The Algarve will host the last three matches of the Under-21 National Team in group 7 of the qualifying phase for the Slovenian/Hungary 2021 European Championship. These three matches will be held in Portimão and Bela Vista (Parchal, Lagoa), de 12 on the 15th of November.
Thus, the Estádio Municipal de Portimão will be the stage for the match against Belarus (12 November) and also for the match of the last round, against the Netherlands (18 November).
The game against Cyprus, on the 15th of November, will take place at the Municipal Stadium of Bela Vista (Parchal, Lagoa).
The start of the three games is scheduled for 19:30 pm, all will be broadcast live on Channel 11 and none will have a public presence.
For the president of the Algarve Football Association, this decision by the FPF is proof of confidence: “In a difficult period that the country and the world are going through, it is with great satisfaction that the Board of the Algarve Football Association sees the Portuguese Federation of Football, once again, puts its trust in the region and in its excellent hotel and sports infrastructure for the realization of three official matches of the Under-21 National Team.
“The Algarve is one of the regions of the country with the fewest cases of contagion and, at the same time, the one that most welcomes Portuguese from various parts of the country, in addition to the foreign population that increasingly chooses the district of Faro to reside. The choice of the Algarve to host these matches should make all the Algarveans proud, in particular the managers and sports agents of our clubs, who struggle daily to keep football and futsal active, and of whom we feel an enormous concern to respect all safety standards,” added Reinaldo Teixeira.
For her part, the Mayor of Portimão does not hide her pleasure at seeing the city of Portimão once again elected for an event of this kind: “It is already becoming a good habit that Portimão regularly hosts high competition competitions, in the most diverse sports. In November, the Municipal Stadium will host the national under-21 football team, on its way to the final stage of the European Championship, to be played next year. Our young talents face two decisive games, first against Belarus, and then against the leaders of qualifying Group 7, the powerful Netherlands team, also full of future stars”.
“It is with undisguised pride that I place all my confidence in the team from the corners, as I believe they will be able to respond to this double duel, dignifying the traditions of our youth football. We will all be rooting for the sporting success of this golden generation, which has a lot to give to Portuguese football”, said Isilda Gomes.
The Mayor of Lagoa also believes that the under-21s will bring many benefits to the council: “It is always a great pride when Lagoa hosts the games of our teams. Usually we have other Quinas teams, such as the U-15, U-17 or U-19, at Estádio da Bela Vista. Now having the under-21s in a qualifying game is an even greater pride.”
Luís Encarnação also stressed that this event is also important “as we have a strategic plan for sports development, which includes hosting events of this nature. This is a very important sign given by the FPF regarding the excellent conditions that the municipality of Lagoa has. The lack of public always makes us nostalgic, but we understand that it is a fundamental measure given the health situation in the country and in the world”.
“If qualifying takes place at the Bela Vista Stadium, the match against Cyprus will have an even greater meaning. We believe that football has an important aggregating function, especially at this stage and when it comes to the team of all of us”, stressed the mayor of Lagos.
The Quinas Team occupies the second position in its group, with the first classified and the five best second among all groups qualifying for the final stage of the European Under-21.
Click here to see the results, overall standings and qualifying calendar for the Slovenian/Hungary 2021 European Championship.
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