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• Portugal v Slovenia: Pepe targets Selecao improvement after Georgia upset

  After Portugal ended the Euro 2024 group stage with a shock 2-0 defeat to Georgia, centre-back Pepe knows more will be required when they face Slovenia in the last 16 on Monday.

  That defeat did not stop the Selecao topping Group F and landing a round-of-16 draw against Slovenia, who qualified as one of the best third-placed finishers.

  However, they are now on the same side of the knockout bracket as France, Belgium, Germany and Spain, and know they will likely have to beat multiple heavyweights if they are to go all the way.

  At their last major tournament, the 2022 World Cup, Portugal set the record for the biggest margin of victory in a last-16 match at the World Cup or Euros, trouncing Switzerland 6-1.

  They were, however, beaten 2-0 when they last met Slovenia in a friendly in March, leading Pepe to expect a tough test. 

  "Portugal were among the best teams statistically in the group stage," he said. "From the first game here in Germany to the last, the fans have always been with us. 

  "We know it's going to be a very difficult game, not least because of our recent history. 

  "It's about avoiding making the mistakes we made in that defeat back in March so that we can come out on top.

  "We know it's going to be a very difficult journey. It's going to be tough, but we all have to be together."

   

  This will be Slovenia's first-ever match in the knockout stages at a major tournament, and the 26th such match for Portugal. Since their triumphant Euro 2016 campaign, Portugal have lost three of their four knockout matches at major tournaments (one win).

  They will once again look to Cristiano Ronaldo to carry the attacking burden, though this is the first major tournament in his career in which he failed to net in the group stage, in his 11th participation overall.

  Pepe, however, has told fans not to worry about the form of their captain.

  "Cristiano lives for goals, that's a fact. But have you seen his availability on the pitch to help the national team? It's incredible," the 41-year-old said.

  "He's the player with the most minutes in our team, at 39 years old.

  "He's doing very well. He'll do very well in the final stages of the European Championship. I'm certain he will give us a lot of joy."

  PLAYERS TO WATCH

  Portugal – Cristiano Ronaldo 

  Ronaldo has not scored in any of his last seven appearances for Portugal at major tournaments, his longest-ever drought at the World Cup and Euros. He has had 19 shots without netting in those games since scoring versus Ghana at the 2022 World Cup.

  The five-time Ballon d'Or winner has had 12 shots worth 1.32 expected goals (xG) so far at Euro 2024, twice as many attempts as his nearest rival in the Portugal squad – Manchester United's Bruno Fernandes (six).

   

  Nine of his shots have come from inside the box, indicating he is taking up the right positions and is likely to break his goal drought soon. 

  He has also created six chances for his team, recording one assist to take the all-time European Championship record outright, with seven in his six participations.

  Slovenia – Andraz Sporar

  Slovenia have only netted two goals at the tournament thus far, but their strike duo Sporar and Benjamin Sesko have been a handful for defences.

  They may both be awaiting their first goal at Euro 2024, but they have registered a combined 12 shots between them (seven for Sporar and five by Sesko).

  Five of Sporar's seven efforts have come from inside the area, and he has a total xG figure of 0.98 in his three matches. He has also won 13 duels overall, four of them in the air, demonstrating his willingness to get through plenty of defensive work.

  MATCH PREDICTION: PORTUGAL WIN

  The Opta supercomputer has given Portugal a 76% chance of progressing to the quarter-finals. Ahead of the first set of knockout fixtures, only England and Spain (both 82%) were seen as more likely qualifiers.

  Despite their slip-up against Georgia, which came with a much-changed starting lineup, Portugal ranked second for both possession share (67%) and total shots (53) in the group stage, behind Germany (69%, 57 shots).

  Their defeat on matchday three halted a run of 12 consecutive wins in competitive action. However, they have not lost back-to-back competitive matches since Euro 2008, when they lost 0-2 to Switzerland in the group stage and 2-3 versus Germany in the quarter-finals.

  Another player to watch in Selecao colours could be Vitinha, who leads all of his team-mates for line-breaking passes (29) at this tournament. 

   

  His pass completion rate under high pressure is also the highest of any player for his country (90% - minimum 50 attempted). 

  The Paris Saint-Germain man is brimming with confidence and his quality could be key against a Slovenia side likely to dig in, just as they did in group-stage draws with Denmark and England.

  OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

  Portugal - 67%

  Slovenia - 19.6%

  Draw - 13.4%

• France v Belgium: Les Bleus have no need to fear Red Devils, claims Dugarry

  France should hold no fear ahead of facing Belgium in the round of 16 at Euro 2024, according to Christophe Dugarry.

  Les Bleus, who were among the favourites prior to the tournament in Germany, finished second behind Austria in Group D after some unconvincing performances.

  Indeed, their goals came from a Maximilian Wober own goal and a Kylian Mbappe penalty, with France landing themselves in the tougher half of the draw along with Spain, Portugal, hosts Germany and last-16 opponents Belgium, who they play on Monday in Dusseldorf.

  That has seen their chances of winning the trophy slip down to 13%, according to Opta's supercomputer, but looking ahead to Monday's clash with Belgium, Duggary, who won the World Cup in 1998 and Euros in 2000, feels France have nothing to fear.

  "Of course, they have individuals, but I don't see why we should be afraid," Duggary said in his role as a pundit on Rothen s'ignee on RMC.

  "If we are not capable of beating these Belgians, we [will do] nothing at the European Championship."

  Dugarry pointed to Belgium's weak defence as a reason for France to be confident.

  "[Timothy] Castagne, [Wout] Faes, [Jan] Vertonghen who is 37... They have a midfield with [good] players, but no one defends in this team. For me, they're an enigma.

  "[Jeremy] Doku is the same as [Ousmane] Dembele. But given the criticism that we've put on Dembele since the start of the competition, we're not going to say better about Doku.

  "I understand the Belgian supporters, who are disappointed. We've been talking to them for years and years about a golden generation. But the golden generation is starting to no longer be golden at all. They have no legs, no aggression."

  If France are to take advantage of Belgium's indifferent performances so far, then they will need their forwards to be firing on all cylinders, something defender William Saliba is acutely aware of.

  "It’s true we didn't score many goals in the group stage. When you don't score a lot, you have to be focused," Saliba said.

  "But that's how it can be when you are playing at the highest level. But I have no doubt that the attackers will be there in the round of 16 and deliver.

  "It's clear that we have to be more dangerous with our set-pieces, especially me. I think I haven't even touched one, so we can do better."

  Belgium's attackers similarly misfired in Group E. In fact, only Serbia (3.8%) had a poorer shot conversion rate in the group stage than Belgium and France (both 4.2% - two goals from 48 shots).

  PLAYERS TO WATCH

  France - Kylian Mbappe

  Mbappe netted his first ever goal at the Euros when he put away that penalty against Poland. It took his tally to 13 goals across major tournaments, with only Michel Platini (14 in 19 games) ever scoring more for France.

  The new Real Madrid forward is also only two goals away from becoming the third French player to score 50 goals in all competitions, after Olivier Giroud (57) and Thierry Henry (51).

  Belgium - Kevin De Bruyne

  During the group stage, Belgium were the team with the highest share of their line-breaking passes being those that broke the opposition’s defensive line (18%).

  And it was De Bruyne who broke the opponent's defensive line on more occasions than any other midfielder (11). If Belgium are to progress, they will need their playmaker on top form.

  MATCH PREDICTION: FRANCE WIN

  France have drawn five of their last six Euro matches (one win), having only drawn four of their previous 25 games in the competition (14 wins, seven defeats). Their round-of-16 match at Euro 2020 was a 3-3 draw with Switzerland, with Les Bleus eventually going out 5-4 on penalties.

  Belgium, meanwhile, have advanced to the knockout stages of a third consecutive Euros, having reached the quarter-finals in 2016 and 2020. The Red Devils have won each of their last four last-16 games at major tournaments since losing to Brazil in the 2002 World Cup (0-2).

  However, France have won all four of their previous matches against Belgium at major tournaments, scoring 13 goals and conceding only three.

  Their only previous meeting at the Euros was 40 years ago, in 1984 – France won 5-0 in the group stages courtesy of a Platini hat-trick and goals from Alain Giresse and Luis Fernandez.

  This will be France and Belgium's 76th encounter overall. Les Bleus have faced the Belgians nearly twice as often as any other team (39 meetings each with Italy and Switzerland). Meanwhile, Belgium have only faced the Netherlands (129 times) on more occasions than the French.

  OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

  France - 58.4%

  Belgium - 20.8%

  Draw - 20.8%

• Kane 'playing for himself' at Euro 2024, says Aluko

  Eni Aluko believes Harry Kane is somewhat "playing for himself" at Euro 2024, as she urged the England captain to stay upfield rather than dropping deep.

  Kane, who scored in England's 1-1 draw with Denmark, has been starved of opportunities so far, with the Three Lions' attack struggling to spark.

  The Bayern Munich forward, who scored 44 goals for the Bundesliga giants across all competitions in 2023-24, has had eight shots at the tournament, accumulating 1.06 expected goals (xG).

  And former Lioness Aluko, who is a pundit for ITV Sport, suggested Kane, who has managed just 10 touches in the opposition box in total, is dropping too deep, to the detriment of Gareth Southgate's team.

  Speaking to Stats Perform at the Home of Adidas football in Berlin, Aluko said: "I have to preface everything I'm about to say by saying Kane is one of the greatest players we've ever seen for England, greatest goal scorers, but I think this tournament has made me realise that he sort of plays for himself a little bit.

  "I don't think this is a new conversation about Kane dropping deep I remember doing the World Cup two years ago and having this same conversation. So at some point, I think Harry has to realise that it's not actually helping the team coming in, dropping deep, trying to play as a midfielder when we've got such talented midfielders who can do that.

  "I know as a forward, a big part of that role is discipline. A big part of the position is keeping the pitch high, stretching the pitch so that you allow pockets for other people and trusting that they're going to get it to you.

   

  "So I would just like to see Harry play for the team a little bit more. It sounds crazy because it's Harry Kane but I think at this point in his career he must know that it's actually not the best thing for the team to keep dropping in so I'd like to see a little bit more discipline from him."

  Kane has been among the England players to hit out at the criticism the team has received from some of those in the media.

  Aluko added: "I think as a pundit I always look at it from a very objective point of view. You can critique something and say these are the stats, these are the numbers, this is what I think without being personal.

  "That's quite an easy balance to strike, to be honest. I never go into games going, I'm going to go right in on that player. It doesn't serve me to do that. So I think that we have a responsibility as pundits who've been there.

  "Part of the reason why we're on these panels and we're talking about football is because we've been in those positions to understand that it's not easy and it's easier said than done. 

  "I've seen it gone a bit too far and I like to see the players, to be honest, bite back a little bit. I used to do that as a player a little bit, bite back. But ultimately, the players' right of reply is on the pitch.

  "There's no need to try and get soundbites and all that stuff. That's not really our job. Our job is to analyse what's in front of us, critique what's in front of us, use data, stats, to paint a picture for the audience back home to go right. Show people why it's not good rather than sort of get into individuals and get personal."

  England face Slovakia in the last 16 on Sunday.