Portugal, haunted by past failings, were the last team to qualify for Euro 2012 and despite a place alongside Germany, the Netherlands and Denmark in the “group of death,” they are no underdogs, aiming at least for a place in the quarter-finals.
Soccer-mad Portugal cannot understand how they let slip their first major success when they lost to Greece in the final of Euro 2004 in Lisbon. Eight years on, it still hurts.
Although that ghost survives, Portugal, having qualified for a seventh consecutive major championship, are confident and determined to capitalize on a stellar midfield and the talent of the world’s most expensive player.
Cristiano Ronaldo, 27, is in his prime and he does not hide his ambition.
“These are the colors we will defend in the Euro with one single objective: to conquer it,” he wrote on his Facebook page next to a photograph of Portugal’s new secondary uniform — a white shirt, with a green and red St George’s cross, the symbol Portugal used in the era of great maritime discoveries.
Ronaldo may be galvanized by his incessant dazzling displays with Real Madrid, but coach Paulo Bento is more down-to-earth.
“We want to go as far as possible and our first objective is the quarter-finals, that is what is set out at the moment,” Bento told reporters.
His Portugal have flair in attack and a resolute defense, qualities forged through a tough and memorable, qualifying passage.
Euro 2012 seemed little more than a mirage after they opened with a 4-4 draw with Cyprus and a 1-0 loss to Norway and lagged second from last in Group H. Carlos Queiroz was suspended and Portugal were managed by an interim coach.
However, after Bento took over in September 2010, he nailed five consecutive wins. When they lost to Denmark and slipped into the playoffs, Portugal stayed cool — before storming to a 6-2 aggregate victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Portugal were runners-up in Euro 2004, reached the semis in Euro 2000 and the quarters of Euro 2008. Their 2010 FIFA World Cup campaign in South Africa ended in a defeat to eventual champions Spain in the round of 16.
The flamboyance and firepower of Ronaldo and Manchester United’s Nani should ensure excitement on the wings, while busy Porto midfielder Joao Moutinho, Chelsea’s Raul Meireles and Real Madrid centerback Pepe, if needed, are leading midfield options.
In defense, Zenit St Petersburg’s Bruno Alves, and Pepe, offer combative power and experience, though this is the area of greatest uncertainty after coach Bento fell out with experienced defenders Ricardo Carvalho and Jose Bosingwa.
Their absences will be felt, but it may be that Portugal’s attack carries the greatest concerns.
Strikers Hugo Almeida and Helder Postiga seek to silence critics who claim Portugal’s abundance of flair has been let down for years by the absence of a top striker since Eusebio in the 1960s — and that without goals, they have little hope.
Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and Belgian partner Elise Mertens on Monday notched up their first win in the doubles group stage of the WTA Finals in Riyadh to keep their semi-final hopes alive, while Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching and Russian partner Veronika Kudermetova were aiming to record their first victory after press time last night. Third seeds Hsieh and Mertens came back from a disheartening opening-day loss to Australia’s Ellen Perez and Nicole Melichar-Martinez to defeat top seeds Ukraine’s Lyudmyla Kichenok and Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko, the women’s doubles world No. 3 and 4 respectively. The 6-1, 6-3 victory at King Saud University Indoor Arena
Taiwan’s top table tennis player Lin Yun-ju made his debut in the US professional table tennis scene by taking on a new role as a team’s co-owner. On Wednesday, Major League Table Tennis (MLTT), founded in September last year, announced on its official Web site that Lin had become part of the ownership group of the Princeton Revolution, one of the league’s eight teams. MLTT chief executive officer Flint Lane described Lin’s investment as “another great milestone for table tennis in America,” saying that the league’s “commitment to growth and innovation is drawing attention from the best in the sport, and we’re
Coco Gauff of the US on Friday defeated top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka 7-6 (7/4), 6-3 to set up a showdown with Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen in the final of the WTA Finals, while in the doubles, Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching was eliminated. Gauff generated six break points to Belarusian Sabalenka’s four and built on early momentum in the opening set’s tiebreak that she carried through to the second set. She is the youngest player at 20 to make the final at the WTA Finals since Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki in 2010. Zheng earlier defeated Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic 6-3, 7-5 to book
Atalanta BC brought Serie A leaders SSC Napoli down to earth with a bump with a 3-0 victory on Sunday as Ademola Lookman grabbed two goals. Napoli were hoping to open up a substantial lead at the top before, but Atalanta stunned the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium as they decisively ended the home side’s unbeaten run that stretched back to Aug. 18. Inter then closed the gap with a 1-0 victory over Venezia to end the weekend just a point behind Napoli. Lookman pounced first in the 10th minute when Marten de Roon’s header fell for the London-born Nigerian international