campaign will get underway against Ghana on November 24 after being placed in Group H together with Uruguay, South Korea, and Ghana for Qatar 2022.
The group: Goalkeepers: Diogo Costa of Porto, Rui Patricio of Roma, and Jose Sa of Wolverhampton; Defenders: Diogo Dalot of Manchester United of England, Joao Cancelo of Manchester City of England, Danilo Pereira of Paris Saint-Germain of France, Pepe of Porto, Ruben Dias of Manchester City of England, Antonio Silva of Benfica, Nuno Mendes of Paris Saint-Germain of France, and Raphael Guerreir.
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