Cristiano Ronaldo is expected to start and will be among potential goalscorers as Portugal takes on Uzbekistan at the FIFA World Cup 2026. | Photo Credit: AP

Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal were stunned in their opening match of the FIFA World Cup 2026 when they were held to a draw by the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Up against Uzbekistan, which is making its debut in the tournament, next, the UEFA Nations League champion will look to break the duck by securing full points at the Houston Stadium in Texas on Tuesday.

The Uzbeks, on the other hand, come into the game after a 1-3 drubbing to Copa America runner-up Colombia.

Under the tutelage of World Cup winner Fabio Cannavaro as head coach, they will hope for an optimistic underdog arc like fellow debutants Cape Verde (against Spain and Uruguay) and Curacao (against Ecuador), eyeing their first-ever point in the quadrennial spectacle.

Portugal vs Uzbekistan Head-to-Head:

Portugal and Uzbekistan have never met before in any official or competitive match.

• Total matches: 0
• Portugal: 0
• Uzbekistan: 0

Portugal vs Uzbekistan Form guide:

Portugal: D W W W D

• Portugal 1-1 DR Congo
• Portugal 2-1 Nigeria
• Portugal 2-1 Chile
• USA 0-2 Portugal
• Mexico 0-0 Portugal

Uzbekistan: L L L D W

• Uzbekistan 1-3 Colombia
• Netherlands 2-1 Uzbekistan
• Canada 2-0 Uzbekistan
• Uzbekistan 0-0 Venezuela
• Uzbekistan 3-1 Gabon

Portugal vs Uzbekistan predicted line-ups:

Portugal: Diogo Costa; João Cancelo, Rúben Dias, Renato Veiga, Nuno Mendes; Rúben Neves, Vitinha, Bruno Fernandes; Bernardo Silva, Francisco Conceição, Cristiano Ronaldo

Uzbekistan: Utkir Yusupov; Abdukodir Khusanov, Umar Abdullaev, Rustam Ashurmatov; Behruz Karimov, Abdulla Mozgovoy, Otabek Shukurov, Sherzod Nasrullaev; Abbosbek Fayzullaev, Oston Urunov, Eldor Shomurodov

Published on Jun 23, 2026