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World Cup 2010: Portugal's chances
After the excitement and no little success of the Scolari era, Portuguese football enters a new cycle as Carlos Queiroz takes the helm of the national team.
Can the man who led the nation to two Youth World Cup triumphs bring Portugal its first major trophy at senior level?
Give your opinion and join the discussion using the form below.
Related: World Cup Qualification - Fixtures / Results / Match Reports
26/12/2008 02:35
wow, spain and portugal? really nice! two great footballing nations colliding to form a great world cup. Now, lose the coach, and get a large keeper, and by that time we'll be contenders!
23/12/2008 20:25
The Spanish football federation (RFEF) plans to submit a joint bid with Portugal to host the 2018 World Cup.
All we need is a coach, a goalkeeper, and a captain, and we're set :)
13/12/2008 15:11
We play Finland in February and this is my line up for the game.
NOTE CHANGES MIGHT BE MADE!!!
2-1-3-4
LS:Almeida
RS:Liedson
CAM:Deco
LM:Simao
CM:Fernandes
RM:Maniche
LB:Bosingwa
LCB:Carvalho(C)
RCB:Rolando
RB:Nelson
GK:Fernandes
12/12/2008 18:45
Pele is a good young talent, Inter were very high on him but thats all I know. As for formations and starters I think we have tackled this to death and I really think it doesn't matter who they play anymore. They need to fix whatever is going on behind closed doors.
11/12/2008 00:23
just to talk about the club teams first: poor quaresma, but you know what? someone comment back if im wrong but when Porto dealt Quaresma for Inter, Porto recieved Pele. I havent seen or even heard of him playing at all. Is he even good?
National Team: We need to get Postiga/Gomes, or Liedson/Postiga in as forwards in a 4-4-2. Ronaldo and Nani could be wingers, and M. Fernandes and Tiago could be the Mid's. As for Keeper's, there needs to be a 6'5 guy in the net that needs to stop shots.
09/12/2008 02:25
Quaresma named Serie A's worst player... Italy lately loves to attack Portuguese players.The English media also have started the attack on Portuguese players.Next will be the French then Germans and so on.The RESPECT THE WORLD HAD GIVEN PORTUGAL AS A GREAT FOOTBALL NATION ACHIEVED BY THE GOLDEN GENERATION HAS BEEN TARNISHED!! ONE OR TWO PLAYERS THAT HAVE NO OTHER OBJECTIVE BUT ONLY TO PLEASE THEMSELVES HAVE HURT THE REPUTATION AS HARD WORKING SKILLED PLAYERS THAT NEVER GAVE UP.ALL HAS BEEN LOST "TRUST ME MY FRIENDS IT WILL GET WORSE".I've watched Quaresma play lately and trully it's not his fault Maicoun and Ibrahamavich have made it hard for him throwing their arms up in the air for all to see when ever he failed at something,Even that Dumb Mourinho DOSEN"T see it. they won't pass him the ball even in a scoring position.Let me tell you THE BIG SWEDE on inter will NEVER WIN HIS COUNTRY OR TEAM ANY THING BECAUSE HE CARES FOR HIMSELF AND ONLY HIMSELF.Jose Mourinho better get rid of that Cancer because JUVE knew what he was all about and did not care to get him back. The point I'm trying to say is Guys like Ronaldo have made Thousands of people hate him and therefor the bashing of Portuguese players goes on.
08/12/2008 16:48
i am very disgraced to hear comments towards the U.S..they could beat portugal everyday! remeber WC 2002? heres the set up... the dense could hold ronaldo, can hold postiga and gomes and our offense could go by Da Costa (who shouldve played for france) Carcalho and PePe)
05/12/2008 16:46
Thanks B. Just to touch a little more on our players. They don't play with conviction. I caught the end of japan wc qualifier acouple weeks ago , I forget who they were playing but they were winning 3-0 with only a few minutes left in the game. The japanese players were still busting their humps chasing and tackling for every loose ball, sprinting back on defense. That would be a good lesson for our team to watch a less skillfull squad who goes out and plays all out. Unfortunately I've said it before we approach our games as if we're going for a stroll in the park then when we conceed a goal because of lack of hustle we panic. I just cant't figure why portuguese coaches don't change their approach on how to handle these players. There are lots of skillful teams in the world such as italy or argentina who play their hearts out. Although I'm not a fan of Italian soccer the truth is they are scrappy as hell and alot of their goals are from attacking the goal, and going for loose balls some call it dirty I call it agressive. And lastly I think we have to learn on how to lose which we should very well know because we get alot of practice. We got to stop the whining about unlucky bounces and bad reffing decisions. We lose alot of respect when we whine. Concentrate more on agressive play and less individualism. Brasil has great individual talent but what sets them apart is their cohesion and playing without the ball.
05/12/2008 14:49
wait wait wait, Max, u said the Adu and Beasley are great??? dude what kind of pot are u smoking? they are GREAT!!!?? both of them couldnt carry figo and Ronaldo's jock!!...man, ur in the wrong posting area, go to a website that is like Americansoccer.com or something b/c u have no clue of what ur talking about, american soccer is shite, Portugal is one of the best fuetbol countrys of the world!, have oyu looked at the FIFA rankings dude?.. u are really non-intelligent when it come to soccer, I swear if you put the U17 team of both countrys together, Portugal would Romp American...the U.S. teaches young kids far too young about tactics and so forth, while in europe they let them play, get a feel for the game, then! they start teaching about positioning , marking up etc...Max, face it, your too American to even be on these posted to think Adu is great, please no more posts...America is the best country, but as far as soccer, no even a drop of piss compared to Portugal....
Portugal WILL qulaify for the WC 2010, need to make a few changes, heres what I would do a good lineup, a 4-1-3-2 any thoughts?
GK - Quim...more experienced, he needs a break form the Liga...some rest
Defense - Pepe, Carvalho, Boswinga, Antunes...this guy played one game for the national team, did reaallyy well I thought..
CD- Veloso or F. Meira...both are solid!
Wings and middle Simao, C Ronaldo, and Deco
2 strikers- call up Lieson already .pair him with Postiga, the 1-2 Sporting power punch..
05/12/2008 01:27
i agree berto, your posts here are very well written. Keep posting please.
Since 2006 there has been a new attitude in the Portuguese Team. There needs to be a leader in the club. Look at 2002! R. Costa, Figo, Couto, Baia! They all had played together as one. Now we can barely scrape victories. Portugal needs some experiance from a leader. Let's face it, we all agree with the fact that Ronaldo can't do it all by himself. Quim needs to be dropped immeditaly his performences are just flat out weak. Lets get Moreira in there... he can at least stop something.
Now, in the end lets look forward to Portugal qualifying. If they don't, our future would look bleak
02/12/2008 22:06
We need a complete attitude overhaul. Too many prima Donnas. Bring in Tony Robbins to get these players to start believing in themselves, alot of underperforming is between the the ears, lack of confidence. Then bring in a ball busting coach who will be backed by the portuguese soccer federation. No matter who the superstar is tell him that unless you bust your ass and play as a team as brazil showed us the last game then you're not gonna play. It won't happen as the players rule the team and portuguese always settle for mediocrity and complain that the ref was against their team, ever heard that one before? Pracitically after every defeat.
01/12/2008 22:04
Melo, thanks for contributing with great posts. I agree Portugal has been in decline since the 2006 World Cup.
Carlos Q has made a few bad decisions but the decline is not due to his coaching. CR in my opinion is immature and not a leader but there are bigger issues than CR. CR is the only player that is a scorer and he NEEDS TO BE ON THE PITCH! Look at the scoring records of the other players.
The problem with Portugal is team balance between the positions. I said after Euro 2008, there are at least 6 positions that are unsettled and we still have not settled on consistent performers for these positions. Many of the Portuguese players play well for the clubs but they are surrounded by good balance in other positions and players who can score. Playing for the national team the poor balance at positions and poor scoring records puts these players in situations they are are equipped for (e.g. asking Nani and Quar to score goals).
Currently we have 6 positions that have no steady performers:
1) GK
2) LB
3) CB (Pepe is overrated see his Real Madrid performances)
4) Def Mid (Miereles is over matched) Fernandes time?
5) 2nd Midfield - J Moutinho has done nothing. Maybe time for Maniche to get this position back.
6) Striker: no proven player -- maybe time to go with Nuno Gomes.
7) Wingers: After the bad performances of Quar and Nani, the steady Simao looks good.
Until we resolve these positions, no matter the coach, this team will come up short.
01/12/2008 21:01
This shows why the U.S is better at soccer...5-1 get a grip.. I keep posting, but its not here... Portuguese Clubs (even the national team) suck against the greek teams. Portugal needs to get great forwards. Like Adu and Beasley. Portugal doesn't even use Postiga, Liedson, Djalo, Vaz Te and Makukula! What a bust he was....
Bottom Line=Portugal need a new coach, new lifestyle
27/11/2008 21:26
Olimpiacos 5 Benfica 1 so far 63rd min QUIM IS BAD LUCK !QUIM IS BRUTAL! QUIM JUST SUCKS! I REST MY CASE.
26/11/2008 19:23
I just skimmed over everyone’s messages and laughed this week were picking on Ronaldo and Queiroz. Maybe next game we'll pick on Pepe, Deco and Carvalho.....lol
Look this team just sucks, its not the coach, its not Ronaldo.... its what someone else said here on the boards they can't play together and yes this does point to coaching but in this case these were all signs during the last euro's qualifications and tournament...
No heart, no passion and no drive, they may be talented players on their club but when they play for Portugal they suck....
Most of these guys can play better on a consistent manner, so really the only thing that I can think of is to call up another team and play them during the next friendly.... have your best and most vocal players sitting on the bench dressed and don't call up the rest of the team.... make them feel it, don't embarrass them but make it sting.
Queiroz is all but done, so at this point what do you have to lose. Except being called a genius if it works.
Don’t hang this team on the coach; the coach doesn’t step on the field and play. No coach could do this bad of a job….. The players take all the blame here.
25/11/2008 16:50
i agree ronaldo is to blame for the most part hes still a wicked player but the second he started getting noticed and we stuck that arm band on him i think it went to his head, we have no leader players like figo was, players on the team dont have the same respect for cr I AGREE with that statement and i agree with the fact our team in general is ruined pretty much, i dont know why simao never got captain over cr..i dont know but its srewed up right know all the players are younger and no body has what it takes to lead it. i think maybe meira if we ever give him a chance to play and simao..get the band off ronaldo though..
25/11/2008 01:57
"I said call Ricardo" and your right he was crap but he seems to have alot more luck than this Quim guy.Scolari should have slapped him around a bit to wake him up.Besides CALL THIS (GUY) CALL THAT (GUY) CALL ALL OF (PORTUGAL)do you really think one or two guys will make a differance? NOOOOOOOOO! There is no chemistry NADA! ZERO! The Promblem is RONALDO! The players have no RESPECT for him.He has protrayed Portuguese players as crying little sucks who will always choke.FACE IT PORTUGOAL WE HAVE NOTHING LEFT.Ronaldo has killed the PASSION this team once DISPLAYED.I apologize to all for being the bearer of bad news but this is what has happened to our beloved TEAM.
24/11/2008 18:58
who ever said bring back ricardo..ricardo was horrible at 08, and let last minute goals rip right past him all the time, he was nervous (shaky) and unreliable that why we got quim, however i agree he does suck also, why we picked him is unreal, everyone that follows portuguese liga knows benfica has been a total flop for the past few years and quim has done nothing for them either so why did we bother bringing him in? who else do we have? rui p would be who i call, and instead of ferriera i would use antunes, instead of meirels i would stick meira in there with fernandes and deco, WE NEED a striker that can play as well as strike, nuno gomes IS a good team player and a better capitan but lets be real, if gomes scores in 1 game hes absent for the next 4 games. i think the best option for portugals squad right now is to call leidson while he still has a few years in him left to play, he has never let down sporting and is not a ball hog.liedson,meria,fernandes,antunes,martins,danny=resolve.
ronaldo+nani=BENCH.
24/11/2008 04:03
Quim has been absolutely terrible for us and he shouldn't be called upon anymore. We need to go with something new in goal. I didn't see the brazil game but I saw the highlights and he was giving up goals from some terrible angles and from distances that should never find the back of the net replace him immediately is my opinion.
23/11/2008 16:02
Melo you make great suggestions and i enjoy reading your comments.
23/11/2008 16:02
One thing i have come to say is stepovers doesn't win matches and im talking to Ronaldo hes not a complete player, his passing is off ,his shooting is horrible, he sucks as a leader and doesn't do anything good for us i say DROP HIM. Ronaldo is immature and isn't a good role model to the ones around him. The little scrap between him and Marcelo was pointless if he was mature he would of left it alone but instead he was looking for a foul. Look at Maniche hes much more a leader then Ronaldo he got in a scrap but left it alone he just told the player to shut up and grow up.
Another thing i wanna say we lack is a leader!
The player who wears the captians arm band should be the best on the field and has experience.
Players with these kind of attributes or quality to do that are Carvalho,Deco,Simao, and Gomes or even Maniche. These players show heart and play well on a regular basis they also have experience and play the game right.
Now Carlos is definitley missing some key players or leaving them out of the line up examples are Duda,Fernandes,Djalo,Quaresma,Patricio and Antunes.
Why should Quaresma be left out or Antunes and let Ronaldo and Ferreira in the squad when they are horrible for the national squad.
Why should Almeida get the start over Djalo or even GOMES!
Why should Quim start over Patricio,Dani or Eduardo?
AND FIRST OF ALL WHY WOULD THE FPF CHOOSE A COACH WHO SUCKS AT WHAT HE DOES
23/11/2008 07:23
Sorry one last thing to add,Spain did not call up RAUL for the first time and look at what happened.He was Spain's top player but in a Spanish Jersy he was BAD LUCK the JINX. A player may be the best in his country but teams need Chemistry.Other players may be distracted by his popolarity or feel that the coach has shown favortism. Some players can adapt to these situations but most are upset or feel that the player of popularity is really not that great and so they feel fustrated and don't play the game that they know how.
23/11/2008 06:45
YOUR ALL WRONG! This is the promblem,Quim should not be on the team (he is the curse, the bad luck) NOT HIS FAULT THAT JUST THE WAY IT IS.Bring back Ricardo!!!Ronaldo should only play with Nuno Gomes (Ronaldo has a lot of respect for Gomes beleive me)Gomes has come a long way for Portugal and that DUMB ASS Scolari never played him.Gomes would have scored against Greece but the Dumb Ass left him on the bench,same thing happened in the World cup and the following Euro.Scolari never thought this guy would be able to score but I have NEWS for you Nuno Gomes thrives to his best when in a Portuguese jersy.Another bed OMEN is the National uniform and color.Looks Great but has not brought us any Luck what so ever.And lastly Please nobody mention THE Special One again,We need a coach who does not SPEAK any Portuguese.FOOTBALL HAS CHANGED AND WE HAD OUR CHANCES BUT SOMEONE BLOW IT FOR US! TIME FOR US TO LEARN A NEW WAY OF PLAYING MAYBE ENGLISH OR SPANISH STYLE (AGRESSIVE AND LOTS OF SCORING.)CUT OUT THE SCOLARI DIVE AND CRY TO THE REF STUFF. WE MIGHT ONE DAY WIN THE BIG PRIZE.
22/11/2008 20:35
I think we all know how badly we were kicked on wednesday!
My ratings:
Quim- Horrible performance and hasn't shown much yet for us. 4/10
Bosingwa- not the best from him went forward but didn't hurry back in time to support Pepe or Alves. 6/10
Pepe- one of the worst performances from him so far with the Seleccao his mistake early during the first half was stupid of him. 4/10
Alves- was a ghost the whole game and didn't look solid. 5.5/10
Ferreira- nothing to say. 3/10
Maniche- one of the best performers during the game passed well and came back to support the defense. 7/10
Tiago- Deserved the start but he could of done more. 6.5/10
Deco- played ok but should really consider not overdoing it on your homesoil there not cheering for you. 6.5/10
Ronaldo- horrible hogged the ball most of the time and was just there to show off! 6/10
Simao- scored the second goal but still didn't improve. 6/10
Danny- another ghost most of the game except his cheeky goal during the first minutes. 6/10
Almeida-N/A
Cesar Peixeto-N/A
Nani- should of passed more but ok performance 5.5/10
Now how Carlos said changes will be made well first of all the biggest changes should be benching Ronaldo,Pepe,Ferreira and Quim.
Bring in Duda,Quaresma,Fernandes,Antunes and Rui Patricio.
I did like how Tiago was back in the line up way better choice over Meireles.
Danny as the striker i don't really think thats the best of ideas maybe back more as a winger.
22/11/2008 12:48
Things are going from bad to worse match by match and there is not turning back. Definitely, we are dropping lower and lower. We are kicking the dirt right now. If this keeps up, we will no longer be in the top 10 of Fifa ranking. Now, we are barely sharing the last spot with England, but while England is climbing we are slipping down.
It is really not a surprise that Brazil thrashed us in their home ground, because it is only natural seeing our previous qualifying matches. We could not even win against Albania, so how on earth could we even win against the five-time world champion.
Even scoring the first goal was not at all convincing, call it a lucky shot. After scoring the first goal, the defender starts to lose their grip of the ball. Maybe they become too restless after scoring. This is just what happened even on our previous. Even the likes of Pepe was at his lowest overall performance in his carrier.
It is true that we have become ball hogs in the ground, just trying to be a playboy or sometime. As Queiroz said, mass changes should be made.
21/11/2008 22:20
we have people to be leaders, such as simao.since figo, rui costa,pauleta, left the portugal team itself has been over run with arrogant ball hogs.even though i dont think CQ is the man for the job, he is new and trying a lot of new things out FAIR ENOUGH but we cant let prissy players like veloso,ronaldo,nani bring us down.
21/11/2008 22:20
NEWS FLASH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!QUEIROZ HAS TO GO!!!!!!!!!!!
21/11/2008 22:06
I don't know if the problem lies with the coach. I watch soccer from England, Spain, Italy every weekend. The Portuguese players seem to play well on their club teams, but not on the National Team. WE NEED A LEADER ! FIGO was the leader. Now, NO ONE HAS STEPPED UP !
21/11/2008 18:43
@SANDRA u r correct on many levels we lack a lot of things.I for 1 am sick and tired of sticking up for cristiano in forums of reasons why he is great and many friends of mine also us fans from portugal give him much more support then united fans do during great times and rough and the chump doesnt give us portuguese fans anything in return hes getting on my nerves already and i think its bench time for him also. if he gets upset and retires from national "o well", ud people have showed him nothing but sort and always tend to come to his defense and what has he ever givin us back? he claims he wants to show the world and be his greatest for portugal? all i see out there is a cry baby time and time again.dont waste anymore of our time ronaldo if you dont want to play DONT we have many players itching to show us what they can do in that position no more tears, no more hissy fits. play properly and show us why you deserve awards or go waste fergies time back in england we really cant be bothered anymore with it
21/11/2008 18:13
portugal is in big trouble, we lack srtikers, we lack a Lb and we lack confidence. we played utter complete garbage, NO EXCUSES, cr is a true amazing player but doesnt perform unless we pay him more than man u.BENCH HIM, nani such a shame of wasted talent, all he does is ROLL AROUND AND CRY, paulo ferriera, sweet jesus its a mystery to me how you play for chelsea still 110% SLOW AND CANT READ A PLAY TO SAVE HIS LIFE all this time and ribiero is wasting away why not even miguel a try as LB during friendlies? nani,ronaldo,meireles maens time out if they dont want to even put in an effort WHY waste the teams coaches, and countries time and patience? let people that play with pride where the shirt. DECO? omg was he trying to prove a point that he could waste more time in a game? TIAGO good lord why did we even bother? quaresma is amazing but for some reason is in space past while, i hope he gets it together before our next match and he plays, almeida? has done nothing either..what is wrong with this team that is supported all over the world with crazy amounts of fans and flag wavers, and we cant seem to find the net when it matters? BEST PLAYER in the WORLD? pffft he doesnt deserve anything of the sort simply because his lack of interest when it comes to his national side. screw him let him stay in england PORTUGAL DOESNT NEED SACKS ON THE FIELD. PERIOD.
21/11/2008 18:03
That was one fo the most pathetic, poor display of defense, uselesscoaching I have ever seen Portugal use!. why the hell did Quiedoz use a 4-5-1 formation and Danny upfront??...For a team like Brazil I would have used a 4-1-3-2, Pepe, Alves, Boswinga, and Rolando, Fernando Meira as the 1. Deco in the middle with simao and Nani on the wings and Ronaldo and Almedia up front... and WHY is Paulo Ferreria STILL playing??.. he needs to go!!. I'm verrryyy concerned about Portugals chances of qualifying for the WC 2010. They cannot lose or tie any other games or its bye bye...And also I think Queidoz needs to go, the guy is not a firey coach, he doesnt have the toughnessa coach like Scolari was once was. Quiedoz is tooo danm soft with these guys....I totally agree with callin up Liedson, we need a guy with guts and speed up front, and try Yannick Djaou also, I will be positive about the next game in March vs Swden, we will be at home, but we cannot...1. have guys like paulo ferreria, miguel, etc on the squad no longer, 2. quiedoz needs to go, and bring in a coach like {the brazliain I forgot his name, Bico? , Tico?...hmmm..help me out, he coached Febernache?...}or a Mourinho or someone who has guts!!!..and 3. maybe it would be a decent idea to sit Ronaldo and use him as a sub?? maybe? I dunno, everyone who supports Portugal, crack out the rosary beads, its gonna take a miracle for us to win again and qualify for WC 2010...FORCA PORTUGAL!!!
21/11/2008 17:21
i didnt get to see the game, but saw the highlights. defense wasnt so good. especially with paulo ferriera. most of the goals came from paulo's side. paulo ferriera used to be good but not anymore. he needs to go for the seleccao sake. why would the hell would the coach put danny up on front, bad idea. he should had put almeida or ronaldo. queiroz even mentioned that he is going to make some serious changes, he better he is running out of time. its time to include liedson for once. start putting hungary players whom willing to run the field. or maybe bench the lazy bastards and maybe they will learn something. queiroz needs to stop being the nice guy and get tough.
21/11/2008 01:08
Queiroz is a monkey
20/11/2008 23:00
I didn't manage to catch the game...and I'm glad I didn't.
I continue to believe that Queiroz has to go. The team has not played as much as a decent half under his charge. You can blame a lot on the players, but the lack of discipline at the back and the bizarre selection has to fall on his shoulders.
Queiroz is a classic # 2 - he's tactically bright and his players view him as a friend. However, the manager shouldn't be a friend, he should be the boss. He's a great addition to a training staff when you have a strong authority figure at the top, but he cannot be the number one guy.
There is no excuse for letting 6 in. I'm sure there's more than enough blame to go around, but I believe that we can safely say that after 4 qualifiers and 2 friendlies, the Queiroz tenure has been an abject failure. Let's hope the FPF sees that and makes a change.
20/11/2008 22:40
Queiroz has failed in every attempt at coaching a senior team & he is failing again. go back to manchester.
20/11/2008 22:21
just as i suspected with portugal lately they are going down and down (like the whole global economy these days). Forget Queiroz now. The FPF did it wrong by signing him...lets get a guy that actually knows about portuguese football... The odds are tough. We said that Scolari was too tough and strict...now Queroz is too soft? we need mourinho or some hard-takes it easy type guy or else we will be back to the 0-0, 1-1 type games when we tried to qualfiy for euro 08
20/11/2008 04:29
I enjoy the banter and community spirit this forum provides. Very disappointed with the quality of recent posts and a deviation from the true intent of this site.
Now that we have a Portugal game, maybe we can get back to talking about the national team which is the focus.
Don't know what to make of this performance.
1) The back 4 was lacking ... Pepe is constantly over commiting and getting turned, this seems to be a trend (he does the same thing at Real Madrid). 3-4 goals had Ferreira's DNA: poor marking, poor foot speed, and out of position. How much longer must we suffer with this guy? We have Miguel, Veloso there has to be a better option. He is not a good right back how can he be a good left back?
They missed Carvalho on defense and I wish Andrade was healthy as that was a great parternship.
Glad to see Tiago back in the mix, I think he offers us much more than Meireles.
Danny at striker was an enticing experiment ... who knows if that is a viable option but its worth the risk.
J Moutinho -- I don't understand where the fixation is with this guy? He showed me nothing once again. I'm running out of patience with his performance.
Quim was average, this would have been a great game to try another goalie. Don't know what to make of his performance but the back 4 was poor.
Overall, I expected more but this game really with the travel was a tough game. Not losing hope but growing concerned about 2010.
20/11/2008 03:56
Quim; Bosingwa, Bruno Alves, Paulo Ferreira WHY THE HECK WOULD THIS COACH USE THESE PLAYERS ALL AT SAME TIME! ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND? NO WONDER YOU GOT YOUR ASS KICKED: NOT ONE OF THESE PLAYERS IS A LEADER IN THE BACK END.Who is this guy Quim? This guy is a JINX nothing but BAD LUCK since he has been on your roster.PLEASE QUIT AND TAKE THE REST OF THE FPF WITH YOU.The FPF wanted a Portuguses speaking coach!(that's what translators are for you dummies)ENGLAND GOT FED UP AND HIRED AN ITALIAN FOR GODS SAKE YES AN ITALIAN NO ONE COULD HAVE POSSIBLY IMAGINE THIS NEVER!Read all my posts people and tell me I didn't say so.
17/11/2008 16:32
We need to get back to the discussion at hand. Portugal's chances to qualify for WC 2010. All fans have to admit Portugal has slip since WC 2006. We barely qualified for EURO 2008. Qualifying for WC 2010 has gotten off to a very slow start. At this moment, Portugal will not qualify. Someone needs to step up as the Leader! Individual talent is not a ticket to WC 2010 qualifying.
16/11/2008 03:06
I noticed that Portugal actually could score when RONALDO wasn't there!
Maybe cause Ronaldo hogs the ball too much
14/11/2008 02:10
Max,this site is for people who know about the sport of soccer,not baseball,or football,or basketball....soccer is a sport of which the u.s is a joke, just like you.Eusebio has more talent in his left leg than L.danovan could even imagine of ever having.And i think C.Ronaldo and L.Figo could beat the present u.s team on their own .Max my friend don't even imagine that the u.s can compete with Portugal the only time they should be on the field together is when the U.S mows the field for us to play,and Max you know its true ,because your even surfing this web site ,i think you wish you were portuguese....then you could be proud of your national team!
12/11/2008 00:18
@ Larry,
Thank you Larry for giving that info...the U.S would be so mesmorized in portugals tricks..
@ Max,
Dude Benfica got rid of Adu cause he never made it there..Beasley is terrible and will never be chosen to play at a top team.
Lets Face It.. Portugal vs. U.S.A easy win for portugal. Even the u-21's would beat them in a game.
11/11/2008 20:06
I think that they have a very good chance of winning the whole thing,that is if they have Cristiano Ronaldo and Ricardo Quaresma teaming up to make awesome goals.
10/11/2008 20:20
that last post of mine was towards Max, not matthew,...I think max is watching a awesome LA Galaxy vs Chicago Fire game somewhere, wow what a match!!..oh one more thing to MAx, why do u think Beckham wanted to leave to AC Milan so quick, he realized that U.S. soccer does really suck and he is too good and professional enough to play in a shite league the MLS....god what a joke that is..
10/11/2008 20:16
yea Freddy Adu is sooo good, that Benfica got rid of his dumb ass within a year, he did nothing on one of the biggest teams in the world...U.S. suck soo bad at soccer, theyre too slow too booorring...guarentee if Portugal played the U.S. in a friendly portugal would trahs them like 9-0, ...oh and gee, lemme think here how far did the U.S. goin the last World Cup?...not to the semi finals like Portugal....face it matthew, ur just a poor excuse of an so called"Soccer fan" American to appreciate true European fuetbol. The U.S. is the best nation int he world, but in fuetbol aspects, they are shite...thanks
06/11/2008 13:28
THANK YOU MATT, MAX GET OFF OF HERE THE U.S SUCKS AT SOCCER
06/11/2008 01:37
NO ONE CARES ABOUT THE STATES GO PLAY YOUR HOCKEY
05/11/2008 23:32
Berto...SHUT UP JESUS!
no one cares about your little tactics or your comments. Portugal will be terrible after Ronaldo and sissy-ass diver Quaresma, no-nonsence Jorge Andrade!!! He is always injured!! oh man the U.S is tottaly better..come here to see Landon Donaven play son! and oh yes, our precious little Freddy Adu! Maurice Edu will beast if Portugal got to play there.. And like i said... Rob, B, David, Jorge..go back to the hole you came out of! Please...Quim sucks! R.Patricio will be even more worse! P. Machado dives like a girl, and Bruno Pereirinha is a little short kid. come to the U.S and face the wrath of fury suckas!!!!!!
04/11/2008 15:16
Thank's Melo. It's very frustrating to see how the national team is managed. My question is that if so many fans notice the lack of agressive play by the team then why don't the coaches do something about it. Why don't we see hard nosed portuguese coaches who could make a statement about agressive attacking football. We replace one coach after another who tolerate the laid back soccer that frustrates so many fans out there. My feeling is if you don't run hard and play to win every time you don't play no matter what your name is. Leave it all on the field. Unfortunately this is hardly the case. Fancy passing is not the objective of the game. People remember winners was voted most entertaining.
02/11/2008 14:52
Great comment berto, usa that is exactly how I look at our team.And yes that is the way Italy plays they do win the big games don't they?I beleive that somehow Portugal has taken one step back in terms of strikers, the best teams now appear to have smaller aggressive strikers ie England,Italy,Spain,Argentina,Turkey etc.My point is that maybe Players like Simao if he wouldn't dive so much and stay on his feet, could get in quite easily on goal.I have watched a Ton of soccer this month and have been so sick of Portuguese players on their respectable teams missing perfect scoring chances.Ronaldo,Simao,Deco,Miguel,Maniche,Tiago,Quaresma,Nani,Boa Morta etc.These guys are still shooting just wide or over the net,why do they always want to tuck the ball into the corners just make sure it goes into the DARN net thats all!If I were the coach I would tell these players to shoot hard and low and go in for the rebounds like wild animals (Example Tevez)Good things happen around the net (Example Penalties).LOW AND HARD THATS IT CARLOS!
30/10/2008 22:29
I've cooled off a bit since our last game but I think it is a shame that portugal approaches these games as if they are going for a walk in the park. They always lack intensity which really seperates them from championship teams. Argentina for example has great technical players but aside form that they always go out and bust their ass on the pitch and they play unified.Some might say they play dirty I call it aggressive football. Also one thing that always bothers me about the way we play is we don't shoot the ball on goal enough. We would rather dance around looking for the stylish goal. Alot of goals are scored off rebounds or scrappy type of play, not necessarily pretty passing. Teams are not judged by the way the pass a ball and in many instances games are won by scoring "lucky" goals and subsequently good defensive marking. Italy has made a living playing this way, and although I'm not necessarily a fan of italian soccer I do admire them for the way they approach the game, scrappy and hardworking. Another technique I wish portugal would incorporate is timing the offside trap by sneaking their strikers in behind the defense on mini runs. Italy also does this consistently and it amounts to a large # of their goals. How many times do we see this scenario: the goalie will start play off to one of his defenders, the ball will then be worked up nicely through the midfield down to the other goal then play will stall. No shots, or loss of possesion is sadly common.
30/10/2008 20:27
David,
All due respect Eusebio, Coluna & Xavier were all born in Portugal to Portuguese parents. Until 1975 the colonies were officially Portugal.
Also, the others you have mentioned were either born to portuguese parents or shouldn't be on the National team either. As for competing... your right if we compensated for our population by including others we would do better but it wouldnt be Portugal.
Futhermore less developed nations are affected by losing players that should rightfully be playing for them.
29/10/2008 21:57
I'm not Portuguese so I'm not best placed to comment on your naturalisation policy. But comparing it too Spain saying Spain only have one and Portugal have three is stupid... Spain has a population of around 45 million Portugal has one of around 11 million - this is a useful tool for the Portuguese: too help them compete. Why is that only the Brazilian's recieve dissent too??? You have players born elsewhere but they get a pass from critcism i.e. Eusebio, Coluna & Xavier (Mozambique) Da Costa (France, Morrocan mother) Petit (France) Nelson (Cape Verde) Daniel Fernandes (Canada) Danny (Venezuela) Makukula (DR Congo) etc even Carlos Queiroz! Besides I think that given your colonial history the Portuguese calling up a Brazilian is different from other nations.
28/10/2008 23:03
Rob,
Spain has one naturalized player. Portugal doesn't need three. It's not a matter of being scared... it's ruining football. If the trend continues National Teams might as well join a league because all they will be is a glorified club team.
26/10/2008 18:39
@ max knows well,
thanks for those comments i appereciate that. First off the U.S.A sucks at soccer and if they played portugal they would lose. Second, Liedson needs to get called up so does Veirinha and P. Machado (when they are ready of course). Brazil has been nice to us like i said before with Deco and Pepe and with Liedson it will be better. A 4-4-2 would be nice or a 3-4-1-2 for all-out attack
26/10/2008 17:26
I agree with most of you that Liedson should get a call up.He has been in our country for many years and is better than any striker we have right now.There is nothing to be ashamed of all top countries have guys that switched allegences...GERMANY have ,ITALY have,FRANCE have,SPAIN have,SWEDEN,GREEECE......the list goes on,if they're not scared to let them play why should we be.Next i have been saying on this site more than ounce that we should be playing a 4-4-2,I'm happy to see many agree with my suggestion of having fernandes as a def mid,all we need now is to play Ronaldo up front with Liedson and i think this team will be deadly.If you look at man utd player for player we have just as much quality in each position.Get Patricio in nets and Antunes on the left ,in time they will be great!!
23/10/2008 16:27
Yes, no more Brazilians on the National Team. The coach needs to make some unpopular decisions. Ronaldo should not start. He is not playing well. His mind is not all there.
I think he is still sulking since he was not able to join Real Madrid.
Keep him off until his attitude changes... its NOT ALL ABOUT HIM !
22/10/2008 22:45
@ B, Matt, Robertson
Wow..you portuguese guys are out of your heads...
B you have to have the worst comments on this post. Not only am i American, i believe that the U.S.A is better than Portugal.. Figo as a coach?! are you out of your mind? i believe so... and calling up Veirinha and Paulo Machado? them guys are terrible!!
@ Matt..
Matt, you have the strangest comments on this website. Have you seen Hugo Viana and Ricardo Costa?? they are NOT crap! Call them up..they deserve to have a spot on this team..ABEL does too.
Robertson, I don't want to see anymore brazilianson this squad...leave them alone. I want to see PURE portuguese guys on the team..
well i already ragged on you three! peace!
20/10/2008 18:51
@ robertson:
YES!! thank you! we need to get Liedson on our side and the brazilians have been nice to us (Deco, Pepe) he could be the guy that gets us our goals. He has captained Sporting and he does have leadership. In a 4-4-2 he and nuno gomes would be nice up-front. Or Ronaldo and Him...just saying
19/10/2008 18:09
some people here say stupid things portugal very good team not overrate. south africa still open for you and we welcome this team
19/10/2008 05:38
By changing, what I would like to add is;
Now lets call up Liedson. He can be our matchmaker. Over the last four to five years he has spent with Sporting Lisbon and all those goals that he scored, he is being missed out by Brazil. So, since he also acquired the citizenship of Portugal, lets make his dream come true for him to play International Football.
It is not a matter of feeling pity for him, don’t get me wrong. Let me make this more clear, of all those goals that he have netted, I don’t think all of you guys have ever see Liedson getting kaki. He never loses his composure in any game. He is not the guy who loves to showoff on the field as compared to his teammate Veloso. His concentration is for scoring goals and that is what he is doing.
Even by saying that he is getting older, he still is in total shape as he was five years back, or should I say getting sharper and sharper. Reason why we haven’t seen much of him this year is because of his injury problems and all, now he is regaining full strength.
I have followed Liedson dating back from when he played for Flamengo. I always thought that he will turn out to be a magic in the football field. After his impact years with Sporting, still Brazil missed out on him. So, he deserves as much as all the others for a spot in the Portugal team.
He will be helpful in sorting out our catastrophe.
19/10/2008 05:04
As much as the odds are stacked against us and even though there is a big mountain to climb ahead of us, there is still a little string for us to survive.
Hungary, Albania, and Malta: These three countries may be our ticket to South Africa. Either we go to them or they come to us, we need full points from them. But lets not be too hasty of anything from now on because we just got humiliated by one of them. We should not count out any of them. There are still lots of matches to play, home and away, so we still can pull out the trigger to blast ourselves into the World Cup.
As for our players, there needs to be lots of changes. We have seen them in their matches on how well they perform, how they contributed for the team, and even the heart for winning matches. I have to say that most of our players are lacking all these things.
I have to add one good comment from you guys that Fernandes could be our Senna. Yes, I have to say that he played superb against Albania. If this guy have the experience of International football, he will turned out to be a solid backbone for this country.
FORCE IT....
18/10/2008 19:56
Simao just scored for Atletico in the Madrid derby. The national team will be so much better with him and with Deco. What a shame that the midfield has been without inspiration. Carvalho is sorely needed, too.
18/10/2008 16:11
Zoey good looks doesn't win matches or score goals like Sandra said before me.
We need serious players out there that pack in a good punch.
This line up should pass by the dancers and win us matches for 2010.
LS:Gomes(c)
RS:Liedson
LW:Simao
LCM:Fernandes
RCM:Veloso
RW:Deco
LB:Antunes
LCB:Alves
RCB:Carvalho
RB:Bosingwa
GK:Quim
Liedson has been dieing to play internationally he is getting older but he scores goals like mad, be grateful he has a portuguese citzenship!
And one other thing if Carlos puts that Meireles on the Feild one more time ill hang my SELF!
I would rather see Martins there....0_o
18/10/2008 16:03
I agree with John bench Ronaldo he's never been benched sit him down and let him think and let him comeback stronger like Figo in 2004. Now is the time hes still young and needs to be smacked!!!.
Why do other portuguese players have to work so hard and yet not get called up example Veloso he plays so well on a regular basis. while Ronaldo who hasn't done much for us and hasn't been in form is easily played and not subbed?
Continue to play Fernandes he has a heart that burns with victory he plays a right game.We can compare him to Senna from Spain,Senna is the piece that keeps Spain together and keeps the passing flow going. Spain is a team where if there losing 1-0 they keep the ball in the opponents end and keep possesion waiting for the right chance to score and thats when Torres or Villa comes in.
We could learn somethnig from Spain and when we play Brazil maybe we should examine how Brazil plays as a team not just one man under the spotlight(ronaldo).
We need a Raul and a Torres or Villa.Gomes and Djalo together or Gomes with Liedson.Gomes packs in a amazing first touch that can lead to scoring chances, he is also a huge leader for the ones around him, he needs to take that arm band from ronaldo and put it to good use.
Im glad we got Deco,Maniche, and Simao back because what ive seen from Nani,Quaresma and Ronaldo we need those players more then ever.
There is still hope we need to find our Hearts and win like CHAMPIONS!!!
FORCA!!!!!!
18/10/2008 15:40
There is still hope they might qualify. But it would not be that bad if they don't.... Look @ England, missed 2008 Euro's, Holland missed 2002 WC. These teams have come back stronger. Ronaldo will never be @ the same level as FIGO or Eusebio unless he produces something internationally. Bench him for the next game.
No GUTS No GLORY.
18/10/2008 15:37
Nice to hear from you again Sandra from the UK.Yes Figo will be missed but I wouldn't put all my money on Deco he too could have a bad game .Great point you made regarding the French Team ,they opened up their WC06 games on a disaterous note until Zidane stepped up to the plate.He was truly the best captain at that time and helped his team to the finals.I don't always want to sound negative but I am in my 40's and I have watched Portugal since 1982 and they have come a long way since then.I may be a bit superstitious but I don't like the uniforms with that green stripe at the top,nor have we had luck with the red shorts.What makes Italy such a great team? Well I will tell you! when a player misses a scoring chance he doesn't pout or suck out,he laughs it off! this way he doesn't show the teammates his fustration,he might feel that he can't score that day but he will definitly help someone else score. Thats the difference between winnig teams and losing teams.It's eitheir you got it or you don't. Look at how players can get lucky and score a hat trick and other days they can't buy a goal.Good teams realize this very quickly and make the adjustment during the game.
18/10/2008 09:58
Ok,i was just reading the comments and i realized there's another Sandra here who posted on the 16th .Welcome to this site.But can you please write the city or country's name so we dont get confused!I agree with Nuno gomes comments,he tries hard.And has delievered the goods at crucial games.He had a great partnership with Figo. But Figo's gone now! And as i said before,he'll be hugely missed .The same is happening with the French.Without Zidane,which was their brain in midfield they are struggling big time.We also miss Deco,he became one of my favourite players and the one who impressed me the most in the last tournament.In fact he became the player that at present time we cant do without!Zoey can i just say Cristiano's hair does not came into account.His hair will not score any goals.And unfourtunely for us since his ankle operation he has performed poorly...I saw him playing with Man United and it was pretty clear that he's not on form yet!With that we're left to wait and hope that they get back in shape and play as the team who once made us proud to be Portuguese...
18/10/2008 00:27
Some of you guys have good comments and some of you guys are simply Whacked!Ronaldo is not the best player on the team in fact he has made TONS of mistakes on the pitch.This guy has gone unpunished by his coaches for years.Euro 04 he hogged the ball during the whole tournament and wasted good scoring chances and lets not forget putting the ball out of play to waste more time on the clock,he did the same in WC 06.Figo saved his ass with great crosses and give and go's to his other teammates,Ronaldo only wanted the spot light.If their is a Cancer on the team maybe it's him.I don't think he has ever won a game for Portugal LOOK IT UP!Ronaldo needs to let someone else take the spotlight voluntarily,this no doubt will make him a better player for Portugal.I know you guys will say What are you talking about? but he is not the only player at ManU to be in the spotlight.This is the real promblem here nothing else! change this and we will be at the SHOW!
17/10/2008 21:08
omg! that was a really horrible match! i mean i expected portugal to win with all the free kicks and other good offers. I guess it was just bad luck!!
Congrats Cristiano for being the captain of portugal and I luved ur hair against albania , u looked soo cute!!
luv yaa
17/10/2008 19:00
I have one question?...what doe sportugla have to do to qualify for the WC 2010? ...I mena by like wins of course, but do they have to win all their games? do other teams have to tie, lose etc etc? Im curious...and concerned...
btw...they need to stop playing paulo ferreria on the left!! and wtf was it to put Danny and manuel fernadez in??...
17/10/2008 18:54
11 stars can never win against 1o hearts, be those any hearts, not to take into account that they were Albanian HEARTS! One thing more; I do not see any difference between a 5 star hotel and an 11 star hotel( if there exist any of them. Whay should Portugal overlode the squad with so many excellent players ( STARS ) at once!? No one will work for the other. 5 is enough to make the team. But, not 5 strikers at once, as it happened against Albania. Try to put some heart on the team, because Portugal has an excellent team, BUT NOT THE COACH, I am afraid! Meet you next time in Tirana, where C.Ronaldo will be booked with red card. He will be still nervous because He will be not chosen as the Player of the Year and because there will be still VANGJELI who will have to look after him, even he will try to change the wings, as he did in Braga!!!
17/10/2008 15:56
John that's a good comment. Seems like many of our players more worried about their watches, their cars, their hair, what gossip magazine carries their photos...
We have so many of these guys with giant egos who only care about fashion and popularity ...
We've lost that blue collar edge, we don't have any "workers" or role players ... I see other teams in Europe as more complete because many of their guys aren't as worried about this kind of stuff ... and they build a team around players who know their role ... and work hard and tirelessly.
I think out of our young players guys like Moutinho & Boswinga fit the mold of a hard blue collar player.
Not sure I can say the same about the rest of our younger guys.
We hated Petite and Costinha and criticized Pauletta when he missed the net in big games, but those guys had a totally different class level than their replacements do today.
17/10/2008 15:40
My friends of the national team, this problem is not the coaches problem, its the attitude of the players. These guys worry more about HOW they LOOK on the pitch then how they play.
How does the coach change the attitude ? Leave certain players off ! NO Ronaldo, No Quersma, No Meirales.
All totally useless @ this time.
The thing we all should worry about is the U21 also not playing well.
Like I mentioned before... could be another 10 years before Portugal qualifies for another tournament.
The players need to view the WC2006 game against Holland... this is what it takes to win every game.
17/10/2008 11:19
As much as you people say, as many formations or tactics you may apply, there is no way for Portugal to recover from this dreadful circumstance. Let it be next year, March for the qualification match to continue again, even at that time there is no way that Portugal will get better. If we hope that Portugal are the only one who are going to reform their strategies, we will be badly mistaken. Because, everybody will get equal chance, laps of time to regroup and form a healthy impact on to their games.
Our world ranking is dropping whereas England are climbing back from under 10. Even we could not beat a miniature football country like Albania, so we should not think of qualification.
“South Africa World Cup is not open for Portugal.”
17/10/2008 03:53
How heartbreaking and embarrasing was this game?How do you lose a game to an undeveloped 3rd world country? Its nothing new this has been going on for many years always world class players who cannot seem to get a grip on international success.We are just unable to create chemistry amongst our players and for quite some time now.. Although Ronaldo cannot win by himself I don't know if I can say he is the best player in the world.. Look at Fernando Torres or even David Villa who play great on club level and even better for international.. Is it just me or is Meierles a complete disaster? Quaresma is a loose cannon and cannot be played until he shows more consistency... Is it safe to say to give Yannik and Fernandes a chance guys?
17/10/2008 00:50
JEFF,FROM HOLLAND
I couldn't help myself from reading your comment, being portugues & all & for the love of the sport I must write to you saying those kind of comments are not welcomed hear on this web site,not sure if you know anything regarding the great game.If I remember correctly Holland & Portugal had some great matchs Holland plays excellent soccer we all know that,you have to agree if I'm not wrongly mistaken Portugal gave Holland a run for there money in more then one occasion.Lesson#1 THE BALL IS CIRCULAR!,Jeff Portugal played a bad game so no need to bash.Portgal needs Improvement to succeed,all of us have bad days.
FORCA PORTUGAL!!!!!!!!
16/10/2008 23:27
Hi Gents,
I injoyed reading your comments,BERTO,USA I'm happy to come across a comment concerning and regarding our players,you probably read my post if not it's still there, dated 12/09/2008 somes it up.I'm not in the mood to repeat myself after the result VS Albania, WELL IT'S NOT OVER YET LET'S HOPE FOR CHANGE !!!!!!
16/10/2008 22:20
Berto i agree with you 100% we have no BALLS
16/10/2008 22:03
Furthermore, I've also posted this before: When I was on vacation in italy a few years back, the italian national team was playing a friendly with spain. Italy won 2-0. Afterwards I remember the italian coach being interviewed and he said "Yeah we won the game but we played like shit". Portugal also played a friendly that day I forget against who. Portugal lost 2-0. They also interviewed the Portuguese coach he said "We lost 2-0 but I satisfied how we played" Unbelievable I remember thinking what an idiot he sounded like, we lose it's ok italy wins the coach was looking for a better performance. It's a defeatist mentality. We accept defeat as acceptable.
16/10/2008 21:28
I agree completely with Joao Duarte's comments.
If any of the following happen:
Almedia's header at the goalie's feet go in (that was a perfect header right to the ground)
Almeida's header that hits the post goes in (it hits the post and then bounces towards the net and the goalie still gets it)
Nani's wide open attempt right in front of goal goes in (amazing that he shot it right at the goalie's leg)
If any of these 3 go our way, this conversation today takes on an entirely different meaning.
I know we don't live in a world of "if's" and the result was what it was ... but to blame the coach for his strategy and choice of players is not good enough for me.
16/10/2008 20:58
and i do agree with Fernando..Fatima has to have a miracle in stored for us because portugal underestimated most of these teams! When i first saw the group i thought Sweden and Denmark coule be the best challenge. Im afraid to say it but everyone of these teams have an equal chance to get out of this group
16/10/2008 20:48
game obviously was terrible and it sure was. Now i must say, Danny was THE most embarrising player out there. He obviously must sit the bench and he needs to watch. Ronaldo and N. Gomes are the only way we can get goals. Next game in this qualification (next year..eugh) we need to definitly fine tune oursleves and have more freindlys and see what the hell our problem is. If not, then we got a problem in our hands
16/10/2008 19:50
I disagree with playing Ronaldo up the middle. Just because he's Portugals best player or scores the most goals doesn't mean you play him up the middle, it doesn't work that way.
You can't play Ronaldo, Nani or Queresma up the middle because they are talented players. I strongly believe this role must be filled by a natural striker (Gomes, Djalo, Almedia or Postiga). I have seen Scolari do it and now Queiroz do it and there hasn't been any real impact.
Ronaldo's best performances are on the wing, his speed, crosses and passes are what makes him a complete player.
Once again I agree with you Tony, Ronaldo's game isn't the same. He really doesn't seem to be as selfish with the ball as he used to be, he really doesn't attack the defenders with his dribbles and just seems to pass it off right away rather then attack.
Makes you start to wonder if coming back 1-2 months early because he's fully healed isn't the truth and perhaps he rushed it so he can play.
16/10/2008 18:59
now there is only one solution, if we are going to save ourselves from this nightmare. we must realise that ronaldo is our only chance for goals and must play him as a striker. we need to score. almeida is too clumsy and gomes, although wise, lacks a cutting edge. we have enough quality wingers, simao-nani-quaresma and now danny and must not waste ronaldo in this position. another thing is that we always depend too much on deco and playing moutinho alongside him is too risky since they cannot win any balls on the air, which poor possession play in the most important part of the field. and we must play pedro mendes often since he is a match winner and very solid tactcal midfielder. he could have been the missing link, which we were lacking against albania. i also have a problem with ferreira, he is always too nervy when in national colors. and where the hell is veloso? possibily the most tactically effecient player we've got since ages. and he's our only world class lefty. pepe needs a better grounded partner like carvalho or TONEL so that he can move forward often without any risk. alves did'nt give him that option yesterday.
so anyways, my conclusion is that, queieoz please play ronaldo in front and please play mendes and get veloso into the first XI. if you do these, i don't think we will have any problem getting to the finals.
16/10/2008 18:20
no excuses this is tougher then we thought. time to regroup and try this again. focus guys focus. no more slip ups.FORCA PORTUGALLLL
16/10/2008 17:53
Luck plays a big part in football and unfortunately Portugal seem to have had none in past couple of games.
No need to stress, we could have won 3-0 yesterday but the Albanian keeper was pretty good. The chances from Danny near post, Nani hitting the keepers legs in the final minutes, Almeida's perfect header into the ground which the keeper somehow managed to save, Almeida off the post and into the keepers hands, I mean come on... the Albanians were unbelievably lucky not to concede a goal.
Sometimes they go in, sometimes they don't. Simple as that really.
16/10/2008 17:24
All good comments but bottom line:
- Team in decline last 2 years, thanks for Mike in Canada for the data to validate.
- We can tweak the line up 1 player here or there but the performance is the same. None of the so called "great talent" have done anything. Maybe the talent is overrated or not maturing. Look at the performance at the club level (Nani, Quaresma, Almeida, Moutinho). If they were great they would have a greater impact at club level. Our best club level performers play on defense.
- Back in 96 when I really started to pay greater attention to Portuguese soccer here in the US, what was dazzling about the team was the quick 1-2 touch passing with movement. There is none of this unless Deco and Gomes are in the line up to set up the combo play. I think having those two in the line up helped in the games where we did pretty good in Euro 2008. Almeida is not a back to goal striker/combo type striker and not fast or skilled to play as alone striker.
- CR as mentioned rarely beats anyone off the dribble anymore and is mechanical, I was willing to say it is the ankle but I don't think so. He has great skills but he lacks that vision and sublime element to make the team better. Deco is the one who makes the team better.
- Queresma needing to start might be a valid point but he has been horrible at Inter and going back to last year. Nervous player with no sense and at 25 years, it might be to late to change.
We still have a shot but need to improve.
16/10/2008 17:16
oh come on jeff portugal will not be the next team canada. this is a major issue and i also fear of not qualifying but at the same time we have all seen portugal bounce back from these dry spells. im hoping that this can happen once more because as of right now we are not looking the team we can be. every body is to blame coach players managers every body. players let they`re egos ruin chances. i love all them very much but boys must learn to play with eact other and not waste chances with solo efforts. ronaldo should not be captian as he has a large ego along with quaresma and nani. team needs leadership from someone that is a team player. i know alot of fans arnt impressed with gomes but say what you like about him because he is one of the only ones that doesnt let his ego get in the way when playing. hes a team player and puts in endless effort. i think if we play albanina again and bring the same play we did at home that we can beat them. any way this is a sad day for us portuguese and i hope for much happier ones soon.
forca portugal
16/10/2008 17:10
Ok boys I've said Portugal will not make the World Cup and I also said they wouldn't make the Euro's either.The Golden Generation has come and gone,but after watching the game yesterday I came to the conclusion that this team can beat any team.The game yesterday was nothing more than desperation instead of patriotism.Portugal needs a cool headed coach who knows how to use player chemistry instead of talent.Ronaldo and Gomes,Deco and Maniche,Carvalho and Pepe,Miguel and Danny these are great combo's.The lack of friendship or the CANCER of the team will kill us.FIND IT AND ELIMINATE IT FAST.Perhaps a player from the Golden era maybe take on this teams coaching issues.We need some of that luck back.
16/10/2008 16:56
I don't think there's much else to say that hasn't been said already. I honestly fear for their chances of making it to 2010. I hope we can all look back at these results and laugh, but if there's no passion and determination to win then that's something that just can't be taught.
Blame Queiroz all you like, but I'm sure he doesn't tell his team to play a dis-spirited match like Portugal did.
With all due respect to Albania, that game should have been won easily by Portugal.
I think that there are easy teams out there to beat, maybe Portugal is one of them. I hope this team makes me eat my words, but judging from their last three matches, I don't think that will be happening.
16/10/2008 16:32
wow give yourselves a pat on the back team portugal you have disappointed your fans and country once again. great job!! such a shame such a team with players they have and can`t make anything happen.only way poor-2-gal is going to the wc is if they buy the tickets and sit in the stands. pity i was looking forward to a oranje vs portugal final. no coach will ever bring this team like scolari did. to bad he left. whas next portugal? a fifa rank from 10th to 130th? portugal had the chance in 04 and they blew it. say good bye to this team they are offically history.portugal= the next team canada.
16/10/2008 15:56
well two poor results and yes i include an away draw with an average sweden side. we never realy took the game to either opposition and didnt use are strengths effectively. I have never been a queiroz fan and would of much rather of had jesualdo ferreira as quieroz picks his favourites instead of who would play better together.
Almeida is scrapping for chances but fink nuno would be a better starter than him. I still believe that ronaldo shuld be used as the centre forward as he doesnt go by defenders much now. Quaresma is not effective from the bench as he takes time to settle. Nani is useful as a sub but thats all. If all players are fit we have a strong enough team to turn it around but dont no if we can do this with queiroz. Hopefully line up to follow will be:
CF C. Ronaldo
LW Simao
RW Quaresma
AM Deco
CM Veloso
DM M.Fernandes
LB Antunes
RB Bosingwa
CB Pepe
CB R. Carvalho
GK Quim
16/10/2008 15:53
portugal had a good attacking game but luck was for the albanians. how ever you can sugar coat it all you want but portugal did not want it bad enough or once again under estimated a team ranked low. only player i seen try hard was fernandes, every body else was in space, quaresma is a player that needs time to blend in the game putting him on at 60 mins or 70 mins is a waste of time. c.r. should be ashamed of himself as he brought a big bucket of nothing to this game. this portugal team is doomed for 2010 unless they start playing as a team and switch up the plays more its so predictable and way to slow on closing down the other team. its almost like watching a movie you`ve seen 3 times and know whats happening next..TO PREDICTABLE PORTUGAL this game was a big vergonha. not impressed right now with this team. cmon boys wake up and lets start winning
16/10/2008 14:21
I think that Portugal is a great team. Against us it was just luck that Portugal didn't score on goal, yes of course Albania had a nice defence tactic. However I would like really much to see Portugal playing in Tirana (albania).
16/10/2008 13:58
embarassing, I hear the fat lady warming up to sing. the only way we can rescue qualification is to win on the road in both denmark and albania without that we can forget about world cup 2010.
16/10/2008 12:37
that was one of the most fustrating games Ive ever seen by the Portuguese team!. The whole freaking team was asleep, no one was even trying or even pushing the ball. We had them with 10 men down and we still couldnt xcore??? cmon guys, this is pathetic!. theres gotta be some changes done here, whether it be Quedioz getting the axe or make some roster changes....wtf was Hugo Almedia doing in there?? Nuno Gomes should have started he is brillant at home!, and Manuel Fernadez???cmon man! the guy had any passion at all , kept on loosing passes and getting it stolen ...we gotta figure something out soon or else bye bye WC 2010, I thik though that seeing the president of the Portuguese team leave early during the game was a bbbaaadd sign for Queidoz, lets hope with the friendyl vs Brazilwe put on some type of show...I think the whole team should go to Fatima Portugal ask for forgivness from yesterdays embarressment and pray for a better campaign startin in march 09....
16/10/2008 12:33
I agree with a lot of what Tony says.
You can't put all the blame on Carlos, he isn't on the field when you’re dominating the second half and still can't score against 10 men. That isn’t the coach’s fault, that’s your players!
And I totally 100% agree, I am so sick of the outside toe shot from Queresma or his cross with his legs crossing over. He has nothing valuable to add to this team except to waste opportunities and show off.
By what I am reading in the papers the players and Queiroz are getting blasted. That’s great news, like I said previously a good slap in the face is what they need.
Lastly, maybe we shouldn't be surprised this team has been on the road to destruction. Look at the Euro's where it came down to the last game. Look at these scores from the Euro's, it doesn't look like many dominating performances against below to average teams.
Qualifying round
06/09/06 v Finland 1 - 1
07/10/06 v Azerbaijan 3 - 0
11/10/06 v Poland 1 - 2
15/11/06 v Kazakhstan 3 - 0
24/03/07 v Belgium 4 - 0
28/03/07 v Serbia 1 - 1
02/06/07 v Belgium 2 - 1
22/08/07 v Armenia 1 - 1
08/09/07 v Poland 2 - 2
12/09/07 v Serbia 1 - 1
13/10/07 v Azerbaijan 2 - 0
17/10/07 v Kazakhstan 2 - 1
17/11/07 v Armenia 1 - 0
21/11/07 v Finland 0 - 0
16/10/2008 06:07
That was utterly disappointing on so many levels. Who is hosting the 2014 world cup because we have no chance for S Africa unless we get another miracle from Fatima.
Oh well, there are bigger problems out there (stock market crisis, inadequate health-care, global warming, drug addiction, unequal distribution of wealth, war in Iraq, genocide in Darfur,Islamic extremism). And remember, as a good Portuguese you can still support the B team (Brazil)
Forca!
16/10/2008 04:46
Only the FPF would re-hire a coach that failed to qualify in '98. It's all over but the crying.
16/10/2008 04:33
Bye Bye South Africa World Cup.
It is ashame really!!
16/10/2008 02:45
Lots of good passion and I can identify with the disappointment.
A few points:
1) Lots of Carlos bashing and it is true his track record is poor as a head coach but I can't put all the blame on him.
2) I'm sorry to say this but we have overrated players who have a lot of the same skills/ilk and no goal scorer. Most of our players except CR have a low scoring rate at club and national levels. Our players look nice dribbling the ball but a weak final touch/no end product. If these players do not perform for club at a high level how will they perform for the national team? These players are regressing (e.g. Nani, Queresma,Moutinho).
We have weak strikers and our best proven option is Nuno Gomes who has very few miles left. Djalo maybe something but we don't know.
3) We can blame Carlos but our problem has been and is scoring goals. We don't have the players who can shoot from distance with power (e.g. I get sick of Quaresma's shot off his right outside or Miereles follow up on a 20 yard shot with no chance), we can't score when close to the goal (e.g. Nani, Almeida), we can't take people off the dribble (last time CR beat 2-3 guys?)
4) We have a bunch of non efficient players and once Deco is done in about 2 years, we are likey in trouble. Do you trust Moutinho do be the next Deco? This guy is over-hyped and does nothing.
Lets hope we turn it around but look at the best performance of our players and that is the best indicator of future performance.
16/10/2008 02:28
Its pretty frustrating wondering if this is it or will they turn it around.
At home against and yes I will say it an underrated 10 man Albania team and a 0-0 draw, it doesn't get any lower then these past 2 performances.
As for players and performances I see a lot of Ronaldo bashing lately, but you have to remember when his foot touches the ball it automatically draws 2-4 defenders on him. Then throw on the fact everyone expects him to score for his team = looses the ball & dives. Blame the players around him if anything with that much attention on him you would think someone else on this team would be capable of creating opportunities with more space on the pitch.
I was hoping for Nani to get his chance and he has, well I'm pretty disappointed with his efforts and Queresma for me has never been the answer. I have been begging for Simao to be replaced but man you think with all this highly touted talents that they surely would be an improvement to Simao.
As for Striker, I thought Nuno was Portugal's best player in the Euro's but he is getting up there in age. All I ask is Queiroz to give Yannick a try and then you can go back to Nuno and if you have to Almedia.
Only positive you can take from this is the fans and media will crush them after this game, if they have something to prove then make it happen from this point on. I actually think this is a good thing for them, sometimes everyone needs a good slap in the face.
16/10/2008 01:57
I'm too frustrated for words at this point, but I will say this - Queiroz has to go. He can't be faulted for all of the poor play, but as I said when he was appointed, this team needs a disciplinarian and he is clearly not that.
This team plays with no heart, and it's sad to see this amount of talent wasted. I think we may have to accept that, while we have good players, we do not have a very good team.
16/10/2008 01:42
Sorry Matthew absolutly NOT I totaly disagree.Ferreira, Bosingwa, Quim not in a million years.Portugal need to change plans and go with small strikers like Danny.Looks like the big goals these days are coming from smaller players sneaking in.Teams like England,Spain,Argentina Mexico Etc have these small guys up front and are beating up the taller defenders creating all kinds of chances.WHERE ARE YOU FIGO,RUI COSTA,JOAO PINTO PORTUGAL NEEDS YOU GIVE US THAT GLORY ONE MORE TIME.
16/10/2008 01:31
Forgot one man!!!
1-1-4-4
ST:Gomes(C)
CAM:Deco
LW:Simao
LCM:Fernandes
RCM:Veloso
RW:Ronaldo
LB:Ferreira
LCB:Alves
RCB:Carvalho
RB:Bosingwa
GK:Quim
Gomes is the guy hes got experience and for i all no he would of scored at the end of the cross almeida missed! and his flick for nani was world class!
Veloso is good every where
16/10/2008 01:12
Im so sick from what i saw today!!!
Portugal vs Brazil is the next game for us right?
Well here it is....
2-4-4
LS:Postiga
RS:Gomes(C)
LW:Simao
LCM:Fernandes
RCM:Deco
RW:Ronaldo
LB:Ferreira
LCB:Alves
RCB:Carvalho
RB:Bosingwa
GK:Quim
Mendes in and Meireles out.
Nani as a sub hes immature to and is overrated!
Quaresma don't go there...
Almeida enough said there....
Danny super sub.
Maniche super sub.
Pepe learn to stay as a center back!
Antunes to young but good/possible option don't care
Ronaldo all hes good for is speed,Diving and Stepovers but gotta keep him there over Quaresma and Nani... FOR NOW!!!
Carlos get balls and PUNISH THIS TEAM!!!
AND NO FORCA PORTUGAL THIS TIME
16/10/2008 01:08
euro 2004 Scolari pulled out Figo during a game, Figo was furious went straight to the dressing room.Next game he came out like a ANIMAL played his best game EVER.Ronaldo needs to be pulled out the same way and slapped across the head for taking so MANY F&&%%&&* DIVES when in a scoring position.5'5" moutinho does not fit in this team.Quim is simply BAD LUCK.Nani take some lessons from Rooney you might score one.I've said this too many times here on this forum that Portuguese players have Baby kicks wide of the net or over the net.Almeida is the only guy who actualy plays the ball low but with no power behide it to cause juicy rebounds.And another thing How come Nuno Gomes is not captain and Starting the games? I said here,it was a huge mistake choosing Carlos Queiroz as coach and not because he is not a good coach but because he has close and personal ties with Portugal.Look at the game today he used all the best players to win.It was an emotion call not professional. No one on here can say that he didn't use the best he had.Don't blame him.Portugal needs a Outside non-Portuguese speaking coach Dutch,French,and yes English,someone who has nothing to lose and everything to WIN.
16/10/2008 00:12
How disappointing! I never thought supporting the selecao would be so painful. We will not qualify. This is exactly the 98 qualification repeating itself where we lost to Ukraine 2-1 and drew to Armenia 0-0. That gave us a terrible start and we never recovered. How can u not score against 10 men for a whole half against a footballing minnow bewilders me.
16/10/2008 00:06
Manuel Fernandes is the best player on that team!!!!
Ronaldo,Quaresma,Nani etc are overrated and need to stop dancing around outside the box CROSS THE F IN BALLLLLLL!!!!!!!
Portugal will not make world cup 2010 i can see it!!!! and i wouldn't be surprised with palyers like quaresma,nani and ronaldo dancing around
15/10/2008 23:48
Portugal lost because they under estimated Albania. Big Mistake. They will lose many other games just like this. Big headed talent including the coach is not needed.
15/10/2008 22:45
another embarassing game. seleccao should be ashamed of themselves. tie to a team that should won by 4 goals. queiroz needs to be disciplined on them. or he could start choosing players who r willing play hard. forget about talent. start looking for players whom have speed. im not be patient anymore too tired to hear how much talent portugal has. all bs. the usa team play better than them.
15/10/2008 22:16
I Don't know what happened with the Portugese Team :( they where one of the fearless teams and now ?? dont know :( we need Mourinho and DECO!!! to win something...coz im losing my confidence that we qualify for the WC2010
15/10/2008 22:03
Another step backwards and our WW chances not over but greatly reduced.
Some brief comments:
1) It doesn't matter who the coach is or who plays the team is void, incompetent, no chemistry, no firepower, etc. I can't blame Carlos when we can't score.
2) CR is overrated, the greatest player in the world should be able to create chances for his teammates and win a game by himself (e.g. Messi) Wish he had played with more urgency earlier in the game.
3) WE NEED DECO!!!! He is the difference. I'm tired of all this praise for Moutinho -- he has done nothing and shows no promise.
4) Our attacking players are all underachievers (Nani, Quaresma, etc.) and as a collective group are regressing.
5) The downward trend started 2 years ago after 2006 WW Cup.
6) We must take the bitter pill and admit that maybe the players are not that good. What are conclusion can one come to? I can't blame Carlos because these same players are regressing at club level. Look at the data and trends on their recent performance.
7) Glad to vent and enjoy the good weather in California and look forward to many other wonderful things life has.
15/10/2008 21:48
This is BS!!! Again with a tie against a not so strong team..Albania. Not to mention Portugal had the upper hand playing against 10 men after a red card on an Albanian player. I'm losing my confidence and I think Portugal will not qualify if they continue to play like this. Where is Leidson? What's the story on his Naturalization status? We need a strong striker that can produce goals and not just dance with the ball...got that Cristiano?
15/10/2008 17:18
The paper "Record" is reporting on it's site that Boswinga is out due to injury, to be replaced by Miguel. Nani is being removed, replaced by Manuael Fernandes.
The starting line-up for today:
Selecção Nacional vai alinhar com: Quim; Miguel, Pepe, Bruno Alves, Paulo Ferreira; Manuel Fernandes, Raul Meireles, Moutinho; Cristiano Ronaldo, Hugo Almeida e Danny.
I would have started Meira in place of Meireles, and either Gomes or Postiga in favor of Almeida.
Nor would I be replacing Nani with Fernandes.
15/10/2008 15:25
Joe,
where didyou hear Boswinga is out for todays game??
that would totally suck! , who would we put on the right side with Pepe, Alves, and {ughhh!} Ferreria...I still dont understand why they put Paulo there,...antunes is a much younger faster LB than Fereria...my lineup would be this for todays match
GK- Quim..is a animal in keep
Defense - Pepe, Alves, Antunes, and hmmmm...miguel? help me out people?!
Midfield - Danny, Mourtinho, Carlos Martins
Wings - Ronaldo, Nani
Striker - Nuno Gomes
Forca Portugal!!!...4-1 win
15/10/2008 14:00
Boswinga out for today's game with some knee ailment.
Sucks.
14/10/2008 23:57
I think it's time to start using an attacking Formation....
2-1-4-3
LS:Almeida
RS:Gomes(C)/Djalo
CAM:Danny
LW:Ronaldo(C)
LCM:Fernandes
RCM:Moutinho
RW:Bosingwa
LCB:Meira
CB:Alves
RCB:Pepe
GK:Quim
This formation and line up should bring some scoring into the team and should still be strong defensively
Forca Portugal
3-0 Portugal
14/10/2008 15:24
Our in ability to create scoring opportunities vs. Sweden was frightening. We can barely score when we have 4, 5, 6 guys in the box. Think we're going to score when we have just one, maybe 2 portuguese shirts in the box as was the case vs. Sweden?
Although this is certainly debate-able, I'd go all out on the offensive front. Play Meira with Alves and Pepe so this way you have 3 solid center back players out there. Send everyone else forward ... have the players attack ... I love watching Man U send 7 guys up there, they suffocate their opponents with all the players they have attacking the net.
On Sat, we saw an ineffective Almeida by himself up there, and when he was taken out, I remember one or two balls going across the middle with no one there.
ATTACK. PRESSURE. Let Meira/Alves/Pepe handle the defensive duties, with some help from the right and left backs.
I'd rather see us insert our will up front in numbers than see us close ranks defensively.
Of course if we lose 4-3 then I'll come on here to complain about the defensive lapses, lol.
Damnit, I just want this team to win and to stop under-achieving. But if they're not going to win, I'd rather see the team lose while playing offensive football, that plays to our strengths I think (though we still miss on every golden opportunity to put the ball in the net).
14/10/2008 08:01
Tony, Marysville, CA
Oh, thanx! :)
I really fell in love with this player (Danny) :) Besides he’s great performance, he’s the great man too. He always gives an adequate and competent interview, he really loves his family and business of his life – football. In our country there is not done to admire the player of rivalclubs. But when you talk about Miguel, all of fans were unanimous and called him the best foreignplayer in all history. And always wish him to play regularly in his Country Team. Now it is possible, it must be possible, and I’m very angry, when Queiros forget him on the bank!
I think, these midfielders have to play, if they haven’t an injury:
CR……Deco…...Danny
…..?......Maniche
Two words about Maniche, my other favorite player. I was really shocked, when Felipao doesn’t take him at Euro. This player, in spite of difficult nature and lack of physic, has so necessary skills, that haven’t other players in same position. He built the play. He has unbelievable first touch, I can’t stop to admire this side of his play. He hasn’t quick feet, but he has a quick mind – that is better in our Team. He has to play.
13/10/2008 23:50
On the midfield, I'm okay with putting Meira there and teaming him with Fernandes or Veloso. In fact I think Fernandes and Veloso would be an effective long term partnership as they have the physical presence and skill which is something we have been missing.
Any alternative is better than the Miereles. Miereles is nothing but another Petit and Portugal will be second rate at this position as long as Miereles is there. Miereles doesn't have the physical presence, lacks accurate shooting, and has a heavy touch. Why do we need to subject ourselves to another Petit? We suffered long enough with Petit and now his twin/duplication Miereles. Petit didn't retire from intl football he is still on the team via Miereles. How much more do have to suffer as fans!!!
Miereles, Simao, and Ferreira as long as these players start we will suffer and come up short.
13/10/2008 21:48
The dude from London...
I think Veloso would be a better choice over Fernandes and teaming up with Meira!!!
Veloso had a good game against Porto i think he was one of the best on the pitch that game other then Alves!!!
Forca Portugal
13/10/2008 19:37
Firstyly, get that Melo idiot guy off here...all he does is hate.
Secondly, why is no one mentioning Miguel Veloso..he is the man and should have that defensive midfielder spot all to himself all day everyday.
Manuel Fernandes should also be given a chance. Maybe in place of Moutinho, because Manny plays in La Liga which is a higher quality of a league than Superliga..(hard to admit but its true)..
13/10/2008 18:35
Our defense was unbeatable vs Sweden on Saturday and im glad we got that figured out.
I really like how he put 3 massive players on for defense Meira,Pepe, and Alves they were solid the whole 90. Now the thing with Ferreira hes been playing well since Carlos arrived i would continue to play him but maybe hes just doing this because he knows he needs to improve to get back on the team, then when hes there forsure he doesn't give anymore.
Keep Meireles away from the 11 he was horrible during the 90 his passing was of target and his shooting.... GOD BLESS HIM!
Where was Almeida?
Ronaldo,Nani,Moutinho, and Quaresma at some moments were shacky and useless.
We have to start Danny and everyone agrees hes fast,good playmaker and is full of energy.
My line up for Albania....
2-4-4
LS:Almeida
RS:Ronaldo(C)
LW:Danny
RW:Quaresma
CDM:Meira
CM:Fernandes
LB:Ferreira
LCB:Alves
RCB:Pepe
RB:Bosingwa
GK:Quim
Forca Portugal we better win atleast 3-0 vs Albania or ill be disapointed.
13/10/2008 16:34
Sohhador in Russia, welcome to this forum. Please continue to post, we can understand your points and appreciate your good comments.
I have not seen Danny play too much but he has impressed me when I have seen him play. He has shown he can score against top European competition like Man U and Real Madrid.
I know that coaches like to play players they are comfortable with even when the players are not performing. I think it is at a point where we play Danny. He is a better player than Simao and brings pace, passing, good combination play, and can score.
Most of the players Portugal is currently playing have a low scoring rate in international play. Portugal needs to inject something new. I would like to see CR, Danny, and Deco play together.
I will give Carlos sometime to make changes and it is difficult with national teams as you play very few games to make adjustments but I think it is now critical to start looking at a few changes.
13/10/2008 05:38
Rob, Montreal,Canada
We haven't one skillfull striker, but you says 4-4-2... 4-4-2 use often as defensive tactic. 4-5-1, particullary, 4-3-3(!) is a classic portugal tactic and they can play good or even fantastic (during Scolari until the end of WC-2006). Our problem lie in onother side. I think, this is the weakest MENTAL team for last time. Some of key players are spoilt, in my opinion. They (Nani, Quaresma and CR too) can't lean over backwards, they play well only if the situation is comfortable. We haven't a LEADER (Oh, Luis, where are you?..) and we haven't a team purpose to crush the adversary. Remember key games in Euro-2004: with Spain, England, Holland - we crushed them.
This is why I think, that Danny can be key player. Not only because of his great perfomance. Hi isn't spoit, he makes him by himself.
Sorry for my bad English...
>>>
John, Newmarket, Canada
“Like chickens without heads.”
Exactly!
12/10/2008 23:50
Overall performance against Sweden was terrible. Like chickens without heads. Portugal will not qualify. !!!!
I have been following this team since 1984 Euro's. This crop of players has potential, but will not accomplish anything. I can't see Portugal qualifying for any major tournament for many years.... just like after 1984.
12/10/2008 22:00
Can someone please tell me why the hell we can't play a 4-4-2!?!Portugal's biggest problem for aslong as i can remember is lack of scoring,so lets help our forward by giving him an optiion.All the top teams in europe play a god damn 4-4-2,Spain,italy,germany,england,argentina....I really thought he was playing Ronaldo upthere but noooooooo.I know that Deco isn't the greatest defensively but start trying him with Fernandes or with Pele,Meira is good at stopping but then coughs up the first pass,not his fault though he's a central defense.Danny should start with Nani or QUERESMA.Almeida or Gomesor even Djalo aslong as Ronaldo is there,how do you think he scord 42 last year.he was in the front with Rooney or Tevez.He'll have the freedom to roam on the wings too don't worry.But our problem is GOAL SCORING so lets put the guy who scored the most in all of europe where he belongs please calos!!!!
12/10/2008 20:46
Danny, only Danny! Believe me, I saw him for 4 years since he came to Dinamo and he has those skills, wich hasn't got current Portugal Team. I mean, pace, agressive, teamplay. And, what is also important, he is a hard worker. He have an exellent progress and still increases. It is Danny, who can fire up this sleapy team.
12/10/2008 15:22
We should be very happy with getting 1 point out of this game against a tough team who is one of the best 20-25 teams in the world with a great home record.
We should be concerned about the play and there is time to fix it. I can't guarantee it will get better unless some of the following happens:
1) The winger play sorting out. Nani has regressed this year at Man U and the jury is out on him.
Quaresma is Quaresma I'm not sure if starting him will change his performance. He has been inconsistent at all levels why would history change? There is no science to predict how good a player is but his past performance is best indicator.
CR needs to get 100% but I see potential regression in his game, he is not a leader or player maker. He gets taken out of games too easy and needs to make his teammates better (e.g. Messi) if he will continue to be an elite player.
Simao is not the answer.
Our most in form player is Danny and he needs to be out and could add the dimension we need with his pace and crafty play. Give him some opportunites.
2) We need Deco back in form. We play our best with his sublime skills. Moutinho is okay but he is a teaser when has this guy at Sporting or at national had a big goal or assit against a top opponent?
3) Manuel Fernandes with his head on straight can give us that extra dimension at midfield.
4) LB needs to be sorted out (enough posts on this)
There are some friendlies coming up that will help Carlos sort this out.
12/10/2008 13:51
I tought that he was going to play C