Portugal’s U21 squad played Sweden to a 1-1 draw on Wednesday in their final group stage match at the European Championships in the Czech Republic. The result was enough to clinch first-place in group B and advance to the semi-finals.
The young Seleção will now have to get past Germany if they are to make the final of this tournament for only the second time in their history. Germany finished second in group A behind Denmark and bring a wealth of experience at youth level.
The winner of this contest will face either Sweden or Denmark in the final on Tuesday in Prague. PortuGoal previews Saturday’s semi-final match-up.
The Opponents
The Germans came into this tournament as one of the favourites, however, they have yet to show their best form. They conceded a late lead to hosts Czech Republic in their last match of the group stage and just managed to hold on for a 1-1 draw. A second-place finish in group A means they face group B winners Portugal.
Horst Hrubesch was for a short time assistant manager of Germany’s senior squad in 2000. Since then, he has managed several German squads at youth level. He led the country to victory at the UEFA U19 European Championships in 2008, and he was also in charge of the squad that won this tournament back in 2009, Germany’s only title at this level.
The 64-year-old took charge of the current edition of the U21 side after a disappointing showing at the 2013 tournament. Hrubesch led them to first-place in their qualifying group. They then beat Ukraine in a play-off to qualify for this tournament. The Germans were clinical during qualifying, scoring 30 goals and conceding just five. Kaiserslautern striker Philipp Hofmann led the way with seven goals in 10 matches.
Portugal’s senior squad have not had much success against Germany in recent years, losing to them at both Euro 2012 and last summer’s World Cup. But the results are very different at U21 level, where Portugal have won three out of three encounters, including the last two at this very tournament in 2004 and 2006. The Seleção also beat the German U21 squad in a friendly in 2011 by a score of 4-2.
Tactical Breakdown
Portugal are two matches away from winning their first ever U21 European Championship title. Manager Rui Jorge expects another difficult match against Germany on Saturday. “We haven't had an easy game in the tournament so far and that will be the same again against a very good team. We're getting closer to the final and that only means that it's getting tougher for us and the other teams left in the competition.”
He believes that at this stage, any of the teams left in the tournament are capable of winning. “We never said we are favourites to win the tournament and we shouldn't say that because it's not a reality. I've tried several times to say that in my view the teams are very even, there are no favourites here only games that can go your way or their way.“
“You always need a bit of luck to be successful and we have had our share so far. Having said that we are where we always wanted to be and we are looking forward to everything that is still ahead of us.”
Rui Jorge decided to start without a striker for the third consecutive match against Sweden. But when substitute Gonçalo Paciência came on in the second half he scored the goal that gave Portugal a draw against Sweden, sealing their place in the semi-finals. Scoring has been difficult to come by so far, with only two goals in three matches. However, major changes are unlikely at this point. Sporting winger Iuri Medeiros was very impressive against Sweden and could start ahead of Ricardo Pereira or Ivan Cavaleiro.
The Portuguese will be facing a German squad with a similar style of play to theirs. Their opponents are a very balanced squad that like to control possession. This match should come down to the battle in midfield. German manager Hrubesch is expected to counter with a 4-2-3-1 formation against Portugal.
Barcelona goalkeeper and Champions League winner Marc-André ter Stegen will be in goal for Germany. Liverpool defensive midfielder Emre Can will anchor the midfield. Joshua Kimmich, Amin Younes and Max Meyer should provide creativity. Germany have several players that could score goals as well. Hoffenheim’s Kevin Volland has two goals so far at this tournament, after scoring six in qualifying. He should start on Saturday ahead of Philipp Hofmann.
Probable line-ups:
Portugal: José Sá, Ricardo Esgaio, Tobias Figueiredo, Paulo Oliveira, Raphael Guerreiro, William Carvalho, Sérgio Oliveira, Bernardo Silva, João Mário, Ricardo Pereira and Ivan Cavaleiro.
Germany: Marc-André ter Stegen, Julian Korb, Christian Günter, Matthias Ginter, Nico Schulz, Dominique Heintz, Emre Can, Joshua Kimmich, Amin Younes, Max Meyer and Kevin Volland
By Rui Miguel Martins
For more from Rui (twitter: @futebolfactory) check out Futebolfactory.com.
