Portugal, France battle for final spot

By Tony Czuczka Jul 4, 2006, 11:48 GMT

Berlin - Portugal and France lock horns for the first time at a World Cup when they meet in Munich on Wednesday in the second of the semi-finals.

France, whose team includes a number of players crowned champions on home turf in 1998, must start as favourites to reach a second final.

Improving match by match, they proved more powerful and far too graceful for world champions and tournament favourites Brazil in the quarter-finals with 98 veterans Zinedine Zidane, Lilian Thuram, Patrick Vieira and Thierry Henry hitting a peak at the right stage of the season.

They also hold a pretty impressive head-to-head record against Portugal. In 21 previous meetings, Les Bleus have been victors on 15 occasions, most significantly in the thrilling 3-2 win at home at the 1984 European Championship and 16 years later in the same competition when Zidane scored a golden goal winner from the penalty spot.

In a similar way to the Germany-Argentina quarter-final, that match in Brussels will be remembered as much for what happened at its controversial conclusion as for the events inside normal time.

Abel Xavier was banned for nine months, later reduced to six, and even before Zidane fired home the penalty, an incensed Luis Figo had stormed off the pitch. In the days that followed, he was persuaded to sign a contract that would ultimately take him from Barcelona to Real Madrid.

Much water has flowed under the bridge since then. Figo and Zidane became team-mates at the Bernabeu and world-champion coach Luiz Felipe Scolari arrived in Lisbon to steer Portugal to one place better, the final, in the next European championship on home soil.

Although they may begin the semi-final as underdogs, few punters would bet against Scolari pulling off yet another famous victory. With Brazil in 2002 and Portugal in 2006, the Brazilian had scored 11 straight wins at the finals before the penalty shoot-out victory over England in Saturday's quarter-final.

And since losing to Greece in the Euro 2004 final, Portugal have not suffered defeat for 17 matches.

With a sturdy defence marshalled by the uncompromising Ricardo Carvalho, the Brazilian-born Deco, back - with Costinha - from a one- match suspension, pulling the strings in midfield and Cristiano Ronaldo adding tricks in attack, Felipao has put together a formidable side bent on improving on their one semi- final appearance in 1966.

Talking Figo out of retirement to captain the Red and Greens was perhaps Scolari's masterstroke.

Only in the striking position, where Pauleta has found the net once against Angola, do Portugal appear to fall short, but the same was said of France in 1998.

Henry, who with three goals ended up topscorer for the champions then, has developed into the world's most fearsome striker since. Happy to be back playing alongside former Arsenal team-mate Vieira, he will be gunning to top the scorers' list this time too.

Skippered by Zidane, who returned from retirement along with Lilian Thuram and Claude Makelele, France under Raymond Domenech seem to have rediscovered the spirit of 98.

'We're getting better with each match, just as in 1998,' said Vieira. 'Now we are really up for it. Portugal will be difficult opponents, but we know that we can beat them.'

Domenech was more cautious: 'We can see the summit but we're not up there yet.'

For Scolari, reaching the last four with Portugal was his greatest achievment.

'It's been more difficult to reach a semi-final with Portugal than the final with Brazil because there are only 10 million inhabitants in Portugal compared to 180 million in Brazil,' he said. 'Now we have a chance to create history for Portugal.'

Portugal striker Helder Postiga, a scorer in the penalty shoot-out against England, described what the game meant: 'The rivalry is enormous. The 2000 game has stuck in our throats a bit. The way we lost was frustrating.'

With the exception of the suspended Petit for Portugal, both sides will be at full strength. And although France have conceded just two goals in their five games and Portugal half as much, if the competitive fixtures of the past are anything to go by, this semi- final has all the makings of a classic.