Germany triumphed over Portugal 3–2 in the first Euro 2008 Championship quarter-final match.
Portugal won it's first two matches, and fielded a team of substitutes for its final round match. Thus, its starters are well rested and ready.
Germany won most of its matches convincingly but not spectacularly. The team seemed not to be playing at full capacity in its qualifying matches.
The German team averages several inches taller than the Portuguese squad. While this could grant an advantage in aerial play, it might have meant that the Germans would be slower on the ground.
German Head Coach Joachim Löw had to watch the game from the stands, as he was suspended for a game due to "constant bickering" with the Austrian head coach during their match.
There was some concern about the quality of the pitch. The entire surface had to be torn up and resodded after the last match, as rain and running had torn up huge chunks of turf. However, the pitch held up well throughout the match.
The game started slowly. The first ten minutes saw a back-and-forth battle in the middle two-thirds of the field, with only the occasional long range shot anywhere near the nets.
At the 18-minute mark Portuguese forward Nuno Gomes almost sent forward Cristiano Ronaldo in for a point-blank breakaway
Then at 20 minutes, Portuguese defender Bosingwa sent a perfect pass across the mouth of the German net, but Deco, seemingly caught off guard by the excellent chance, kneed the ball over the crossbar.
The halfway through the twenty-first minute, Germany's Podolski broke down the left side, eluded two defenders, and sent a ball across the middle to streaking forward Bastian Schweinsteiger, who had the whole net to shoot at. Schweinsteiger blasted the ball past the right leg of Portuguese keeper Ricardo, putting Germany up 1–nil.
Five minutes later, Germany scored again on a free kick, as the Portuguese defense fell apart. Three German attackers broke free and flooded the Portuguese crease. Forward Miroslav Klose got a head on Schweinsteiger's incoming free kick, deflecting it off the hands of the Portuguese keeper and into the net.
At this point, halfway through the first half, it seemed that Germany was finally showing the type of play everyone had expected from them.
Portugal didn't seem fazed, though; they played patient ball-control soccer, trying to set up scoring opportunities. However, they were unable to close the deal. Deco missed an easy header on one play, and Ronaldo opted to make one more pass when he had a clear, close-range shot, allowing the German defender to clear the ball over the net.
The German height advantage was made evident on a Portuguese corner kick at the 36-minute mark. German keeper Jens Lehmann was able to leap up and snatch the ball down before a Portuguese attacker had a chance at it.
Portugal continued to play solid football, and at the 40-minute mark it paid off. The Portguese defenders took the ball away form the Germans, sending Simão ahead with a long pass. Simão sent it ahead to Ronaldo charging down the left side.
Ronaldo got by German defender Philipp Lahm, and fired a low shot at German keeper Lehmann. Lehmann deflected the ball off his left leg but the rebound rolled right onto the foot of Gomes, who threaded a shot between Lehmann's oustretched leg and the foot of another German defender.
Germany started first and faster in this match, but after the second German goal, Portugal seemed to catch fire, pressing the Germans right up to the halftime whistle.
Hard-fought Second Half
The first fifteen minutes of the second half =were a replay of the start of the first half, amplified. The play was still a constant struggle for possession with few scoring chances, but both teams were playing with evident urgency. The German squad had evidently found the focus it had been lacking in the Championship, and Portugal was playing with the all energy it had shown at the end of the first half.
Portugal missed an excellent scoring opportunity when Pepe missed a point-blank header off a Simão corner kick in the fifty-seventh minute.
Just as in the first half, Germany broke the deadlock as German captain Michael Ballack was left undefended on a free kick and drove a header past the Portuguese keeper, putting Germany up by two.
Portugal played fine defense except on set pieces—free kicks and corner kicks—when they seemed unable to keep track of who was supposed to cover whom.
After Germany's third goal, Portugal's energy seemed to turn to desperation; The Portuguese players seemed to be rushing the offense, trying more personal efforts and fewer passes. When more measured play might have got them a goal, the Portuguese seemed too eager to shoot, often from too far out or from bad position. German keeper Lehmann made several easy saves, and watched several balls float harmlessly past the net.
With five minutes left in regulation play, Portuguese forward Hélder Postiga collided with Lehmann while trying to chase down a short lead pass. Lehmann caught the ball, and also caught a blow to the thigh.
After play resumed, Postiga came back to get the shot right. Postige squeezed between two German defenders and picked off a perfect cross from Nani, and headed the ball just over Lehmann's fingertips and under the crossbar, putting Portugal right back into the game.
In the last few minutes Portugal swarmed all around the German goal, and Germany swarmad all over the Portuguese attackers. Portugal sent a few beautiful balls across the crease, but the German defenders were packed to thick to penetrate.
Then in the final seconds of the game, German forward Podalski took the ball on a long a run up the left side; he dodged and maneuvered, broke free, and drove a shot right at the Portuguese keeper. There was no time left for the to even send the ball back downfield.
Germany finally looked like a championship team, and while Portugal played well, Germany made fewer mistakes and capitlaized on its opportunities, and earned a spot in the semi-finals.
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