Euro 2020: Fernando Santos believes Portugal are underdogs in group of death

Coaches from Group F teams pose behind the trophy during the UEFA Euro 2020 football competition final draw in Bucharest on November 30, 2019 (L-R): head coach of Portugal Fernando Santos, head coach of Germany Joachim Loew and head coach of France Didier Deschamps. (Photo by Andrei PUNGOVSCHI / AFP)


Despite Portugal being the current champions of Europe, their manager Fernando Santos believes that they would start as the underdogs against their Group F rivals at Euro 2020.

He went on to state that Portugal are in fact outsiders in a group that contains “two favourites” in France and Germany.

Notably, the three giant teams were drawn together in what seems to be a Group of Death- Group F for Euro 2020. A playoff contestant remains to be added in the Group F.

“It will be a strong group, two favourites and a candidate,” Santos told reporters.

“[France and Germany] have a responsibility to win and they have to assume that responsibility. We will believe in our possibilities. We come as candidates and obviously we want to win.

“Two world champions, a European champion and winner of the Nations League – I think this is a group that nobody wanted because each team wanted to avoid the other two.

“Everyone will respect each other and just wait to see who will be the fourth,” he added.

Portugal finished the qualifying round behind Ukraine in the qualifying group in which they lost one and drew two games.