The End of the Road.

Written by Angela Asante

Germany have qualified for the semi-finals of the Euro 2008 on a 3 - 2 score line at the expense of Portugal who are out.

Germany’s 4-2-3-1 plan stunned coach Scolari and the rest of the Portuguese team: with less than half an hour gone down the clock, they had inflicted pressure and anxiety on the 2004 runners up.

L. Podolski made a great run at the left hand side of the pitch and finished his work by making a good cross in the penalty area. The ball found B. Schweinsteiger who tapped it into the net to give his side a 22nd minute lead.

Sadly, things got worse for Portugal who went down 2 - 0 in a space of 5 minutes.

Germany’s number 7 shirt Schweinsteiger was involved in the build up of his side’s second goal as his ball - out of his free-kick - reached Klose who headed it into the net. The goal seemed to be apparently offside but no one can change what a referee has or hasn’t decided…

So it was time for Portugal to organise a “red revolution”:

Captain Nuno Gomes’s strike in the 40th minute reduced Portugal’s deficit at half time.

Joachim Low’s ban from the touch line and Schweinsteiger’s first appearance in the squad since his red card was believed to distract the Germans but they proved everyone wrong by looking stronger than they ever did in the tournament.

Portugal pressed on the best they could in search of an equalizer in the second period but instead of being paid back for their resilience, it was Germany who responded to this alert:

Schweinsteiger again took a free-kick which captain Ballack converted with a great header. The Portuguese felt the goal shouldn’t have counted as they thought Ballack made too much pushing but a referee never changes his decision and Portugal were 3 - 1 down at that stage.

Nuno Gomes went off minutes later which gave Ronaldo the opportunity of wearing the armband.

Portugal did not stop their fight; H. Postigha flashed in a header at the 87th minute to enlighten Portugal’s hopes of forcing the game into extra-time.

But the Germans hanged on well to their lead and the Portuguese weren’t as fortunate as Turkey who scored twice in three minutes to record an amazing 3 - 2 win over the Czechs.

When the referee’s blow was up, Portuguese fans understood that their side’s two goals were not enough to ensure a comeback.

Too little, too late!

Hard luck for Scolari’s men: they must endure the fate of going home.

They are out of the tournament for good!

What’s next?

Concerning Luis Felipe Scolari, the question of distraction will once again be raised by the Portuguese media.

Big Phil has never managed a win for his squad since being appointed as Chelsea coach.

And if he has been able to lead Brazil to World Cup glory, his last match in charge of Portugal confirms that he has failed to give Portugal any Championship trophy.

Shouldn’t he have backed up Ronaldo to be his team’s only rock and true captain?

Did the coach really believed in a possible triumph when 60 minutes of the game were over?

No one knows what the truth in realty is. However, much will be said about what is the cause of Portugal’s exit and what should have been done to keep this team in the tournament.

Ronaldo is still the Best.

Every good and intelligent squad would think of composing an effective plan to contain Cristiano Ronaldo for 90 minutes.

Well done for Germany but Portuguese fans might blame the coach saying that he should have surprised the Germans by changing Ronaldo’s position.

Anyway, the Euro 2008 tournament is over for this young man.

In senior national team football, Cristiano Ronaldo has never been able to clinch a cup which would have been Portugal’s first ever trophy in the country’s entire football history.

But in club football, the Portuguese superstar can be proud of a multitude of personal awards including a medal of Champions League glory and two EPL medals amongst others like the Community Shield medal he owns.

So will he keep on growing his might in England or will he leave to start a new track in Spain?

In two or three days, the king of English Premiership soccer will come up with the answer. If England is his choice, then how thrilling it will be to see him come up against former Portuguese boss Scolari every time Chelsea will meet Manchester United.

Angela Asante
Euro2008TV Writer.

Tags: euro 2008, Germany, Portugal, quarter final