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Wednesday, 16 May 2012 16:46 |
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I can see Portugal advancing with this squad if they continue to play the way they did under Bento in qualifying. Yes Holland and Germany are really strong opponents and Denmark are no pushovers as Portuguese fans know well, but Portugal can match any of these teams if they are solid at the back and play intelligently.
I'm glad to see some Braga players represented as both Lopes and Custodio have impressed, but I think it's criminal to pick Martins over Viana. I don't buy the argument that Viana "doesn't fit" into Bento's style of play. Martins is a work horse but has little skill to show for all of his frenzied running. Having a skilled passer and playmaker to bring on against a team like Holland, which has a relatively weak back four, could be exactly what Portugal needs if Bento's Plan A doesn't pan out. As others have mentioned, the omission of Fernandes is also disappointing.
If I were in Bento's shoes I would have done something similar to what Del Bosque did for Spain's most recent friendly where several players who are no-brainers to receive a call up (Xavi among them) were left out of the friendly lineup so that other younger and uncapped players could have a chance to shine. This would have given Bento a chance to see if players like Viana and even Vaz Te can work within system. Unfortunately we wont know until possibly after the Euro.
All that being said, this is a decent squad. Ronaldo has been on top form for club and country and could have a big tournament. However, opposing teams will most likely try to smother him, so it will be interesting to see if Bento has adequately prepared the team for this situation. Against Germany, I would like to see Almeida or Oliveira start since I think that Postiga would just get bossed around by the German D as he is less physical. Postiga could be a good choice against the Danes and the Dutch though as he may be better able to break down their defenders.
Portugal have a chance to qualify, but it wont be easy and I don't think they are favourites to advance out of this group. I'd rank them at about third on the basis of the qualifying campaigns, going into the tournament.
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