Portugal Vs France Predictions: The Panel's Best Bets & Euro 2024 Tips
Portugal Vs France Betting Tips:
- The Panel Tip 1: Goalless At Half-Time – 6/4 With SpreadEx
- The Panel Tip 2: Under 1.5 Total Goals – 7/4 With Bet365
- The Panel Tip 3: Ronaldo Over 1.5 Shots On Target – Evens With BetGoodwin
- The Panel Tip 4: Aurelien Tchouameni To Be Shown A Card - 4/1 With Bet365
Portugal and France meet in another quarter-final between two former champions, but who will take a step closer to this year's final?
France entered the tournament as joint-favourites on the UK betting sites, but they have underperformed in each of their four games to date.
Their three goals have come from two own goals and a penalty, but their defence has been solid, with a Robert Lewandowski penalty the only goal they have conceded.
Roberto Martinez's Portugal needed penalties to get past a stubborn Slovakia side that exited the tournament without losing a game.
Portugal have played the eventual winners five times, could this be the sixth time?
Because both sides are on the 'tougher' side of the draw, their odds to win Euro 2024 have lengthened since the start of the tournament.
Didier Deschamps is looking to become the first person to win both the Euros and the World Cup as a player and a manager, and his French side can be backed at 9/2. Portugal are 8/1 to repeat their 2016 success.
France go into this quarter-final as slight favourites on football betting sites to progress to the semi-finals where either Spain or Germany will be waiting.
The Panel have studied the markets to bring you four of the best bets from Friday night's clash in Hamburg.
* To be in with a chance of winning a fabulous trip to Las Vegas, along with £2,000 spending money, enter our competition below. T&Cs apply.
Portugal Vs France Prediction: First Half Stalemate
With a place in the semi-finals up for grabs, this tie promises to be a cagey affair, just as many games have been in this tournament.
Of the first 42 games played in Germany, 14 (33.3%) were goalless at half-time.
France and Portugal have been involved in five of those first-half stalemates and we shouldn't be surprised if their quarter-final is 0-0 at the interval.
The French's last three games have all been goalless at half-time, including their round of 16 tie with Belgium.
Portugal's opener and their round of 16 clash with Slovakia also got to the interval without a goal.
And for good measure, four of the last five meetings between the French and Portuguese have been 0-0 at the end of the first half.
The Panel Tip 1: Goalless At Half-Time – 6/4 With SpreadEx
Portugal Vs France Prediction: One Goal Could Settle It
There may be plenty of attacking talent on the field come Friday night in Hamburg, but goals are certainly not guaranteed.
No French player scored from open play during the group stage, with the team’s only two goals coming from a Maximilian Wober own goal against Austria and a Kylian Mbappe penalty against Poland.
This worrying trend continued against Belgium in the last-16 when an unfortunate Jan Vertonghen put through his own net to seal victory for Les Bleus with just five minutes left.
Including a goalless home draw with Canada in their final pre-tournament friendly, it has now been over 450 minutes since a French player has scored, apart from Mbappe’s penalty.
Portugal scored five goals in their first two matches but struggled in their final group-stage game against Georgia, eventually losing 2-0.
They then failed to break-down Slovenia over 120 minutes and, despite dominating possession, showed a lack of quality and imagination, generating just three shots on target in the first 90 minutes.
Cristiano Ronaldo saw a number of long-range free kicks fail to find the target and even had an extra-time penalty saved by Jan Oblak before Portugal eventually progressed via a shootout.
Combine this with the obvious tension and fear of losing that a quarter-final of the Euros brings, The Panel see this one being a goalless draw or a game settled by a single goal.
The Panel Tip 2: Under 1.5 Total Goals – 7/4 With Bet365
Portugal Vs France Prediction: Ronaldo Show Once Again
Unless his manager Martinez takes him off free-kick duties, Cristiano Ronaldo will continue to hog the ball at every set piece.
The last-16 win over plucky Slovenia was dominated by Portugal's number seven, almost to the point of embarrassment.
Four free-kicks were attempted by Ronaldo without finding the back of the net, although one did force a save from Jan Oblak.
It could be a similar story for Portugal's talismanic captain, who could be appearing in his final major tournament.
He is desperate to leave his mark on this tournament, and despite scoring in Monday night's shootout, he'll want to add to his record 14 goals at European Championships.
In what could be his final game at a major tournament, The Panel expect Ronaldo to once again take matters into his own hands.
The Panel Tip 3: Ronaldo over 1.5 shots on target – Evens With BetGoodwin
Portugal Vs France Prediction: Tchouameni To Be Booked
Defences are expected to be on top in Hamburg and aside from the 2-2 draw during the Euro 2020 group stage, goals have generally been thin on the ground when these teams meet.
Four of the last five matches since 2015 have produced one goal or fewer and another cagey contest could be in prospect as we reach the business end of the tournament.
Both nations are in the bottom half of the disciplinary table for fouls committed, but the stakes have been raised now that we have reached the quarter-final stage and players are more likely to take a booking if it prevents a promising attack.
Interestingly, the yellow-card slate is wiped clean after the quarter-finals, so any player that is cautioned will be able to play in the last four and the final.
Players are, therefore, more likely to be a bit more reckless when it comes to tackles, knowing that they will not be suspended for the next match.
France had a pretty good disciplinary record until Monday night’s match against Belgium during which three of their players were booked inside the first 25 minutes, although overly fussy referee Glynn Nyberg could have kept his hand in his pocket on each occasion and no-one would have batted an eyelid.
That said, The Panel is leaning towards Aurelien Tchouameni to be booked for the second match in a row at 15/4 with betting apps.
The Real Madrid midfielder was shown his first yellow card of the tournament inside a quarter of an hour for protesting against one of the referee’s decisions.
Tchouameni has only committed three fouls so far, but he was booked 11 times for the European champions last season in all competitions, three of which came in his last seven matches.
With tempers potentially boiling over as teams go in search of a winner, this defensive midfielder could find himself having to take one for the team at a crucial moment, knowing his punishment will be eradicated should France reach the semi-final.
The Panel Tip 4: Aurelien Tchouameni To Be Shown A Card – 4/1 With Bet365
Stay In The Loop With Free Bets, Insider Tips & More!
Live Betting. Sports Promos. Sent Weekly.