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In this entry I will compare Portugal’s starting 11 with what I will think be in 2006, Hoping that Portugal qualify that is.

Euro 2004 is over and done with. Our boys did a great job but succumbed to defeat in the final against Greece. I have previously entered a article about what my starting lineup would be for Portugal in Euro 2004. There were a few differences from mine then there was with Scolari’s but we chose relatively the same team.

In Euro 2004 Portugal’s problem was finishing. They should have romped all over Spain and Holland but their finishing left a lot to be desired. This was mainly due to the fact that Portugal’s starting forward Pauleta played the worst tournament of his life. He did not get a single goal while both his back ups each scored.

Other then our finishing I did not find a single weakness in our team other than 3 mind lapses that cost the team. Our defense was as solid as a rock while our wingers did their job of keeping the other teams defense busy. Maniche and Costinha did a great job in the middle breaking up central attacks and making sure the opponents weren’t getting to the defense without a fight. The World Cup is coming up in 2006 and This will give new player new chances and old players will have to move over and let the team transform a bit. So here is my shot at what I would make the team look like.

Ricardo started the tournament in goal for Portugal and he finished there too. He did not do anything spectacular but he was solid and he always kept us in the games. I would keep him in goal. He better watch his back thought because Benfica have one of the best young goalkeepers in Europe with Moreira. Benfica played in the Champions league and the Uefa cup so Moreira got a lot of extremely valuable experience so clearly this will help him out in the future. Nonetheless why fix something when it is not broke? Ricardo saved some shots not to mention scoring a penalty kick against England.

Paulo Ferreira started at right back but then Scolari saw him as one of the culprits of the opening day defeat against Greece so he replaced him with Miguel. Miguel more then filled in for Ferreira and was arguably the tournaments best right back. During the tournament Miguel marked Spanish left winger Vicente, Arjen Robben of Holland whom Miguel made look like a child. Miguel plays his soccer for Benfica and over this summer a host of top teams have been knocking at his door for his services. His main asset is his speed and tricky runs he makes. He used to be a wide midfielder but was converted to a defender. This move has worked out for the best. Just ask any one who has seen him play. It has rejuvenated his career and made him one of the best at his position. If it wasn’t for Ferreira’s poor first game performance than the world would have never known just how good Miguel was. All of Portugal knew he was good but it just took a major tournament for others to realize. Miguel may have go the upper hand here but Ferreira will be looking to regain his spot so expect them to give it their all every time they are out. Ferreira won the Champions league with Porto this year and sealed a big time move to English side Chelsea. Playing in the English premier league will make him a tougher person, as the English league is quite rough compared to the Portuguese league. Before he played at Porto With Jose Mourinho Paulo was a average player. Nowadays hre is one of Europes best right backs thanks to Jose Mourniho’s genious. . This may lean Scolari to choosing Ferreira over Miguel again. Miguel is younger so he has time on his side.

Nuno Valente occupied the left side of defense for Portugal for most of the tournament. Like Miguel he did not start the tournament but did a more impressive job than his counterpart, Rui Jorge. Nuno may not have been as attacking as Miguel but he did his fair share in that department. More importantly he did a great job marking Joaquin against Spain who is arguably the best right-winger in the Spanish league, next to Luis figo of course. Not many people could say they got the upper hand on the Spanish winger, but Nuno even got up in the attack more then Joaquin which is highly unusual as Joaquin is quite simply one of the best. The only downfall to Nuno is he is reaching the end of his career. He is 29 as of now and he would be 31 at the World Cup. He may retain his spot if he works extra hard to stay in peak physical condition as it is harder to do when you are older. Seeing as there is not really much competition for him in this position as I feel Rui Jorge was a joke to be playing in the national team as he did not even play for his club team not to mention he is 31. I vote on Nuno keeping his place in the squad having a successful World Cup.

Portugal’s center backs were rocks. Jorge Andrade and Ricardo Carlvaho shut down the best teams forwards. Even the great Dutch team could only penetrate Portugal’s defense, due to a own goal by Jorge Andrade. The good thing about these two is that they are young, 26 and 26. They complimented each others attributes very well indeed. With Jorge being the tall built and strong imposing defender that scares the pants off the opposition. Carlvaho is the speedy one that covers a lot of ground. They both were very good in the air, they both read the game very well as their anticipation is spot on. While I was watching I noticed that not a single opposing forward or midfielder won a head ball twice in any game while against Andrade and Carlvaho. While my brothers were nervous wrecks during the dieing minutes in more than one game involving Portugal I knew that at least Portugal would not let in a header if Carlvaho or Andrade were covering them.

Carlvaho Plays for Porto and won the Champions league with them. He was their most consistent central defender the whole season and was voted onto the Euro 2004 all star squad along with being on the shortlist of Most valuable players in the Portuguese league. This is very rare for a defender to get this honour as most people vote for attackers rather then defenders. Carlvaho is being contacted daily from the worlds best clubs. Many people are tipping him to be the next Galactico of Real Madrid. Here is a little history of Real Madrid so you can understand the significance and importance of Real Madrid wanting to buy him. They are the most successful club team in Europe of all time. This past year they did not do so well due to lack of players and the clubs transfer policy of only buying the World’s best attacking players and rely on homegrown talent to fill in on the defense. Well Real hit a bump and the road and their President woke up and smelt the coffee and has pointed the finger at Ricardo Carlvaho to single handedly tighten up his teams defense.

As for Jorge Andrade, he was voted the best defender in the Spanish league. Again there is more o this vote then it seems. For one, he is Portuguese playing in the best league in the world which happens to be his homelands most hated rivalry in soccer terms. That and add to the fact that he does not play on one of the big 3 in Spain; Real Madrid, Valencia, and Barcelona. Jorge has consistently been being one of the best defenders in the world around for the past three or four years while Ricardo Carlvaho has emerged as one of the best literally out of nowhere the past two seasons. This is primarily why Jorge started the first game and Carlvaho sat on the bench in place of Fernando Couto until the second. There is no doubt in mind that with Carlvaho and Andrade we have the top 5 center back pairings in the world.

In the middle of the midfield I will use two central midfielders just like Scolari. Maniche and Costinha did a fabulous job. Not only did they do their part in frustrating the other teams attackers, two of Portugal’s goals came from the feet of defensive midfielders. Hands down, Maniche scored the goal of the tournament. Anyone that disagrees with this statement clearly is bias towards whomever they chose. It was a screamer of a shot. In the semifinals against Holland Cristiano Ronaldo took a short corner and laid it off to Maniche who took one touch and then blasted the ball into the top corner of the far post. It was by far the most impressive thing I have ever seen live. It must have been a 30 yard shot. I almost did not understand what had just happened due to the fact that the shot was unreal. As I am writing this my eyes are becoming weighed down from the memory of the sheer beauty of the shot. Maniche is the man. Now getting back down to earth.

Costinha was the unsung hero of Porto and their Champions league run to glory. He is great at what he does and it does not bother him what type of plaudits he gains from the fans. A typical type of Costinha moment was in the dieing seconds of the 2nd leg against Manchester United he knocked in a goal to send Porto on their way to the Quarterfinals. He is a consistent performer and does his job without any complaints. Some people may point the finger at him for the goal Greece scored against them in the final, but to me that is unjust. For all I have seen of him he has made two mistakes which have both gone in the back of the net. That is how important he is to whichever team he is on. Costinha is 29 and getting on with his career. I do not know how long he will be able to be the dominant force he is. Hopefully he has two good years left in his legs. If he were not able to play at his best I would draft in Tiago who just sealed a big money move to Chelsea. Luckily for him Jose Mourinho is the coach of this team. Mourinho is known for turning average players into great players. (see Paulo Ferreira and Maniche. Better yet look at anyone from Porto) Hopefully Mourinho can weave his magic on Tiago because unlike Maniche, I personally think Tiago is already a great player.

Maniche occupied the left side of the center of field and got involved in more of the attacks than Costinha. Maniche plays his club football for Porto as so many Portugal players do or did. The story of Maniche is a bit different then the other Porto players. Maniche I believe (do not quote me on this) was a reserve player for Benfica and with all due respect to one of my favourite players, deservedly was. A argument between him and Benfica’s President saw him having to train on his own and kicked off the team. Mourinho the magical man picked him up and turned him into what he is today, a two way midfielder who could make any teams starting 11. He is known for scoring long range shots, as a Edwin Van der sar would agree with. Maniche was named to Euro 2004’s all star team. I do not agree with this. I would not only have given him a spot in the all star team, but also the tournaments most valuable player. Argue all you want but I am sticking with what I say. Maniche is 27 years old. We will get to see four more years of greatness from this guy at least. Lets just pretend that Maniche and Costinha cannot make the World Cup. Petit who is very comparable to Costinha would play along side Tiago. Next. P.S. Lets hope Maniche stays with Porto and does nto go to Arsenal.

Moving on we come upon our wingers. This is a unique case as Portugal’s midfield wide men constantly switch sides to confuse other teams defenders. Simao Sabrosa and Luis Figo started as Portugal’s wingers but a certain Ronaldo came in and stole the show from Simao Sabrosa. From then on Cristiano was Portugal’s main attacking threat. At 19 years of age he headed in 2 goals and grabbed two assists (if you would consider his pass to Maniches goal a assist) I am sure if you are Portuguese you have already heard enough of him as have all of the other countries players, especially defenders. So from Spain on in Portugal sported I think the best wing combination in the competition with Cristiano Ronaldo and Luis Figo.

Luis Figo could be debated as Portugal’s best ever player, along with Eusebio and Rui Costa. He was the heart and lungs of every team he has ever been on. This season when Real Madrid was sinking he was picking them up and dragging them back into games. He never gives up and will always give 100%. His pride can only be measured in truck loads upon truck loads. He did not have a great tournament. He looked slow and seemed like himself only once, which was the game against Holland. This can be blamed on fatigue and age. He is 31 and coming to an end of his international career. When he finally announces his end to his international career it will be a very sad day in the world of soccer. I draft in his place Simao Sabrosa or Ricardo Quaresma. Simao is 24 so experience is on his side. But do not rule out Quaresma. Before he and Cristiano moved to Barcelona and Man U, Quaresma was the better player. Seeing as Quaresma is at Porto playing regular first team football, he may well pass simao and Cristiano and be Portugal’s answer to the post Figo era. Simao has been on the top of the goal scoring charts for the Portuguese league for the past few seasons. This is very impressive considering he is a winger. It is a toss up between Quaresma and Simao.

Cristiano Ronaldo at the age of 19 has already cemented his place in all of Portugal’s hearts, not to mention starting 11’s. He had a sensational year with Man U and was awesome for Portugal in Euro2004. I vote for him to be Portugal’s number 1 winger. With Luis Boa Morte being the 4th choice. Ronaldo was voted to Euro 2004 all star squad. He has everything going for him. He is fast, a blistering shot, and the most incredible ball control I have ever seen. I can recall numerous times when I have had to pick up my jaw off my chest while watching him play. He tries so very hard. His is the most determined player I have ever seen. He may try to get by a defender and fail 9 times straight, but on the 10th time he will come at you with the same will and enthusiasm thinking in his head that he has you beat. Call in arrogance, call it ignorance, but I call it brilliance. People can argue that his crosses may not be up to par yet and that he tries to many step overs. But for me all you have to do is watch him play. If you saw a tape of him from earlier in the season and one in the end of the season you would realize how much more mature e is and how much more efficient he is, through 6 months he has improved measurably. I could not see any coach leaving him out of any squad. Arguably he is the worlds best young players. But im sure in Italy you would hear Gilardino is and in Spain Joaquin is, but in Portugal you will only hear Ronaldo is, and apparently that is al you will hear up in Canada to!

For attacking midfielder we have Deco as opposed to Rui Costa who has officially retired from international football. Deco did not impress me much in this tournament. This is mainly because I was used to seeing him work his magic with Porto in the Champions league in which he was the competions best player. He was involved with most of Portugal’s attacks as he was with Porto and he has now moved to Barcelona. For Porto I know you have just signed Diego from Santos but I do not think he will fill Deco’s bots. I would leave Deco as our attacking midfielder for the World Cup. Hopefully Hugo will get back to what he does best at Sporting Lisbon and lets put him as Deco’s back up.

Our Forward for Euro 2004 was Pauleta. He did not score a goal, which sucks cuz I saw, a few games of his on PSG and he did amazing, but such is why you have to play the games, you never know what can happen. I say Scolari should give him the boot, and we have a royal rumble between Helder Postiga, Nuno Gomes, and Ariza Makukula.

I hope my guide to what Portugal’s team will look like in Germany helps you out a bit. I am sorry if I have given false information. Feel free to post your thoughts and correct me all you want. I am Canadian and I keep my ears open and eyes open when I read and hear things so most of this info is from uefa.com and your friendly neighbourhood bigsoccer.com