WORLD CUP 2006
Portugal
Introduction
|
It’s everywhere you look. On the beaches, on the streets, in the parks and in the playgrounds. Football is played by the young and the old, the rich and the poor. Those who can’t play it, can’t stop talking about it, outside restaurants and bars, offices and churches. Yes, the passion for the game is alive and kicking in Portugal.
As the World Cup approaches, and after a magical Euro 2004, people are anticipating another splendid showing by the national team. Expectations are high for Luiz Felipe Scolari’s men; maybe too high. Although this is only the fourth time Portugal have reached the World Cup finals, and despite the fact that the team haven’t made it past the group phase since 1966, you get the feeling that anything less than a semi-final appearance will not be good enough for those back home.
The reason for this optimism is easy to see. The national team were runners-up at the last European Championship, while Portuguese clubs have also blossomed in continental competition. FC Porto won the UEFA Cup in 2003 and the Champions League the following year; Sporting Lisbon made the UEFA Cup Final in 2005; and Benfica reached the Champions League quarter-finals this season, losing only to all-conquering Barcelona.
Not a bad record for a country whose clubs hardly have the budget to compete with Europe’s big guns.
The development of several young talents at some of the world’s biggest clubs has also contributed to the feeling that Portugal have the star quality to go a long way in Germany.
Of course, talent is important in the search for success, but it does not guarantee it, and Portugal have flattered to deceive in past competitions because of their inability to combine skill with teamwork. Euro 2004 was an exception to the rule, and Scolari has been credited with changing the players’ mentality, but many argue that Portugal’s run to the Final two years ago was more to do with the fact that they were hosts. It remains to be seen what effect the Brazilian coach’s teachings will have when the team play on foreign ground and with the expectations higher than ever.
Another concern in the run-up to the finals has been the lack of playing time some of the team’s key figures have had at club level. Russia-based Costinha has hardly played this year, Maniche and Paulo Ferreira have both struggled to hold down a first-team place at Chelsea, and Nuno Valente has just recovered from a serious thigh injury, which meant he saw only limited action for Everton in the last few weeks of the League campaign. Scolari has always stated that all these players will play as long as they are physically fit, even if they have not performed well with their clubs.
So the coach will rely on the core of the Euro 2004 team to come up trumps again in Germany. Although the team have their limitations, they still have enough quality to make a run to the quarter-finals. And then, who knows? A Cristiano Ronaldo feint, a Luis Figo cross and a Pauleta finish could make all the difference. And the passion would live on…
Back to World Cup Index
Newsletter
