Portugal to play Poland twice in one day
Portugal vs Poland is certainly the fixture on the lips of all Seleção supporters today, with that the final UEFA Nations League match occurring before Portugal host the semi-finals of the inaugural competition in June 2019.
But while that is the clash many are thinking about, there is an even more important match occurring today involving Portugal - and Poland.
That is because, before William Carvalho and co even step onto the pitch tonight, Portugal U21s will be taking on Poland U21s as they vie to secure qualification to the U21 European Championship next summer.
Portugal, after only finishing 2nd in their qualifying group behind Romania, now need to win this playoff over two legs to join their Romanian counterparts in Italy.
They have already secured a valuable 1-0 victory in Poland, courtesy of a goal from captain Diogo Jota, and therefore even a draw in today's fixture will be enough to see Portugal advance.
Meanwhile, the Nations League clash a couple of hours later doesn't have as much significance to Portugal, who have already confirmed their place in the tournaments first ever semi-final. It does, however, have increased repercussions for Poland, who need at least a point tonight to avoid being in pot 2 for the Euro 2020 qualifiers.
If Poland do secure a victory or draw, Germany will be the side to drop into pot 2, meaning that Portugal could find themselves drawn into the same group as Germany, something Portugal will very much want to avoid. There is therefore potentially an added incentive for Portugal to try and defeat Poland this evening.
