Jose Mourinho, the Fenerbahce manager, expressed surprise at Spain's performance in Euro 2024, highlighting their evolution as a standout team. Despite Mourinho initially favoring Portugal, France, and England, he acknowledged Spain's exceptional gameplay and progress, reaching the semi-finals. Mourinho critiqued Portugal's underwhelming performance in the tournament, emphasizing the lack of improvement despite reaching the quarter-finals. He noted concerns about Portugal's gameplay even before the tournament commenced, signaling room for growth for the young team led by veterans Cristiano Ronaldo and Pepe.