Martínez confirms Rúben Dias out of Portugal v Congo, explains why | OneFootball

Roberto Martínez confirmed that Rúben Dias will not be available for Portugal’s World Cup opener. The national team, without the centre-back, get their campaign underway this Wednesday against the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Houston, United States, in the opening match of Group K.

The defender, who came through at Benfica, took a knock in the final warm-up match before the World Cup, in the 2-1 win over Nigeria, and only returned to full training on the eve of the game. Even so, the national team coach chose not to risk using him.

“I believe the preparation has been perfect in every respect, with the only note being that Rúben Dias is not 100% for tomorrow. He is not fit for the game and this is not the moment to take risks. He is working individually and it makes sense to continue his recovery,” Martínez explained. The coach also made a point of clarifying that the physical issue is not related to any previous injury the player had at Manchester City, stressing that it is an isolated incident.

“He arrived in good condition, played the full 90 minutes in the last Premier League match and trained normally throughout the preparation. Unfortunately, football is a contact sport and Rúben took a knock in the game against Nigeria. The tests did not detect any structural problem, but we are not going to take risks. We need everyone at 100% for the World Cup,” he added.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.