The noise will finally stop for Portugal and Cristiano Ronaldo when Fernando Santos' side begin their 2022 World Cup campaign against Ghana.
Ronaldo's dramatic departure from Manchester United has dominated the build-up to the Selecao's Group H opener against Ghana and Piers Morgan's most recent interview subject will now look to do his talking on the pitch
Otto Addo's squad has seen plenty of turnover of late, meaning the tournament's lowest-ranked nation could be something of an unknown quantity.
Ghana head into the World Cup in patchy form, although they enjoyed a confidence-boosting friendly win over Switzerland in Abu Dhabi last week.
MORE: Portugal vs. Ghana live: World Cup score, highlights, result from 2022 Group H match
Portugal vs. Ghana lineups
Diogo Jota and Renato Sanches were the headline injury victims unable to make Santos' squad, but the veteran tactician can still call upon a plethora of attacking talent.
A 4-0 win over Nigeria in their final pre-tournament friendly suggested Portugal might be ready to throw off some of their more pragmatic stylings. Ronaldo sat out that game with illness but is ready to return.
Ghana will look to Mohammed Kudus for inspiration and the Ajax playmaker certainly will not be over-awed by facing Ronaldo.
In a friendly against Brazil earlier this year, he clashed with Neymar. "He’s not better than me. He’s just a higher profile player, that’s all,” Kudus told The Guardian. “He was defending his country and I was defending mine. I wasn’t about to let him push me around.
Below are the starting lineups for both teams for their match at Stadium 974 on Thursday, November 24.
Portugal starting 11
Portugal (4-1-2-1-2, right to left): 22. Costa (GK) — 20. Cancelo, 4. Dias, 13. Danilo Pereira, 5. Guerreiro — 18. Neves — 8. Fernandes, 25. Otavio — 10. Bernardo Silva — 7. Ronaldo, 11. Joao Felix
- Injured: Nuno Mendes
- Suspended: none
Ghana starting 11
Ghana (5-4-1, right to left): 1. Ati-Zigi (GK) — 26. Seidu, 23. Djiku, 18. Amartey, 4. Salisu, 17. Rahman — 20. Kudus, 5. Partey, 21. Abdul Samed, 10. A. Ayew — 19. Williams.
- Injured: Sulemana, Kyereh
- Suspended: none
Portugal vs. Ghana World Cup squads
Here are the 26 names on each team's squad lists at the World Cup in Qatar:
Portugal
| Position | Player | Club | Age | Caps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeeper | Rui Patricio | Roma (ITA) | 34 | 104 |
| Goalkeeper | Jose Sa | Wolves (ENG) | 29 | 0 |
| Goalkeeper | Diogo Costa | Porto (POR) | 23 | 7 |
| Defender | Pepe | Porto (POR) | 39 | 128 |
| Defender | Raphael Guerreiro | Borussia Dortmund (GER) | 28 | 56 |
| Defender | Diogo Dalot | Manchester United (ENG) | 23 | 6 |
| Defender | Antonio Silva | Benfica (POR) | 19 | 0 |
| Defender | Ruben Dias | Manchester City (ENG) | 25 | 39 |
| Defender | Nuno Mendes | PSG (FRA) | 20 | 16 |
| Defender | Danilo Pereira | PSG (FRA) | 31 | 63 |
| Defender | Joao Cancelo | Manchester City (ENG) | 28 | 37 |
| Midfielder | Otavio | Porto (POR) | 27 | 7 |
| Midfielder | Joao Palhinha | Fulham (ENG) | 27 | 15 |
| Midfielder | Bruno Fernandes | Manchester United (ENG) | 28 | 48 |
| Midfielder | Bernardo Silva | Manchester City (ENG) | 28 | 72 |
| Midfielder | Matheus Nunes | Wolves (ENG) | 24 | 9 |
| Midfielder | William Carvalho | Real Betis (ESP) | 30 | 75 |
| Midfielder | Vitinha | PSG (FRA) | 22 | 4 |
| Midfielder | Joao Mario | Benfica (POR) | 29 | 52 |
| Midfielder | Ruben Neves | Wolves (ENG) | 25 | 32 |
| Forward | Cristiano Ronaldo | Manchester United (ENG) | 37 | 191 |
| Forward | Ricardo Horta | Braga (POR) | 28 | 5 |
| Forward | Rafael Leao | AC Milan (ITA) | 23 | 11 |
| Forward | Joao Felix | Atletico Madrid (SPA) | 22 | 23 |
| Forward | Goncalo Ramos | Benfica (POR) | 21 | 0 |
| Forward | Andre Silva | RB Leipzig (GER) | 26 | 51 |
Ghana
| Position | Player | Club | Age | Caps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeeper | Abdul Manaf Nurudeen | Eupen (BEL) | 23 | 2 |
| Goalkeeper | Ibrahim Danlad | Asante Kotoko (GHA) | 19 | 0 |
| Goalkeeper | Lawrence Ati-Zigi | St Gallen (SUI) | 25 | 2 |
| Defender | Denis Odoi | Club Brugge (BEL) | 34 | 4 |
| Defender | Tariq Lamptey | Brighton (ENG) | 22 | 1 |
| Defender | Alidu Seidu | Clermont (FRA) | 22 | 1 |
| Defender | Daniel Amartey | Leicester City (ENG) | 27 | 45 |
| Defender | Joseph Aidoo | Celta Vigo (SPA) | 27 | 10 |
| Defender | Alexander Djiku | Strasbourg (FRA) | 28 | 18 |
| Defender | Mohammed Salisu | Southampton (ENG) | 23 | 2 |
| Defender | Baba Rahman | Reading (ENG) | 28 | 44 |
| Defender | Gideon Mensah | Auxerre (FRA) | 24 | 4 |
| Midfielder | Andre Ayew | Al Sadd (QAT) | 32 | 109 |
| Midfielder | Thomas Partey | Arsenal (ENG) | 29 | 40 |
| Midfielder | Elisha Owusu | Gent (BEL) | 25 | 1 |
| Midfielder | Salis Abdul Samed | Lens (FRA) | 22 | 0 |
| Midfielder | Mohammed Kudus | Ajax (NED) | 22 | 18 |
| Midfielder | Daniel-Kofi Kyereh | Freiburg (GER) | 26 | 3 |
| Forward | Daniel Afriyie Barnieh | Hearts of Oak (GHA) | 21 | 5 |
| Forward | Kamal Sowah | Club Brugge (BEL) | 22 | 0 |
| Forward | Abdul Fatawu Issahaku | Sporting CP (POR) | 18 | 8 |
| Forward | Osman Bukari | Red Star (SER) | 23 | 6 |
| Forward | Inaki Williams | Athletic Bilbao (SPA) | 28 | 2 |
| Forward | Antoine Semenyo | Bristol City (ENG) | 22 | 1 |
| Forward | Jordan Ayew | Crystal Palace (ENG) | 31 | 83 |
| Forward | Kamaldeen Sulemana | Rennes (FRA) | 20 | 11 |
READ: MESSI & RONALDO: DESTINATION MUNDIAL | THE FULL SERIES
