England U21 and Portugal U21 will square off at the Stadion Ramaz Shengelia on Sunday (July 2) for a place in the semifinal of the 2023 UEFA Euro U-21 Championship.
England breezed into the last eight as Group C winners, garnering maximum points from three games by winning all their games 2-0. Portugal finished as runners-up in Group A to book a spot in the quarterfinal.
The Esperancas started the last round of games at the bottom of their group, but a dramatic 2-1 win over Belgium propelled them to second spot. All three goals came in the second half, with Joao Neves opening the scoring in the 56th minute, while Yorbe Verteseen levelled matters for the Belgians nine minutes later. Tiago Dantas scored an 89th-minute penalty to help the Iberians progress.
England, meanwhile, saw off defending champions Germany with a routine 2-0 win. Cameron Archer and Harvey Elliot scored first-half goals to inspire the Young Lions to victory.
The winner of this tie will face either Israel or co-hosts Georgia in the semifinal.
England were not strong favourites entering into this tournament, but their impressive start has shot them to the top of the favorites list. Portugal started slowly but have gotten back into the thick of things and will now fancy their chances of going one better than their runners-up finish two years ago.
The Portuguese have had an edge in recent games between the two sides. But England's dominance in this tournament would have instilled confidence in Lee Carsley's side. We are backing the Young Lions to claim a narrow win with goals at both ends.
Prediction: England 2-1 Portugal
Tip 1 - England to win
Tip 2 - Both teams to score
Tip 3 - Over 2.5 goals
