Played
June 28, 2012 12:15 AM IST
Donbass Arena — Donets'k
Referee: C. Çakιr
Attendance: 48000
June 28, 2012 12:15 AM IST
Donbass Arena — Donets'k
Referee: C. Çakιr
Attendance: 48000
Portugal - Spain Preview: Iberian rivals battle for coveted place in Euro 2012 final
The reigning champions are eager to continue their march towards history but face a determined Seleccao bent on winning the trophy for a spot in the decider
By Adam Scime
Getty Images
| PROBABLE LINEUPS |
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PORTUGAL
 Rui Patricio Pereira, Pepe, Alves, Coentrao Moutinho, Veloso, Meireles Nani, Almeida, Ronaldo |
SPAIN  Casillas Arbeloa, Ramos, Pique, Alba Busquets, Alonso Silva, Xavi, Iniesta Torres |
Portugal and Spain renew their Iberian rivalry, with both teams coming off the back of three consecutive wins at Euro 2012 after an opening day loss to Germany and draw with Italy respectively.
Seleccao boss Paulo Bento remains confident despite the disruption of Ricardo Quaresma and Miguel Lopes coming to blows during training on Saturday, but will be forced into a change after centre-forward Helder Postiga suffered a thigh injury against Czech Republic, and will be replaced by either Hugo Almeida or youngster Nelson Oliveira in the starting XI.
Meanwhile, the rest of the line-up is expected to remain the same as Cristiano Ronaldo, who has three goals in his last two games, Pepe and Fabio Coentrao come up against several of their Real Madrid team-mates and Clasico rivals from Barcelona on the opposition side.
This generation of Spain players are coming off an effective quarter-final win over France and looking to add this tournament to their trophy cabinet after Euro 2008 and World Cup 2010, but a majority of the media have been unimpressed, labelling their performances "boring" so far, and questioning whether the team is up to the same standards as the last few years.
Coach Vicente del Bosque will not be swayed by the critics though, and is likely to stick with the players and formation he has utilised in Poland and Ukraine thus far with the lone doubt coming up front.
La Roja have started Cesc Fabregas as a 'false No.9' on two occasions and gone for the more direct approach of Fernando Torres in their other two matches, with both players notching two goals at the tournament so far. However, the Chelsea star may have the slight edge in being chosen for the first XI come Wednesday night.
| DID YOU KNOW? |
- Portugal have put out the same starting for all four of their matches at the tournament so far.
Cristiano Ronaldo (pictured, right) is now tied for third on the list of all-time goal scorers at European Championships with six strikes, behind just Michel Platini and Alan Shearer.
- Paulo Bento's side have hit the post six times at the European Championship, a new record, with four of those efforts coming from Ronaldo.
- The last time the sides met Portugal were 4-0 victors in a November 2010 friendly, just a few months after Spain eliminated them from the World Cup by a 1-0 scoreline.
- Spain have a positive all-time record against Portugal over 34 games (W16 D12 L6). However, La Roja have only won two of their last 12 against the Seleccao.
- Xabi Alonso's two goals against France in the quarter-final came on his 100th cap for his country.
- Spain have the best defence at Euro 2012 so far, shipping just one goal, and not conceding for the last 299 minutes.
- Vicente del Bosque's squad seem to enjoy late drama. Five of their eight goals at Euro 2012 have come during the final 30 minutes of matches.
Field Report
Reader's Predictions
Top 3 Predictions
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Portugal 2-1 Spain
- 25.28 %
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Portugal 1-2 Spain
- 14.86 %
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Portugal 0-2 Spain
- 10.35 %
| Euro 2012 (EC) | 28-Jun-2012 | Portugal 0 - Spain 0 |
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| International Friendlies (FR) | 18-Nov-2010 | Portugal 4 - Spain 0 |
|
| World Cup 2010 (WC) | 30-Jun-2010 | Spain 1 - Portugal 0 |
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Portugal
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| 10-Jun-2013 | Croatia 0 - Portugal 1 | FR |
| 08-Jun-2013 | Portugal 1 - Russia 0 | WCQE |
| 26-Mar-2013 | Azerbaijan 0 - Portugal 2 | WCQE |
| 22-Mar-2013 | Israel 3 - Portugal 3 | WCQE |
| 07-Feb-2013 | Portugal 2 - Ecuador 3 | FR |
Spain
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| 17-Jun-2013 | Spain 2 - Uruguay 1 | FCC |
| 12-Jun-2013 | Spain 2 - Ireland Republic 0 | FR |
| 09-Jun-2013 | Spain 2 - Haiti 1 | FR |
| 27-Mar-2013 | France 0 - Spain 1 | WCQE |
| 23-Mar-2013 | Spain 1 - Finland 1 | WCQE |
| 12 | Rui Patricio | Goalkeeper |
| 2 | Bruno Alves | Defender |
| 3 | Pepe | Defender |
| 5 | Fabio Coentrao | Defender |
| 21 | João Pereira | Defender |
| 4 | Miguel Veloso | Midfielder |
| 8 | Joao Moutinho | Midfielder |
| 16 | Raúl Meireles | Midfielder |
| 17 | Nani | Striker |
| 7 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Striker |
| 9 | Hugo Almeida | Striker |
| 1 | Eduardo | Goalkeeper |
| 22 | Beto | Goalkeeper |
| 13 | Ricardo Costa | Defender |
| - | Rolando | |
| - | Miguel Lopes | |
| 6 | Custodio | Midfielder |
| - | Quaresma | |
| 15 | Rubén Micael | Midfielder |
| 20 | Hugo Viana | Midfielder |
| 11 | Nélson Oliveira | Striker |
| 18 | Silvestre Varela | Striker |
| 23 | Hélder Postiga | Striker |
| 1 | Iker Casillas | Goalkeeper |
| 3 | Piqué | Defender |
| 15 | Sergio Ramos | Defender |
| 17 | Arbeloa | Defender |
| 18 | Jordi Alba | Defender |
| 6 | Andrés Iniesta Luján | Midfielder |
| 8 | Xavi | Midfielder |
| - | Xabi Alonso | |
| 16 | Busquets | Midfielder |
| 21 | David Silva | Midfielder |
| - | Negredo | |
| 12 | Víctor Valdés | Goalkeeper |
| 23 | José Reina Paez | Goalkeeper |
| 2 | Raúl Albiol Tortajada | Defender |
| - | Juanfran | |
| 4 | Javi Martínez | Midfielder |
| 10 | Cesc Fàbregas | Midfielder |
| 20 | Santi Cazorla | Midfielder |
| 22 | Jesús Navas González | Midfielder |
| 11 | Pedro | Striker |
| 9 | Fernando Torres | Striker |
| 13 | Juan Mata | Striker |
| - | Fernando Llorente Torres |
Results
Live
Final
scheduled
Suspended
Cancelled
Postponed
Match News
Top Scorers
| Player | Goals | Penalties | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Fernando Torres Striker Chelsea |
3 | 0 |
|
Cristiano Ronaldo Striker Real Madrid |
3 | 0 |
|
Mario Gomez Striker FC Bayern München |
3 | 0 |
|
Mario Balotelli Striker Milan |
3 | 0 |
|
Mario Mandzukic Striker FC Bayern München |
3 | 0 |