Martínez warns Chile will 'demand a lot' from Portugal in friendly

Portugal's national football team coach Roberto Martínez warned that Chile will pose a significant challenge in their upcoming friendly match. He highlighted the "flexibility" and "very clear ideas" of the Chilean team, now led by coach Nicolás Córdova.

“

Chile is a new team. I think Professor Nicolás Córdova is doing a very interesting job. I love their positional play ideas... It's a team with a lot of flexibility and they will demand a lot from us.

"(Chile) is a new team. I think Professor Nicolás Córdova is doing a very interesting job. I love their positional play ideas... It's a team with a lot of flexibility and they will demand a lot from us," Martínez stated during a pre-match press conference. He described "La Roja" as a "very well-drilled" team with "clear ideas" that "defends individual duels very well with the ball."

“

For us, it's a preparation match for the World Cup; for Chile, I think it's a match to prepare for the future of this team, and that makes it very competitive.

Martínez anticipates a "very competitive" game, acknowledging Chile's current transitional phase. "For us, it's a preparation match for the World Cup; for Chile, I think it's a match to prepare for the future of this team, and that makes it very competitive," he said. This aligns with Portugal's goal of preparing for the "individual level of demand from the Colombian national team," a future World Cup opponent.

“

He was an incredible player... A born winner. To talk about a Chilean footballer is to talk about Jean Beausejour.

Reflecting on Chilean football, Martínez expressed admiration for former player Jean Beausejour, whom he coached at Wigan. "He was an incredible player... A born winner. To talk about a Chilean footballer is to talk about Jean Beausejour," Martínez said. Meanwhile, Portuguese midfielder Samú Costa expects an "intense and quite daring" Chilean side, noting the "young players with a lot of energy and a lot of desire to show they deserve to be in a great team like Chile's."

“

We know that it is a team that is in a reconstruction process. It has young players, who have a lot of energy and a lot of desire to show that they deserve to be in a great team like Chile's.