Czech Republic 2-3 Turkey

Czech coach Karel Bruckner recalled Jan Koller the lead the attack and it quickly paid off. A weakness in the centre of the Turkish defence was evident in their first two group games and in the early going Koller exploited it.

The Czech settled into a early rhythm as they looked to find Koller at every opportunity and to feed off his knock downs and flicks. However, the Czech tactics came with a price tag and it was the big striker who was footing the bill (I could have said writing the cheque!) as he took a battering from the Turkish back four.

Just as Turkey seemed to be finding their game with some tidy possession football the Czechs took a well-deserved lead. Galloping down the right side on the overlap Grygera whipped in a cross just behind Koller. The striker managed to reposition himself and the resulting header flew into the roof of the net.

The Czechs rode the goal to half time with Turkey showing little response to going a goal down. However, it was a very different Turkish side that came out for the second half and pressed the Czechs at every opportunity. Even when the Czechs went to up against the run of play it only served to reinvigorate a Turkey side that just would not give up.

The second Czech goal came after a quick free kick was fed out to Sionko who crossed invitingly to the far post. Plasil arrived at a rate of knots to complete a very smart move. Excellent goal.

But even at 2-0 there were the seeds of defeat in the Czechs play. Where in the first half the team pressed forward and allowed the likes Sionko, Matejovsky and Polak to support and feed off Koller, in the second half the Czechs lost that shape and large gaps started forming between midfield, Koller and the support strikers.

Koller’s legs were the first to go but he would not be the last. Incredibly, Bruckner stubbornly stuck with the first half goal scorer rather than looking to the likes of the mobile Baros or Sverkos the scorer of the winner against Switzerland. As the Czechs failed to hold possession up front the pressure mounted on the midfield and the defence as Turkey continued to swarm the Czechs at will.

With quarter of an hour left Arda Turan stepped up to give Turkey hope as he reduced the deficit  to one but still Bruckner stuck with Koller. Kadlec and Vlcek came on for Plasil and Sionko but neither moved threatened to turn the tide. Almost every Czech player was being outworked, out tackled and out fought by a younger and much fitter Turkish team.

However, with three minutes to go it looked as if the Czech Republic would hang on. Little did we realize that we still had the most astonishing finish since Spain scored twice in injury time to beat Yugoslavia 4-3 at Euro 2000 in store.

First Cech dropped a routine cross at the feet of Nihat who gratefully slipped the ball into an empty net.

Then just two minutes later the Turkish captain caught Jankulovski a step behind the other defenders, sprung the offside trap and thumped a shot over the oncoming Cech, off the underside of the bar and into the net.

Turkey led 3-2 but there was more still in store. A stramash in the Turkish box ended with the ball rolling wide of an empty goal but after it had gone out of play Demirel took a pop at Koller and deservedly got sent off. After having used all their substitutes, Turkey finished the match with ten men and with Tuncay Sanli in goal.

The Czechs leave the tournament after the coach who put them in a position to move on, in turn became the coach whose decision to stick with Jan Koller killed their chances.

Portugal 0-2 Switzerland

Switzerland finish bottom of Group A but leave the tournament with a win.

Comment of the Day
“But the pluses(for Portugal) are not merely Deco back on top form controlling midfield alongside Joao Moutinho, but also Cristiano Ronaldo, a player capable of turning games even if he is not playing especially well.

It feels like a Life of Brian “What did the Romans ever do for us?” comment, but aside from creating two goals and scoring one, Ronaldo did little against the Czechs. They almost succeeded in isolating him, but almost with Ronaldo is not enough.” – Jonathan Wilson in the Financial Times.


Other goings on
It is a World Cup qualifying weekend in Africa, Asia, South America and CONCACAF. There were a few shocks in Africa yesterday with Angola, Egypt, Ghana and Morocco all losing while Cameroon and the Ivory Coast both drew.

However, this is only the half way point in a preliminary qualifying stage so it might be a bit premature to think realistically that some of these countries are going to miss out on the first World Cup Finals in Africa.

The prelim stage has 12 groups with the winners and 8 best runners up moving onto a final; group stage of four teams in five groups. Winners will then join the host nation South Africa in 2010. World Cup qualifying in Africa also doubles up for the African Cup of Nations Finals and that is why South Africa is involved.

An update of the current group standings in Africa can be found by following the link.


One country that will not be in South Africa in two years time is 2002 qualifiers China. Consecutive losses to Qatar and yesterday to Iraq put paid to Chinese hopes. Iran, Saudi Arabia, Australia, Japan, North and South Korea, Bahrain and Uzbekistan are all guaranteed a place in the final stage of Asia qualifying.

The remaining two places will be decided next weekend with Iraq up against Qatar in Group 1 and UAE or Syria in Group 5.

An update of the current group standings in Asia can be found by following the link.


Two games in South American qualifying were played yesterday and both finished in 1-1 draws – Uruguay at home to Venezuela and Peru at home to Colombia. The other games scheduled for today are Paraguay vs. Brazil; Argentina vs. Ecuador; Bolivia vs. Chile.

Yesterday’s draw puts Venezuela into fifth place in the group (a place above Uruguay) and they have a solid chance of maintaining that position after today’s games.

Paraguay could give Brazil are real run for their money I fancy.

An update of the current group standings in CONMEBOL can be found by following the link.


And last but definitely not least we have CONCACAF qualifying. Canada hopes to start a journey that will conclude with their first appearance at the World Cup finals since 1986 while the USA want to make it six consecutive appearances at the finals.

This preliminary round generally keeps the traditionally more powerful nations apart and matches then with non-traditional soccer powers in a home and away series. The chances of a real shock or two are not high but from time to time the bigger countries only squeak past the “minnows”.

Costa Rica made it to Germany in 2006 but they had to rely on the away goals rule to get past Cuba at this stage four years ago. And after yesterday’s result against Grenada they may have a tough time again.

Costa Rica was down 2-0 after less than thirty minutes before finally drawing 2-2 in St Georges. So a warning to Canada (vs. St. Vincent and the Grenadines) and to the USA (vs. Barbados) who both play today.

Honduras is already through to the next stage after drawing 2-2 with Puerto Rico yesterday after winning the first leg 4-0.

A CONCACAF schedule and scores to date can be found by following the link.

Czech Republic 1-3 Portugal

Two games and two wins for Portugal and they are within a smidgen of moving on to the knock out stage. The Czechs put in a far better performance than the opening game and can go into the final match with some confidence.

The early goal from Deco came after some great interplay just on the edge of the Czech penalty box. Portugal was offered too much time and far too much space. Ronaldo and Nuno Gomes are involved before Deco nips into score. The early counter was the making of the match as the Czechs clawed their way back into the game.

Former Ranger Libor Sionko was the liveliest player for the Czechs on Saturday and he up for this game as well. The equalizer came from a well-placed Plasil corner kick and Sionko stooped low to beat Petit to the ball and direct a header past Ricardo. Cross balls would continue to cause Portugal problems throughout the match and it is something that other countries will have been sure to notice.

The game flowed back and forward to half time and into the second half although Portugal was much more adept at creating chances. Deco in particular was a constant threat. The eventual winner came from a lightning quick attack. The ball found in Deco just inside the penalty box and his cutback found Ronaldo arriving at the edge of penalty after the Czech’s had failed to pick up his run. The shot was beat Cech and again the Czechs were forced to try and find a way back into the game.

Free kicks and corner kicks offered the best chance of success and although the centre of the Portuguese looked uncomfortable every time a cross was delivered the next goal came at the other end. With only seconds left another quick free kick caught the Czech defence square and high. Rolando ran on unmolested and after drawing Cech out of the goal he rolled a pass to Quaresma. The substitute rolled the ball into the empty net.

No doubt Ronaldo will garner the headlines but Deco was the stick that stirred the Portuguese cocktail.

Turkey 2-1 Switzerland

It has been a long time since I can remember a game played at a major championship in such bad conditions. With surface water visible over much of the park each pass came with the possibility of dying in one of the many puddles or aquaplaning and leaving players to stretch in desperation.

The West Germany vs. Poland semi final at the World Cup of 1974 suffered as a spectacle when a torrential downpour hit but in this case you could argue that the weather conditions actually made the match.

Every dribble, every tackle, every pass came with the opportunity for a turnover or for defensive disaster from situations that would normally generate predictable outcomes. The Swiss were quicker to adapt as they chose to harry and press the Turks at every opportunity.

Derdiyok’s pace up front caused the Turkish defence all sorts of trouble and it was the youngest player of the tournament who set up the first goal. Served up on a plate is not an uncommon expression but this one was served up in a puddle as Derdiyok crossed to the unmarked Yakin at the far post.

The ball died in the water as Yakin waited to tap it in and he had to quickly readjust in order to get to the ball before the Turkish defenders who were desperately trying to plow through the waves (exaggeration).

Shortly after Yakin had what is probably the miss of the tournament as he missed a wide open net after again being fed at the back post.

Half time brought an end to the rainstorm and an opportunity for the groudstaff to deal with some of the standing water. As conditions improved so did Turkey’s performance. The equalizer came from a magnificent cross from Nihat powered home by Semih although a top class goalkeeper might have been expected to deal with the effort.

Switzerland looked the more likely to score the winner although Turkey remained a realistic threat on the break. And so it was with seconds left that Turkey broke away and scored the winner.

Turkey now face Czech with each country tied on points, goal differential and goals scored. A draw would set up penalty kicks to decide who moves as runners-up to Portugal. Portugal is now guaranteed to finish top of the group and can now rest players for the final game against Switzerland.

Comment of the Day

"The fundamental value at the heart of football is solidarity, together with collective intelligence, creativity, critical thinking, courage and fair play. These are qualities which have nothing to do with Switzerland and the Swiss." - Jean Ziegler.

Group A

Czech Republic
The Czech Republic has qualified for four European Championships in four attempts and has only lost two qualifying games along the way.


How they qualified
They topped Group D beating out Germany by two points and finished a mammoth twelve points ahead of third place the Republic of Ireland. Jan Koller led the scoring with six goals.


The Coach
Karel Bruckner took over the full national team in 2001 after a successful spell in charge of the under-21 side. Since then Bruckner has integrated many of the players from the under 21s that finished second in the 2000 European Championship with remnants from the 1996 European Championship side that finished as runners-up to Germany.

A failure to qualify from the group stages at the 2006 World Cup nearly cost the veteran coach his job but he managed to ride out the criticism. Nonetheless the 67-year-old has decided to retire at the conclusion of the 2008 Euros.


Key Players
Tomas Rosicky is injured and he will be badly missed by a side that many consider to be in decline. Goalkeeper Petr Cech will be a key to Czech hopes and confidence as will a back four that has depth with the likes of Grygera, Jankulovski, Rozehnal, Ujfalusi and Kovac to choose from.

Milan Baros was the top scorer at Euro 2004 and is an enigma. The striker has consistently failed to deliver the goods at club level with Liverpool, Aston Villa, Lyon and Portsmouth but put a Czech top on him and another player appears.  A scoring rate of almost a goal every two international games places his striking rate among the best in the world.

 
Great Euro Memory
It took a golden goal by Germany’s Oliver Bierhoff in the 1996 final to kill off Czech hopes of becoming European Champion at the first attempt. The Czechs battled Germany all the way and with a break at the right time they could well have won the 1996 tournament.


Synopsis
Their finish ahead of Germany while scoring twenty-seven goals and conceding only five flatters to deceive. There is a fine line between experience and old age when it comes to a soccer team and it may just be that the balance has tilted too far in a squad in which nine players the wrong side of 30. Martin Fenin who moved to Eintracht Frankfurt last summer after impressive performances at the under-20 World Cup is the only player under the age of 23 in the squad.


Coming Up in World Cup Qualifying
Drawn in Group 3 with Poland, Northern Ireland, Slovakia, Slovenia, and San Marino.



Portugal
Portugal has now made it to the last four European Championship Finals and qualified for the knock stages in 1996, 2000 and 2004.


How they qualified
Portugal finished a point behind Poland in Group A and three points above Serbia and Finland while drawing six of their fourteen games. Ronaldo was the top scorer with eight goals.


The Coach
Luiz Felipe Scolari’s relationship with the Portuguese media has plummeted to depths so low that the Brazilian coach might even be regretting turning down the England job in 2006!!

Scolari has proven time and time again that he can create teams that are difficult to beat and in a number of cases his teams have been incredibly successful. Conversely the Scolari-approach more often than not sacrifices players natural flair at the twin alters of the isms – pragmatism and cynicism.


Key Players
Cristiano Ronaldo’s importance almost goes without saying (but I thought it should be mentioned anyway)  but if you look through the squad of players available to Scolari you cannot fail to be impressed.

The likes of Alves, Bosingwa, Carvalho, Meira, and Miguel are all excellent  defenders, while the midfield has a mixture of creativity, strength, experience and pace with Deco, Petit, Nani, Moutinho,  Veloso and and Raul Meireles all pushing for spots.

If you look past Ronaldo perhaps the key forward for Portugal might be Werder Bremen’s Hugo Almeida. Almeida’s abilities might be best described as rugged and willing but he might be given the chance to complete a Portuguese puzzle that has repeatedly been missing a piece up top.


Great Euro Memory
It was 3-2 loss but the 1984 semi-final against France was an extra time epic in Marseille.


Synopsis
Finished as runners up to Greece when they hosted four years ago and a lack of goals from their recognized strikers (or striker) has cost Portugal silverware at past European Championships and World Cups. Portugal looks solid defensively and Cristiano Ronaldo could carry his country deep into the tournament once more.

However, all the other teams are more than aware of Ronaldo’s capabilities and no doubt  they will set out to try and nullify him.  Deco has been an important part of Scolari’s plans but his form has been generally disappointing over the last year. No goals and only three helpers for Deco during the qualifying stage carries  a warning that his most effective days at the top level may be on the wane. 


Coming Up in World Cup Qualifying
Drawn in Group A with Sweden, Denmark, Hungary, Albania and Malta.



Part One - History and background

Part 3 coming up Friday  - Switzerland and Turkey.
 

henry14 - I personally feel that all the other 19 teams in the Prem lack creative midfielders in the mould of the Deco, Pirlo type that Arsenal have in abundance, l think everyone saw the how Arsenal were full of ideas and United lacked them at all, and by the way l feel Gerrard is not at all creative he is an impact midfielder. Bobby what do you make of my creativity theory. Is it true that everytime Arsenal won at Old Trafford during Wenger's time they went on to win the title?

Bobby – Do you not think that having too many creative midfield problems can be a problem? A team is about balance and having all the creative talent in the world doesn’t make a difference if you can’t win the ball and score goals.  I don’t think that just because Gerrard covers a lot of ground and tackles well that you can’t describe him as creative. He scores goals, he inspires and he sets up goals – that sounds like a pretty creative package to me. 

Yes – Arsenal’s three title wins under Wenger have happened in the same season as winning in the Premiership at Old Trafford. On second thoughts (!!! I have been corrected) the 03/04 season was a 0-0 draw.

bmax14 - A fantastic and necessary result for the Gunners. This was a great game to watch with a bit of everything. I was convinced that Man U was beatable as their perfect start didn't appear to be so "perfect" with the results coming against the likes of Fulham and Watford. Arsenal really threw down the gauntlet to the rest of the league with this victory. When you look at their schedule for the next 4-5 weeks there are some very winnable games and they could be in the top 2-3 by late October. Well done Gunners!

Bobby – Arsenal should take advantage of a fairly straight forward schedule in the next few weeks but how many fans expected then to take two points from a start that included Aston Villa, Middlesbrough and Manchester City? Arsenal has a young side and with a young team you will find inconsistency now and again.

neophyte – (1). Arsenal’s 4-5-1 is not a new formation but seems to have taken the place of the beloved 4-4-2. I like it since you see more attacks from various angles and not just balls crossed from the wings in a traditional 4-4-2. (2). Baptista for Reyes. Who is going to get the better deal Real or Arsenal? Is Baptista really that big o####uy or is the TV camera playing tricks? He looks HUGE! When Rosicky and Baptista start clicking...look out.

Bobby – Wenger has been a resolute 4-4-2 manager until last season’s run in the Champions League. I think you will find that he will mix the two formations using 4-5-1 when up against strong opposition. The extra man in the midfield gives Fabregas a bit of help with the extra load. When Vieira was in his prime that wasn’t an issue but Cesc is a  very different player. However, week in and week out as long as injuries do not interfere Wenger will go back to 4-4-2.
In terms of Reyes and Baptista it may turn out that it is a good move for both clubs and the players. I am still not sure where Wenger will play Baptista – he is known as “the Beast” for a reason.

only1cab - As an Arsenal fan I'm obviously very happy and agree with your opinion about Rosicky, in my opinion he’s like Hleb with a brain. I watched the Chelsea game and was amazed to see how much space they gave up on the flanks. Kuyt could have phoned his mum back in Holland and ask her where he should shoot on one of Liverpool’s attacks. When J Cole and Robben are fully fit do you think they will revert to their old system and if so who would you drop? I think Essien (even though he’s been their best player so far) as I could never see them dropping Lampard and they've recently signed Ballack.

Bobby – That has been the question since Ballack was signed. Given the injury situation it has still to be answered. I suspect that Essien would be the player that is most likely to find himself on the bench if everyone was available and fit.

travel_coach - I was only able to watch the first half of the United loss -- my daughter's U12 team had a game -- but it was a very good first half, very enjoyable. Ronaldo had several chances and the way things looked, I expected Lehman to get a second yellow for being an angry person. I'm not an Arsenal fan at all, but before the game it was clear that United was overdue for a loss and Arsenal was due for a win. Why was Thierry Henry absent?

Bobby – Henry was hurt.

simba9 - Do you think that Didier Drogba has finally come into his own, despite all the criticism he endured in his first two seasons at Chelsea? There's an interesting story on the Chelsea website about his numbers. By and large not too shabby!

Bobby – His goal against Liverpool was spectacular. However, he does tend to be a bit hit or miss so I think he needs to keep up his form for a full season before he convinces everyone. He might also be benefiting from Shevchenko attracting the attention of defenders.

henry14 - l feel Mourinho should play bridge in place of Cole bcoz l thought he was the best left back in the Prem over the 5 rounds

Bobby – Ashley Cole is a much better left back than Wayne Bridge.

buffytvs - As a United fan, I have to be disappointed in the second half effort. And also in the rather odd substitutions -- I thought Fletcher and O'Shea would go. That said, I thought a draw would have been a fair result, but perhaps I'm biased. Best player on the pitch? Rosicky. And Batista was very impressive in the short time he had.

This is the second match on the trot SAF has played Rooney up front with Saha in support, and the second time Rooney has been mostly ineffective. That's how Eriksson wasted him too, and I'm surprised to see it at Old Trafford.

Bobby –  I would have to disagree. Ericksson played Rooney as a lone striker against Portugal. Rooney’s best performances have always come when playing just behind a main striker – the role that Fergie asked him to play on Sunday.

ancanada - Man U midfield appeared to be overrun by the Gunners midfield in the second half Sunday, and I cannot remember a shot that Lehmann had to save in the second half until Solksjaer which produced a great save. I cannot understand why Carrick was on the bench; Bobby is it possible he is still carrying an injury as this appears to be the only valid reason. Do you think the number of games the international players’ couple with the travels of some to various parts of Europe and the recent world cup is affecting performance.

Bobby – I think SAF was thinking that if he could hold the Arsenal midfield 5 with his 4 that Rooney or Saha to get a goal. However, I still don’t understand why you would spend that kind of money on a player and then not stat them against one of your toughest rivals. Wenger seems to think that some players are suffering from World Cup hangovers and I am sure that other managers would concur. But there again that is one of the reasons that clubs carry large squads.

Reggae_Boy_23 - I don't know if there's anymore for me to add to the whole Arsenal situation. Everyone seems to have pretty muched summed up the game pretty well. But my question is in regards to the 4-5-1 formation. Don't you think Arsenal have too many attacking options up front to just use 1 forward. Yeah there is better possession in the midfield, but Arsenal does not really have a problem with possession so far this season its scoring goals and I think they lack attacking options with just one striker especially with the midfielders not showing any good form in front of goal so far. Also Henry never seems quite comfortable when he's left up front alone. I can remember a number of occasions both with France and Arsenal when he has been pleading with his coaches to give him some support what do you think? One other thing Bobby. Your thoughts on Real Madrid so far this season. I know you like Capello, but I'm not too impressed with the squad he's put together so far. Is it too early to tell or do you see any potential problems with his lineup?

Bobby – I remember the days when 4-2-4 was being systematically dumped in favour of 4-3-3 and the same argument was being made. Now we are at 4-5-1 and on the face of it would seem extremely negative. But it comes down to how it is executed. If the 5 midfield players are just lined up across the park then it is going to make for some dull football. If, on the other hand, two or even three of the 5 midfielders are given license to get forward and support the lone strike when the chance occurs then there is the possibility of plenty of goals.
I think Capello is implementing a band-aid solution for this year in the hope that he can find some younger players next year. It has not been impressive stuff but Juventus was not very entertaining either – but successful. There again that is another story!!

usenglandfan - I'm surprised no one has talked about Riquelme yet. I know it's all about the EPL right now, but one of the most pivotal midfielders in the game just retired internationally, at 28 years old, from a perennial top 5 team and the best team at the World Cup! Oh yeah, and he was captain. Do think he retired for the reasons he cited (I’m pretty sure he said it was due to the criticism he received post WC and post Brazil @ Emirates) or could it have been something else? He's such a "rugged individual" type of person, so I wouldn't be all that surprised if this decision was indeed driven by spite, but who knows? I thought this deserved some attention.

Bobby – It is a shame to lose a player of his quality to international football when you would think that he should have another World Cup in him. It is good news for Villarreal though and they desperately need a tonic given their awful start to the season.

kirbym - Surprising bit of fence mending that Mourinho did with Benitez. That feud had livened things for awhile and I wonder what will replace it. Also, Mourinho actually admitted the Ballack foul was a red card offense. A sign of JM stepping a bit more lightly?

In the Newcastle-West Ham match I couldn't see what Roeder did to inflame the WH fans (granted, not everything is on camera). He was an unpopular appointment there and they never seemed to respect him--including the players, despite a rather backhanded vote of confidence from Di Canio. It seemed to poison his tenure right from the beginning. Do they still hate him that much?

Bobby – JM will be controversial when it suits his need. As for Roeder it appears from some comments from West Ham fans that they do hate him that much. I don’t think they held that view when he helped them to seventh in the Premiership however.

CIAO - Given Totti's track record with the Italian national team... do you think the team is better off with out him? Also have you heard any rumors about Mancini getting sacked and/or Buffon being signed in January at Inter? I that at the end of the season they bring Mourinho to Inter. If things don't turn around in the next 3-4 games Mancini will be looking for a new job. Hopefully a new manager can set up a functioning youth program.

Bobby – I never thought that Italy would come even close to the World Cup without Totti turning in some spectacular performances. As it was he made very little impact – Pirlo was far more influential. I still think though that Italy can benefit from an in-form Totti.
I guess that whoever is in charge at Inter they are only ever a couple of results away from being fired. Sven-Goran Eriksson has been linked to Inter and the Mourinho story has been around for awhile. The problem is that no manger is going to build a youth system at Inter because there is no befit to it if a manager is going to be evaluated on results today rather than building for three or four years down the road. As far as Buffon is concerned – haven’t heard anything since the transfer window closed.

MeanSucka - Speaking of Italian football, how is it that a relegated Juventus with a points deficit is able to hang on to so many of their stars. Was United really overrated this season or was it the Ewing Theory at work with Henry out? The Ewing Theory is based on Patrick Ewing with the New York Knicks - when he got hurt in 1999 they went to a different style of play and made it all the way to the NBA Finals. Same phenomenon with Drew Bledsoe and the New England Patriots in 2001 when they won the Super Bowl - reinforcing team over the individual.

I suppose we'll see when Henry returns, but as you said - they need to get results against average sides too. Can't wait to see Rosicky blossom.

Bobby – We don’t really know what deals the team may have cut with some of the players nor to way know how much of this season is being underwritten by shareholders.
In terms of the Ewing theory – interesting. However Arsenal has gone 4-5-1 before with or without Henry in the side. The secret is having someone with a bit of pace and mobility up front. Arsenal tried Dennis Bergkamp as the lone striker in the 2005 FA Cup Final and it did not work.

France win and Portugal can have no complaints. France was the more composed side and looked as if they were the more likely side to score - even though it was mainly on the break.

My stand-outs for France was the back four. Sagnol and Abidal don't garner many headlines but I thought they were both outstanding tonight. They stuck to the Portuguese wingers and wouldn't allow them to get their crosses in. How many times do we see Simao, Ronaldo, and Figo check back when it looked as if their crosses were going to be blocked?

Makalele was also tremendous - he didn't allow Deco to operate in the areas where he could hurt France.

Portugal paid the price for not having someone who could hold the ball up when they did get it forward.

So we have a repeat of the Euro 2000 Final.

The big decision was the penalty call and the referee got the call absolutely right. Portugal is getting nothing out of Pauleta as the lone striker as the French always have enough players back to cover.

Makalele has Deco in his back pocket while Zidane is being given a lot of room to operate in.

I would say that France looks to be the team most likley to score again as Portugal gives free kicks away in dangerous positions.

The longer the second half goes on the more Portugal will have to push players forward nd the game will stretch - all the better for Henry.

A very evenly contested first half. England settled more quickly into the game but after 15 minutes Portugal started to establish their passing game. It looks as if Maniche is playing the Deco role for Portugal. England seems to be attacking with a bit more conviction while Portugal appears to be taking a more patient route.

Weak spots - Valente looks to be very suspect but the problem is that when Neville goes forward to attack and there is a turnover in possession Portugal plays it into the space and causes England problems.

Hargreaves is giving England a solid look but Gerrard and Lampard are still not forward far enough to support Rooney.

You have to wonder how long Figo can go in this one. He’s played a lot of football in the last three weeks. Pauleta has hardly kicked the ball while Ronaldo when he cuts inside on Neville is probably Portugal’s biggest threat.

“Blether” is a slang word that is used in parts of Scotland and people who “blether” are called “bletherers”. To “blether” means you talk for the sake of talking. Marcelo Balboa is without a doubt a bletherer.

“England is lucky to have a young man on the bench like Sol Campbell, of course he’s not so young anymore” was my favourite this half.

“These countries have past history” wasn’t bad either.

But it is disturbing when you have a former World Cup player who can’t tell the difference between a dive and embellishment. A push by Tiago on Cole was not a dive it was embellishment but still a foul.

England: Robinson, Neville, Ferdinand, Terry, A Cole, Beckham, Lampard, Hargreaves, Gerrard, J Cole, Rooney.

Portugal: Ricardo, Miguel, Carvalho, Meira, Valente, Petit, Maniche, Tiago, Figo, Ronaldo, Pauleta.

Referee: Horacio Elizondo (Argentina)

England – Not surprisingly Gary Neville returns and Owen Hargreaves moves back to a  holding role in midfield and Michael Carrick, unluckily, has to make way and is on the bench.

Neville should provide England with better options down the right side and the only issue is how sharp he will be after missing three games. Ashley Cole has played his way back to match fitness and look for him to link up with Joe Cole on the left. Is this the game where Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard both play well at the same time and will Lampard get a goal or even two.

For England it’s important that Rooney gets support and is not left isolated.

Portugal suspension and injury problems have been in midfield and the back four is not a surprise. Carvalho as played well and Meira has looked decent as well. Miguel has been outstanding at right back and the match-up against the Cole boys will be worth watching. It looks like big Phil is going to anchor the midfield with Petit and Tiago.

The interesting part of the selection is Maniche and where he will play. It seems that there are three options, (a) ask him to play in a midfield bank of three with Tiago and Petit with Figo and Ronaldo tucking in to support Pauleta, (b) Maniche taking over the Deco role with Figo and Ronaldo wide or (c) Figo in the Deco role with Maniche a bit wider on the right than normal and Ronaldo on the left. Option A is the most interesting as it would change the shape that Portugal has normally played under Scolari.

I guess we will find out in a few minutes.

As for a prediction – if Costinha and Deco were playing it would be extremely difficult to pick between the two teams. But there are not Playing so I am going for England 2-1.

 

 

In the end a comfortable win for Portugal. Iran didn't have many ideas in midfield and they created few chances. an interesting choice as the penalty taker although Ronaldo has taken penalties before. I wonder if this was more to do with boosting his confidence?

Portugal move on but they will have play better than this in the last 16 if they hope to survive and prosper.

Man of the match - Deco.