Czech Mate! - Republic left to Sweat!! Euro 2008

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Czech Mate! Republic left to sweat as Portugal progress and now Turkey await a final Group showdown. Tom Hornsby reports

After a week of intense media speculation, it will be Cristiano Ronaldo’s performance on the pitch that fills tomorrow’s back pages after his goal and two assists helped Portugal to an entertaining 3-1 victory over the Czech Republic this evening.

A modest 30,000 were inside the Stade de Geneve for Group A’s most anticipated clash, a game with the potential to be every bit as expansive and enthralling as Holland and Italy’s encounter earlier in the week.

And so it would prove.

Both sides had taken over an hour to breach their opponents defence during the opening group game but it took considerably less than that before the Portuguese were ahead. Just eight minutes had gone before Ronaldo had found his way into the Czech penalty area and unselfishly laid the ball into the path of Deco who, having seen his first effort parried by Petr Cech, made no mistake with his second, prodding the ball between the defender’s legs to send the sizable

Portuguese contingent into raptures.

But if Phil Scolari’s men were hoping to capitalise on their early advantage, the Republic had other ideas. First, the marauding Jankulovski found himself free inside the penalty area only to see his deflected shot fly high and wide. It was a warning Portugal should have heeded. Moments later Libor Sionko’s good work down the right led to a corner and it was he who stepped up to head Jaroslav Plasil’s excellent delivery past the stranded Ricardo.

Back came the Portuguese, retaining possession well in the midfield without creating anything more than a series of long range efforts as Ronaldo twice tested Cech from distance.

Indeed, it was Portugal who would start the second half the brightest as they began to ask questions of a resolute Czech back four. Simao in particular was finding space and after a largely anonymous first half, was beginning to exploit the room afforded him, pouncing on a mistake from David Rozehnal only to shoot tamely before manufacturing a second clear opening for himself.

The Czech’s continued to look dangerous from set-pieces but with just over an hour gone Portuguese persistence finally paid off. Having been at the centre of a media furore all week, it was perhaps inevitable that Cristiano Ronaldo would be the one to have the final word. This time it was Deco who turned provider, zipping the ball across the edge of the area for the want-away Manchester United winger to fire crisply into the bottom corner.

But just as in the first half, conceding served only to galvanize the Czech’s who, with the addition of the giant Jan Koller, began to exert their physical advantage in the final third. First Baros, and then Sionko had chances to level the score, the latter’s headed effort tipped athletically over by Ricardo.

But with just three minutes of stoppage time remaining they were caught short by a quickly taken Portuguese free kick. Unmarked, Ronaldo raced into the penalty area and coolly squared to substitute Ricardo Quaresma who applied the simplest of finishes to seal victory and Portugal’s place in the last eight.

Tom Hornsby

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