Roberto Martinez Ignites Portuguese Football with Fresh Energy

Gilberto Madaíl, former president of the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) from 1996 to 2011, has sharply criticized coach Roberto Martínez following the Seleção’s 0-2 loss to the Republic of Ireland. This defeat has now placed the team’s chances of securing direct qualification for the 2026 World Cup into jeopardy, with the final decision resting on tonight’s match against Armenia.

“If I were the president of the FPF, Roberto Martínez would never have been chosen, but those are matters of the past that no longer matter,” he stated during an interview on Antena 1. He emphasized that the Irish victory “was deserved, against a team that was merely a shadow of what the Portuguese national team should be.” He concluded by saying: “I hope this was just a bad match, something everyone experiences, and now we will turn the situation around and shift from negative to positive.”