Portugal will be looking to secure their first victory of the FIFA World Cup when they take on tournament debutants Uzbekistan at the NRG Stadium in Houston in what appears to be a classic David versus Goliath encounter.

The Portuguese arrived at the tournament among the favourites to challenge for the title, but their campaign began in disappointing fashion as they were held to a 1-1 draw by DR Congo. That result has left Roberto Martínez’s side with little room for error if they are to top the group, and another slip-up could seriously damage those ambitions.

Despite the underwhelming start, Portugal can take confidence from a strong overall record, having suffered just one defeat in their last 14 international matches. However, their recent World Cup form has been less convincing, with only one win from their last four matches at the finals.

Uzbekistan’s historic first appearance at a FIFA World Cup ended in defeat as they lost 3-1 to Colombia on matchday one. Nevertheless, the expanded tournament format means progression remains a realistic possibility if they can produce an upset against one of Europe’s leading nations.

Fabio Cannavaro’s side entered the tournament in impressive form, having lost only once in their previous 18 matches before arriving in the United States. They also showed encouraging attacking intent against Colombia, recording the highest expected goals (xG) figure by an Asian nation in a World Cup debut match since Kuwait in 1982.

This will be the first-ever meeting between the two nations. Interestingly, Portugal have failed to win either of their last two matches against teams from the Asian Football Confederation, drawing one and losing the other.

Pedro Neto will be one of Portugal’s main attacking threats after contributing either a goal or an assist in four of his last five appearances for club and country. For Uzbekistan, Abbosbek Fayzullaev made history by scoring the nation’s first-ever World Cup goal and will again be relied upon to provide inspiration in attack.

Portugal are expected to welcome Rúben Dias back into the starting line-up, although fellow defender Tomás Araújo remains a doubt. Uzbekistan may be without defender Rustamjon Ashurmatov after he was forced off through injury in their opening fixture.

While Portugal remain overwhelming favourites on paper, Uzbekistan have proven difficult opponents in recent months and rarely suffer heavy defeats. Given Portugal’s lacklustre display in their opening match and their tendency to struggle for goals, a Portuguese victory by a single-goal margin could represent the most likely outcome in Houston.