Roberto Martínez springs a surprise, calls up Sporting quartet | OneFootball

Rui Silva, Gonçalo Inácio, Francisco Trincão, and Pedro Gonçalves, a quartet from Sporting, have been called up by Roberto Martínez for Portugal's upcoming matches.

Rui Silva, Gonçalo Inácio, Francisco Trincão, and Pedro Gonçalves. These are the four Sporting players – who will be a significant absence for the match against Porto – called up by Roberto Martínez to represent Portugal in the fixtures against Armenia and Hungary, which are part of the qualification for the 2026 World Cup.

In addition to the four Sporting players, Roberto Martínez also called up Diogo Costa, José Sá, Diogo Dalot, João Cancelo, Nuno Mendes, Rúben Dias, António Silva, Renato Veiga, João Palhinha, Rúben Neves, João Neves, Vitinha, Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva, João Félix, Francisco Conceição, Pedro Neto, Gonçalo Ramos, and Cristiano Ronaldo.

The big ‘surprise’ turns out to be Pedro Gonçalves, who had been left out of Roberto Martínez’s selections on previous occasions. The three goals he scored against Nacional, where he was the standout player of the match, certainly weighed in the coach’s decision to choose the Sporting star.

In total, out of the 23 called up, 10 have already represented Sporting, either for the main team or in the youth ranks. All in all, about 43.3% of this call-up by Roberto Martínez is linked to the Alvalade club, which clearly demonstrates the strength and importance of the green and whites.

Portugal will face Armenia on September 6th at 17:00, with the match taking place away from home. Shortly after, on September 9th at 19:45, Roberto Martínez’s team will have a tougher match, visiting Hungary’s ground. These matches are part of the qualification phase for the 2026 World Cup.

Check out Roberto Martínez’s 23-man squad:

• Goalkeepers: Diogo Costa, Jose Sá, and Rui Silva

• Defenders: Diogo Dalot, João Cancelo, Nuno Mendes, Gonçalo Inácio, Rúben Dias, António Silva, and Renato Veiga

• Midfielders: João Palhinha, Rúben Neves, João Neves, Vitinha, Bruno Fernandes, Pote, and Bernardo Silva

• Forwards: João Félix, Trincão, Francisco Conceição, Pedro Neto, Gonçalo Ramos, and Cristiano Ronaldo

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.