With just a few hours to go until kick-off excitement is higher than ever ahead of Portugal’s quarter-final against the Czech Republic, as PortuGOAL brings you the latest from both camps, team news and highlights from past encounters between the two countries.  

Paulo Bento turned forty-three yesterday, and speaking at last night’s press conference the Portugal coach revealed that there is only one birthday wish that is dominating his thoughts:

“I want to try and turn my personal happiness into a collective joy during tomorrow’s game. My big hope is that all of the Portuguese people are happy by the end of tomorrow.”

Tonight’s match will take place in the National Stadium in Warsaw, Portugal’s first taste of playing in Poland during this tournament. The forecast is for rain during the game, a little different to the energy-sapping conditions that Portugal have been used to in Ukraine, but Bento was quick to refute claims that his side will struggle having had a day of rest less than the Czechs, praising the resilience of his players:

“Our emotional levels will be strong and physically we will be fine. The organisation that we have already shown means that we can overcome those moments when tiredness may become a factor.”

The man in charge of the big game will be Englishman Howard Webb. His finest moment as a referee came two years ago when he officiated the World Cup final between Spain and the Netherlands, an ill-tempered game in which he showed thirteen yellow cards as well as one red.

The former police sergeant has earned a reputation for being hard but fair, and in the two matches that he has refereed at this tournament so far he has only shown three yellow cards. Portugal will need to try and ensure that Webb’s cards stay firmly in his pocket tonight however, with Hélder Postiga, Fábio Coentrão, Raul Meireles, Cristiano Ronaldo and João Pereira all needing to get through another ninety minutes before their bookings from the group stage are wiped off.

All eyes will be on the Czech Republic team sheet later on this evening to see if their captain Tomas Rosicky has recovered in time to play. Rosicky trained for the first time in nine days yesterday, after returning to Prague for treatment on an Achilles tendon injury that he picked up during the game against Greece.

Speaking after the session, the Arsenal playmaker was hopeful of being able to lead his team out against Portugal:

“The chances of me starting are bigger. We will decide what to do depending on how the injury reacts.”

The Czech Republic team manager Vladimir Smicer was much less optimistic however, insisting:

“Tomas will definitely not play from the start. If we are in trouble towards the end then he might come on to try and help us.”

If Rosicky is absent it will certainly make life easier for Portugal’s midfield, but João Moutinho is refusing to take anything for granted:

“We are expecting to come up against a team full of motivation and with very high morale, who are going to try and play their own game. The Czech Republic are very strong and we are going to have to be at our best in order to emerge victorious.”

There is certainly nothing to choose between the sides when it comes to previous encounters. The two countries have only played each other twice before, both times in European Championships, with each team registering one victory each.

Their last meeting came in 2008, when goals from Deco, Ronaldo and Quaresma secured a 3-1 victory, helping Portugal to progress to the knockout stages as the Czechs crashed out in group phase. You can watch the highlights from that game here.

Perhaps the most famous game between the two countries came in 1996, when they also met in the quarter-final. Portugal dominated the game but an audacious chip from Karel Poborsky just after half-time was enough to send the Selecção packing, as the Czechs went on to lose in the final. Relive the moment here:



This time around it certainly promises to be a tense and intriguing game. For those of you who are unable to watch the match then the entire PortuGOAL team will be tweeting throughout. There is not long to wait to see if Portugal can become the first team to book a place in the semi-finals. We hope that you enjoy the game.

by Tom Clee