Cristiano Ronaldo vs Kylian Mbappé: The most anticipated duel of the Euro Cup

On July 5, football fans will witness an epic clash between two titans of modern football: Cristiano Ronaldo and Kylian Mbappé. This encounter, scheduled for the quarter-finals of Euro 2024 in Germany, promises to be a duel full of emotions and rivalry.

France secured their passage to this crucial stage of the tournament with an 86th-minute own goal from Jan Vertonghen, which proved decisive in their victory over Belgium in the round of 16. Meanwhile, Portugal qualified after a tense penalty shoot-out against Slovenia, where Diogo Costa’s outstanding performance, who saved three penalties, was key to securing the Portuguese victory.

The story between Cristiano Ronaldo and Kylian Mbappé has been woven over several memorable clashes. Their first encounters date back to the round of 16 of the 2017-2018 Champions League, where Ronaldo’s Real Madrid beat Mbappé’s Paris Saint-Germain in both legs. Ronaldo shone with three goals in total, two in the first leg and one in the return leg, while Mbappé failed to score in either match.

They subsequently met in a goalless draw between France and Portugal in the UEFA Nations League, where neither could prevail over the other. The last meeting occurred in the group stage of Euro 2021, with a thrilling 2-2 draw where Ronaldo scored both goals for Portugal and Mbappé contributed a crucial assist for France.

This will be the fifth meeting between the two, at a time when both teams are facing challenges. France have scored just three goals at the Euros, and only one has come from Mbappé and a penalty, while Portugal have struggled more than expected, with no goals from Cristiano so far, even facing surprising defeats.