"We all experience grief differently. Diogo Jota was part of winning the Nations League and helped build this locker room. He is a strength for us, a source of motivation because he wanted to win the World Cup. It was a very emotional, difficult, but beautiful match," said Roberto Martínez.

The national team coach was speaking to reporters in Yerevan, at the Vazgen Sargsyan Republican Stadium, at a press conference ahead of the first round of Group F.

Martínez recalled that matches between Portugal and Armenia have always been very competitive, noting that the Portuguese team has won only once in Yerevan, and considered that the home team will be highly motivated on the field as they are starting a new chapter with a new coach.

“We have enormous respect for Armenia. It's a big test for us. The team is very focused. We respect Armenia immensely. We have to remember that we've drawn here twice in the last three games, and that underscores the difficulties we can expect,” he said.

The Spanish coach explained that, to win in Armenia in a stadium with a “great atmosphere,” the Portuguese team must above all have intensity.

“They can use various tactics, but we know the quality of the opponent. The most important factor for us is being able to match the fact that Armenia is playing at home. We have to match that with our intensity in recovering from the defeat and with our quality. That will be an important factor," he stated.

The match is scheduled for Saturday at 8:00 PM (5:00 PM) at the Vazgen Sargsyan Republican Stadium in Yerevan, a venue with a capacity of 15,000 fans, and will be refereed by Englishman Anthony Taylor.

The Portuguese delegation then travels to Budapest, where they face Hungary on September 9th in the second round of Group F.

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