Manchester City do not have to look far to see the quality produced by Portuguese clubs over the last generation.
The Blues boast four first-team stars in their squad that came through Benfica’s academy while across town United have three more internationals, with so much talent from the country in Manchester alone that the national team manager recently paid a visit to the city to see his players ahead of their World Cup play-offs.
If the Portuguese league ultimately loses its best talent to stronger European leagues, its clubs have certainly left their mark in the Champions League; Porto gave City two fiery games in the group stage last season, and Sporting have progressed this time at the expense of Erling Haaland’s Dortmund.
