The representation of Portugal, the seventh in the FIFA ranking, will compete for the title of the European Champion in football for the sixth time. In 2004, as the hosts of the tournament they recorded their best score in this event. They reached the final where they couldn’t cope with the Greece.
Paulo Bento team barely qualified for the main event until the playoffs where they won by beating Bosnia and Herzegovina in the two-legged tie up to 6:2. The Portuguese play alternately in the group, a draw 4-4 with Cyprus, a loss at the match with Norway, which did not bring optimism. However, Cristiano Ronaldo and company managed to pull themselves together and eventually took the second place by noting the same number of points as Norway, which scored third. Netherlands, Germany and Denmark. They are Portugal’s rivals in the group.
It is hard to say anything about the opportunities to play in the quarterfinals. One thing is certain. One of the favourites of the tournament will have to say goodbye to the dreams of getting Henri Delaunay Cup already in the group stage after just three meetings. There are signs that this will be Portugal, but the fans are counting on the genius of Real Madrid star, Cristiano Ronaldo and his partners. Portugal’s play will depend on Hugo Almeida, Simao, Nani and two Galactic players, Pepe and Fabio Contreao.
Portugal Euro 2012 Squad
Goalkeepers: Rui Patricio (Sporting), Eduardo (Benfica), Beto (Cluj)
Defenders: Joao Pereira (Sporting), Bruno Alves (Zenit St Petersburg), Fabio Coentrao (Real Madrid), Pepe (Real Madrid), Ricardo Costa (Valencia), Rolando (Porto), Miguel Lopes (Braga)
Midfielders: Carlos Martins (Granada), Joao Moutinho (Porto), Miguel Veloso (Genoa), Raul Meireles (Chelsea), Ruben Micael (Zaragoza), Custodio (Braga)
Strikers: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid), Hugo Almeida (Besiktas), Helder Postiga (Zaragoza), Nani (Manchester United), Nelson Oliveira (Benfica), Ricardo Quaresma (Besiktas), Silvestre Varela (Porto)
Portugal Euro 2012 Group Matches
Saturday, June 9, 2012 Germany v Portugal (20:45 CET in Lviv)
Wednesday, June 13, 2012 Denmark v Portugal (18:00 CET in Lviv)
Sunday, June 17, 2012 Portugal v Holland (20:45 CET in Kharkiv)
Portugal Quick Facts
- Best World Cup Result: Third Place (1966)
- Best European Championship Result: Runners-Up (2004)
- Record Scorer: Pauleta (48 goals between 1997 and 2006)
- Most Capped Player: Luis Figo (127 caps between 1991 and 2006)
- Coach: Paulo Bento
- Captain: Cristiano Ronaldo
