Soccer-Pepe out of Portugal World Cup qualifier due to COVID

The 39-year-old's absence means the former European champions will be without their two first-choice centre backs for the clash at Porto, with Ruben Dias ruled out due to a hamstring injury. Head coach Fernando Santos has called up Lille defender Tiago Djalo as a replacement for Pepe.

Portugal defender Pepe will miss their World Cup playoff semi-final against Turkey on Thursday after testing positive for COVID-19, the Portuguese Football Federation said. The 39-year-old's absence means the former European champions will be without their two first-choice centre-backs for the clash at Porto, with Ruben Dias ruled out due to a hamstring injury.

Head coach Fernando Santos has called up Lille defender Tiago Djalo as a replacement for Pepe. The winners of the match will face either Italy or North Macedonia five days later in a game that will determine one of the last three spots left for European teams at Qatar 2022, which kicks off in November.