MX23RW : Friday, April 26 04:22:06| >> :600:718951:718951:

Preview: Semi-final - Portugal vs. Spain

Preview: Semi-final - Portugal vs. Spain
© PA Photos
Sports Mole previews tonight's Euro 2012 semi-final between Iberian rivals Portugal and defending champions Spain.

Tonight's fixture is arguably the biggest meeting between these two Iberian nations in recent memory. After all, the winner of this encounter will earn themselves a place in Sunday's Euro 2012 final against either Germany or Italy.

A lot of the talk heading into this match has surrounded whether or not the Spanish rearguard will be able to stop Cristiano Ronaldo from producing some of the form that has made him favourite for this year's Ballon d'Or.

Ronaldo is unlikely to be supported by former Tottenham Hotspur striker Helder Postiga, who is nursing a hamstring injury. Instead, Hugo Almedia is expected to lead to Portuguese line in the Donbass Arena.

Meanwhile, Spain coach Vicente Del Bosque must decide whether to start Fernando Torres as a striker, or use Cesc Fabregas in that role. Some early reports have suggested that he may opt for Torres this around.

The Spanish, who headed into the tournament as defending champions, have never been beaten in the semi-final of an international competition. Meanwhile, Portugal have won just once in five attempts at this stage.

However, Paulo Bento's side can take heart from the 4-0 drubbing that they gave Spain when the sides last met in 2010. That defeat in Lisbon was the biggest that the Reds had suffered in 47 years.

Current form:

Portugal: DLLWWW
Spain: WWDWWW

Possible lineups:

Portugal: Patricio; Pereira, Pepe, Bruno Alves, Coentrao; Veloso, Raul Meireles, Moutinho, Nani; Ronaldo; Almeida

Spain: Casillas; Arbeloa, Ramos, Pique, Alba; Busquets, Alonso; Silva, Xavi, Iniesta; Torres

Sports Mole says: 1-3

ID:32360: cacheID:32360:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:3203:

Previews by email

Click here to get Sports Mole's daily email of previews and predictions for every major game!


Restore Data
Share this article now:
Portugal
Read Next:
Bento: 'We can beat Spain'
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
10am
Bublik
Carballes Baena
10am
Marozsan
Cerundolo
10am
Musetti
Seyboth Wild
10am
Paul
Klein
10am
Rublev
Bagnis
10am
Andreeva
Noskova
10am
Bronzetti
Rybakina
10am
Garcia
Wang
10am
Pavlyuchenkova
Saville
11.30am
Altmaier
Fils
11.30am
Martin Etcheverry
Shapovalov
11.30am
Alexandrova
Krueger
11.30am
Bucsa
Kasatkina
11.30am
Dolehide
Kalinina
11.30am
Jimenez Kasintseva
Paolini
11.30am
Linette
Sabalenka
1pm
Baez
Van Assche
1pm
Hurkacz
Draper
1pm
Bejlek
Kalinskaya
1pm
Cristian
Krejcikova
1pm
Kostyuk
Sherif
2pm
Zheng
Putintseva
2.30pm
Humbert
Van De Zandschulp
2.30pm
Darderi
Fritz
2.30pm
Boulter
Montgomery
3pm
Shevchenko
Alcaraz
3.30pm
Vondrousova
Rogers
4pm
Griekspoor
Daniel
4pm
Munar
Struff
5pm
Navone
Rune
7pm
Coric
Zverev
8.30pm
Collins
Danilovic
11.30am
Shang
Davidovich Fokina
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Arsenal34245582265677
2Manchester CityMan City33237380324876
3Liverpool34228475344174
4Aston Villa34206871502166
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs32186865491660
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd33165125150153
7Newcastle UnitedNewcastle331551369541550
8West Ham UnitedWest Ham34139125463-948
9Chelsea32138116157447
10Bournemouth34129134960-1145
11Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton331111115254-244
12Wolverhampton WanderersWolves34127154654-843
13Fulham34126165054-442
14Crystal Palace34109154456-1239
15Brentford3498175259-735
16Everton34118153648-1233
17Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest3479184260-1826
18Luton TownLuton3467214775-2825
19Burnley3458213769-3223
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd3437243392-5916


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!