Portugal vs DR Congo 
The pick
Win, draw, and loss probabilities and expected goals are from our team-strength model. The composite averages every source we track for this match — see composite ratings for the full method. Public consensus from 2 sources: Forebet (model), Dimers (model).
Head to head
Expected shapes: Portugal 4-3-3, DR Congo 4-2-3-1.
Ruled out: COD — Rocky Bushiri
Portugal Portugal DR CongoKey players to watch
Portugal Portugal Portugal DR CongoProjected XIs
Most-likely starting elevens based on recent selections.
Portugal- 1José Sá
- 5Diogo Dalot
- 3Tomás Araújo
- 4Gonçalo Inácio
- 5João Cancelo
- 6Samú
- 23Vitinha
- 8Trincão
- 8Bruno Fernandes
- 18Pedro Neto
- 11Gonçalo Ramos
DR Congo- 1L M'Pasi N'Zau
- 2A Wan-Bissaka
- 3C Mbemba
- 4A Tuanzebe
- 5A Masuaku
- 6S Moutoussamy
- 7T Bongonda
- 8N Mukau
- 9N Sadiki
- 10M Elia
- 11C Bakambu
Storylines
Cristiano Ronaldo named to record sixth World Cup squad for Portugal
Ronaldo is set to become the first man alongside Messi to appear at six World Cups and is the only player to have scored in five separate tournaments, as Portugal open Group K against DR Congo in Houston.
DR Congo: 2026 World Cup Squad, Fixtures and Schedule
DR Congo return to the World Cup for the first time since competing as Zaire in 1974, a 52-year absence, opening against Ronaldo's Portugal under coach Sebastien Desabre.
Player ratings are EA Sports FC 26 attributes, used here as a consistent, public proxy for player quality. Squad-level comparisons cover the players we could rate; coverage varies by team.