Portugal v Uzbekistan: Neves and Fayzullaev headline tight Group-stage clash in June fixture showdown

Portugal face Uzbekistan on 23 June at 17:00 (GMT) in a group-stage encounter that may prove decisive in the race for qualification, with both sides under pressure to respond to contrasting recent runs of form.

Portugal arrive with a mixed record, drawing their last match, and still searching for greater cutting edge in the final third. João Neves has contributed 1 goal this season for the national side and remains a key figure in midfield, tasked with linking play and supporting the attack in a team that has at times looked short of ruthlessness.

The key statistics of the players of both teams this season:

• Assists: Pedro Neto (Portugal) — 1 assists, (Uzbekistan) — 0 assists.
• Goalkeepers saves: Diogo Costa (Portugal) — 1, Utkir Yusupov (Uzbekistan) — 1
• Tackles: None (Portugal) — None, None (Uzbekistan) — None.
• Most encounters won: Bruno Fernandes (Portugal) — 7, Otabek Shukurov (Uzbekistan) — 6.
• Yellow cards: None (Portugal) — None, None (Uzbekistan) — None.
• Red cards: None (Portugal) — None, None (Uzbekistan) — None.

Top 5 scorers this season:

1. J. David (3, Canada)
2. L. Messi (3, Argentina)
3. Vinícius Júnior (2, Brazil)
4. J. Manzambi (2, Switzerland)
5. Matheus Cunha (2, Brazil)

Team statistics:

Uzbekistan travel into the fixture on the back of a loss in their most recent outing, needing a reaction if they are to revive their campaign. Abbosbek Fayzullaev, who has also scored 1 goal for Uzbekistan this season, stands out as their main creative spark, especially on the counter-attack, where his pace and direct running can trouble higher-ranked opponents.

The five previous matches played by the teams:

• Portugal — D
• Uzbekistan — L

The match sits within a league-style group system in which every point is crucial. Portugal’s home record this season shows stability but not dominance: at home they have registered 0 wins, 1 draw and 0 defeats, underlining a tendency to control games without always turning that control into victories. Their biggest home win so far stands at 0, reflecting that they have not yet produced a statement scoreline in front of their own fans this season, while their biggest home loss is also recorded as 0, confirming they remain hard to beat on familiar turf.

According to home statistics this season, Portugal scores more goals and concedes more in the following intervals:

Intervals	Goal Scored, %	Goals conceded, %
0-15	100.00%	100.00%
16-30
31-45
46-60
61-75
76-90
91-105

Uzbekistan has the following time frames of scoring and conceding goals:

Intervals	Goal Scored, %	Goals conceded, %
0-15	100.00%	33.33%
16-30		33.33%
31-45		33.33%
46-60
61-75
76-90
91-105

Head-to-head stats:

Teams	Games	Win		Draws		Losses
		H	A	H	A	H	A
Portugal	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Uzbekistan		0	0	0	0	0	0

Probabilities before the match:

Portugal		Uzbekistan
62.5%	Winning the game	62.5%
50%	Attack potential	50%
75%	Potential in defense	75%
0%	Strength against each other	0%
0%	Goal Potential	0%

Summary: the probability of Uzbekistan winning – 10%, draw – 45%, loss – 45%. Thus Portugal, most likely, win (win or draw)

Goal Forecast:Portugal, is likely to score -1.5 goals, Uzbekistan is likely to score no more than -1.5.

The bookmaker odds for this match:

Home win	Draw	Away win
1xBet 1.23	10Bet 5.9	SBO 19.0

Save the date

The match between the teams Portugal and Uzbekistan will take place on June 23 at 17:00 (GMT) at the stadium NRG Stadium.