the game is next wednesday at Lansdowne Road, Dublin (17.50 GMT)

http://www.worldstadiums.com/stadium_pictures/europe/ireland/leinster/dublin_lansdowne.jpg

Ireland:
Given (Newcastle United), Kenny (Sheffield United), Murphy (Walsall — On loan from West Bromwich Albion), Finnan (Liverpool), Carr (Newcastle United), Maybury (Leicester City), O’Shea (Manchester United), Cunningham (Birmingham City), O’Brien (Newcastle United), Breen (Sunderland), Dunne (Manchester City), Doherty (Norwich City), Holland (Charlton Athletic), Roy Keane (Manchester United), Kavanagh (Cardiff City), Quinn (Sheffield United), Miller (Manchester United), Reid (Nottingham Forest), Kilbane (Everton), Duff (Chelsea), Elliott (Sunderland), McGeady (Celtic), Macken (Manchester City), Barrett (Coventry City), Lee (Cardiff City), Robbie Keane (Tottenham Hotspur), Morrison (Birmingham City).

Portugal:
Ricardo (Sporting), Quim (Benfica), Ferreira (Chelsea), Jorge Andrade (Deportivo), Caneira (Valencia), Meira (VfB Stuttgart), Rogerio Matias (Guimaraes), Costinha (Porto), Petit (Benfica), Fernandes (Benfica), Hugo Viana (Sporting), Deco (Barcelona), Tiago (Chelsea), Simao (Benfica), Ronaldo (Manchester United), Pauleta (Paris St Germain), Nuno Gomes (Benfica), Boa Morte (Fulham).

Ireland 2 - 1 Portugal


Duff
Keane



Ronaldo

Rep. Ireland 2-2 Portugal

Robbie Keane
Damien Duff

Deco
Pauleta

If Ronaldo's form follows him to this game, then Ireland will have no chance.

we are gonna field a team with many key absences specially R.Carvalho, Maniche, Miguel.

Still, I think we will be able to beat Ireland if we do our thing.

The team will most likely be:

-----------------Ricardo------------------
P.Ferreira-J.Andrade-Meira-Caneira
------------Costinha-Tiago-------------
------------------Deco--------------------
Ronaldo---------------------------Simao
-----------------Pauleta------------------

I'd rather have Petit in for Costinha but that isn't likely to happen although Costinha has been utter sh*t this season.

3 - 3
Roy Keane, John O'shea, Liam Miller, 3 X Cristiano ronaldo:D ;)

Originally posted by Virgo


I'd rather have Petit in for Costinha but that isn't likely to happen although Costinha has been utter sh*t this season.

i agree. it's time to Petit take Costinha's spot in the line up. But Costinha is one of the Scolari's sacret cows... :rolleyes:

Sheasy x3. (H)
:fluffy: :fluffy:

Originally posted by CR_manutd
3 - 3
Roy Keane, John O'shea, Liam Miller, 3 X Cristiano ronaldo:D ;)

Hahaha, that be great. (H) :lui:

no willie john kiely in the ireland 1st team squad :kader: (H)

Duff's kinda scarey, plus we have a retard between the posts... I'd be happy with a draw :S

3-2 for us...

Nuno Gomes, Ronaldo and Deco...

Just hope Scolari give some time to Manuel Fernandes, watch out for him! ;)

Irish-Portuguese games history:

16.06.46 - Portugal 3-1 Ireland - Lisbon - Friendly
04.05.47 - Ireland 0-2 Portugal - Dublin - Friendly
23.05.48 - Portugal 2-0 Ireland - Lisbon - Friendly
22.05.49 - Ireland 1-0 Portugal - Dublin - Friendly
25.06.72 - Portugal 2-1 Ireland - Recife - Minicopa 72
07.06.92 - Ireland 2-0 Portugal - Foxboro - US Cup
26.04.95 - Ireland 1-0 Portugal - Dublin - Euro96 Qual.
15.11.95 - Portugal 3-0 Ireland - Lisbon - Euro96 Qual.
29.05.96 - Ireland 0-1 Portugal - Dublin - Friendly
07.10.00 - Portugal 1-1 Ireland - Lisbon - WC2002 Qual.
02.06.01 - Ireland 1-1 Portugal - Dublin - WC2002 Qual.

Games: 11
Irish wins: 3
Portuguese wins: 6
Draws: 2

Goals: 8-15

Portugal will win

Apparently Roy Keane isn't playing now.

it is long time since 02 cup.
that year , i like ireland.they are true man.

fight with blood,die with pride.

yes Roy Keane will not play

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/headlinenews?id=324175&cc=5901

Ireland have good home records. A draw is likely to happen.

shouldnt Portugals surprise leaders Braga have a representitive, or is Luis Boa Morte that good?

2-0 Portugal

Pauleta , Deco

Ricardo Costa was added to the team...

pathetic :rolleyes:

Originally posted by Punkt
Ricardo Costa was added to the team...

pathetic :rolleyes:

Why pathetic? He was always called to the NT in the young cathegories so why not give him a chance in the A team?? I think he was added due to Costinha's injury, right?

Originally posted by Mikey
shouldnt Portugals surprise leaders Braga have a representitive, or is Luis Boa Morte that good?

Not really... Their strenght is the collective, they haven't got great players. Certainly not better than the ones who were called.

Anyway, Braga aren't leaders anymore... Benfica and Porto are. But our league is totally crazy this year, we have different leaders every round, it's really exciting, with the first 7 teams separated by only 6 points. :)

Originally posted by [dfm]
Why pathetic? He was always called to the NT in the young cathegories so why not give him a chance in the A team?? I think he was added due to Costinha's injury, right?

Ricardo Rocha deserved a lot more than Ricardo Costa... even Pedro Emanuel deserved more than him.

Originally posted by Punkt
Ricardo Costa was added to the team...

pathetic :rolleyes:

Why is that pathetic? He's young, plays regularly for a top european club, has been playing consistently this season, was a leader in the U21 NT squad... How many players do we have that match that profile?

Originally posted by INFESTA
Why is that pathetic? He's young, plays regularly for a top european club, has been playing consistently this season, was a leader in the U21 NT squad... How many players do we have that match that profile?

Well, it isn't pathetic, Scolari has every right to call whoever he wants. But I do think that Ricardo Costa is just an average player: only decent as a CB and pretty weak as a LB...

it looks like Scolari don't call and will never call any player outside the NT's squads. all new players he call are always U21's. it appears that he don't see other players that deserve a call, just because he didn't know them he never call them. only in the beginning the called 2 or 3 "new" players (and they sucked)

so players like Rocha, Nuno Assis, Pedro Emanuel, Litos, Pedro Mendes know that will be very difficult be called. and that is pure lazyness of Scolari to study the portuguese football IMO. he was a list of players that he always call (3 or 4 depending on current form and the rest sacret cows) and the U21 that works like a B team and thats it! this is what is pathetic.

Costinha's injury should of meant Pedro Mendes would be called up.

Ricardo Costa ia a very good Center Defender, Rocha had his chance and blue it, albiet he's very good defender.

I'm happy for Costa, he's been our best defender all season and had a strong game against Estoril, won all the Headers

to get back on topic :p
1-0 to Ireland, goal by O shea
:rockman:

hah Ricardo Costa is one of the worse defenders playing for one big three in Portugal in my opinion.

Can't believe he's getting picked ahead of Ricardo Rocha and Pedro Emanuel if Scolari wanted to call another centre back.

This means Scolari intends to use Meira in the midfield if there are no other options... this is VERY bad news.

now Scolari only needs to call Bruno Alves and Frechaut and recall Jorge Ribeiro and we can have the MAJOR KICKASS defence we had in the olympics who couldn't stop iraqis.

Like i said Virgo Pedro Mendes, or even Luis loureiro should have been called instead

Originally posted by Punkt
it looks like Scolari don't call and will never call any player outside the NT's squads. all new players he call are always U21's. it appears that he don't see other players that deserve a call, just because he didn't know them he never call them. only in the beginning the called 2 or 3 "new" players (and they sucked)

so players like Rocha, Nuno Assis, Pedro Emanuel, Litos, Pedro Mendes know that will be very difficult be called. and that is pure lazyness of Scolari to study the portuguese football IMO. he was a list of players that he always call (3 or 4 depending on current form and the rest sacret cows) and the U21 that works like a B team and thats it! this is what is pathetic.

yeps, that' why he called Ricardo Carvalho so late... I bet if Porto had lost to Man Utd he'd never have been called up.

Scolari may be a great tournament coach but the rest of the time he seems to be on vacation.

one more thing, Ricardo Costa has played well and his call-up i feel is somewhat deserved, but after the Game Agaisnt Sporting Tonel should have been called-up. i totally forgot this guy, he did what the so-called best CB in Portugal....cough...Luisao.....caugh.....couldn't do which was completely erase Liedson from the game. what an Awesome defender. We should have never traded him for Pepe.

Originally posted by Virgo
hah Ricardo Costa is one of the worse defenders playing for one big three in Portugal in my opinion.

Can't believe he's getting picked ahead of Ricardo Rocha and Pedro Emanuel if Scolari wanted to call another centre back.

This means Scolari intends to use Meira in the midfield if there are no other options... this is VERY bad news.

now Scolari only needs to call Bruno Alves and Frechaut and recall Jorge Ribeiro and we can have the MAJOR KICKASS defence we had in the olympics who couldn't stop iraqis.

Well, I don't disagree with you: Ricardo Costa gets on my nerves frequently. He isn't the best CB out there, but there aren't many good options apart from the usual suspects. Of the rest, Costa has the age factor ahead of his team mate P. Emanuel. About R. Rocha, I'd expect him to be called up for at least one of the 2 next NT games.

Hey, are we forgetting that Beto was called up recently too? How bad is he?

well yeah at least Ricardo Costa despite not being the most talented player actually tries hard. Beto is one of the laziest players out there.

I think one of the key factors here was that Scolari had to call a Porto player, because he might have started another war unnecessarily if he didn't with Costinha's injury. If it was actually this P. Emanuel deserved a call. He did his job very well last season, even in the CL when J. Costa was injured. He is a very safe CB.

P.Emanuel albeit he is a good CB, sometimes i just feel he won't finish the game, and i don't really like that

the kits that we will use tomorrow:

http://www.abola.pt/wter/wfotosdia/pag04.jpg

The B&W kits look great, and it's all for a good cause, but am I the only one having issues when a major sportswear company that exploits youth labour in 3rd world countries is the one raising the flag of anti-racism? Doesn't that sound a bit hypocritical?

U21 game:

Portugal 2-0 Ireland

both goals from Hugo Almeida

Originally posted by INFESTA
The B&W kits look great, and it's all for a good cause, but am I the only one having issues when a major sportswear company that exploits youth labour in 3rd world countries is the one raising the flag of anti-racism? Doesn't that sound a bit hypocritical?

(Y)

good post Infesta, completely agree

Yeah, you're totally right, Infesta. The world is full of those campaigns by big companies, that unfortunately most of the times aren't more than "marketing" exercices.

-------------------------------------------

Scolari has announced Portugal's starting eleven for tomorrow:

GK - Ricardo
RB - Paulo Ferreira
CB - Jorge Andrade
CB - Caneira
LB - Rogério Matias
DM - Petit
DM - Tiago
AM - Deco
RW - Cristiano Ronaldo
LW - Simão
ST - Pauleta

So, no surprises here.

Originally posted by INFESTA
The B&W kits look great, and it's all for a good cause, but am I the only one having issues when a major sportswear company that exploits youth labour in 3rd world countries is the one raising the flag of anti-racism? Doesn't that sound a bit hypocritical?

You're damn right, it seems very very hypocritical from Nike...

Originally posted by Nakamura

Scolari has announced Portugal's starting eleven for tomorrow:

GK - Ricardo
RB - Paulo Ferreira
CB - Jorge Andrade
CB - Caneira
LB - Rogério Matias
DM - Petit
DM - Tiago
AM - Deco
RW - Cristiano Ronaldo
LW - Simão
ST - Pauleta

So, no surprises here.

Yeah, according to the players that were available i don't see better options... :rolleyes:

anyone want to predict a Ricardo blunder? :D

predict only one. are you crazy Shinji?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

Everyshot ireland has has potential to be a blunder by Ricardo.

:p does that need prediction?

lol, kiddn

c'mon guys, show a little confidence on the man

why?he has shown us anything to deserve confidence from us.....and don't give me that "oh he scored the Pk...blah, blah, blah,etc.., etc,...

maybe our defence will not let the irish shot. it's our only hope :p

lol can believe i missed this thread:rolleyes: ,anyway i think it'll be a good game,listening to scolari today he was rather praiseful of us,i like him,big phil,i noticed he never mentioned duff which was interesting,maybe he doesnt know about him although ferreira,tiago and ronnie do,duff will roam the pitch, plays better for us than chlesea,with reid out right,i expect a tough battle in midfield,hopefully deco and ronaldo wont start diving:rolleyes: :f***: .

ireland are always very competitve,we dont do friendlys lol,shame keano isnt playing,his performance in the wc qualifiers at landsdowne was one of his best performances ever.im very happy pauleta is playing,he is SO bad,couldnt hit a barn door in the euros,journalists over here were making fun of him,haha.must be decent though if he is always in the squad.anyway i hope for a win but probably a draw,lets hope for a good game,shame i wont see it as sky are coveribg it and i dont have sky,anywhere on the net i could watch it?

pissed o'shea is markin ronnie,he wont handle him,carr woulda been better as he is lightning fast but hes bloody injured as always

Ricardo saved a PK with his bare hands :rolleyes:

Ireland are the sort of team that can upset almost any team. They have the lcuk of the Irish so I wouldn't be surprised if they win. I hope Ronaldo gets only like 45 minutes of playing time and come out unscathed.

Ireland are a very good team, extremely hard-working and with some class players. I've always liked them! I still rember the many games we've had against them, mainly when we were in the same group for the Euro 96 qualifier and the 2002 WC. Irish fans were always awesome, very nice and with huge fair-play. So, it's always cool to play against Ireland (I'm sure every Portuguese agrees). Besides, it will also be a very useful preparation for our almost decisive match against Slovakia next month.

I'm predicting a draw today, probably 1-1.

About Pauleta: yeah, he was awful at Euro 2004 and he's in a bad form ATM, but no one can deny he's clearly our best striker of the last decade. It's for no reason he's our 2nd best goalscorer ever, with 36 goals, and only 5 behind Eusébio. Besides, he's also scored in every single of our last 5 games.

Originally posted by Nakamura
Ireland are a very good team, extremely hard-working and with some class players. I've always liked them! I still rember the many games we've had against them, mainly when we were in the same group for the Euro 96 qualifier and the 2002 WC. Irish fans were always awesome, very nice and with huge fair-play. So, it's always cool to play against Ireland (I'm sure every Portuguese agrees).

that put a smile on my face,yeah we are good fans lol,i think tonight will be tough for us but i thought that about croatia,brazil, and the czechs and we beat croatia,the czechs and drew with brazil.you guys probably dont know much about our manager brian kerr but he really is great,his preparation is incredible,i've met him a few times as he used to coach irelands underage squads and he won lots,european cup,bronze medal in the world youth cup and runners up in another european championship

he brought duff,reid,robbie keane,miller.o'shea etc up through his youth squad,the only thing i dont like about him is hes not adventurous enough and is quite defensive at times

Hey Jimbo, good luck. You're going to need it. ;)








j/k man. It's a shame I can't watch the game live. It's going to be a good match.


If anyone finds a video link later, please post it.

yeah we'll see whos crackin jokes at full-time,i'll post once the game is over,go on the DUFFER;)

Cristianoooooooo Roooooonaldoooooo!!!!!!!!!

Originally posted by jimbo118
im very happy pauleta is playing,he is SO bad,couldnt hit a barn door in the euros,journalists over here were making fun of him,haha.must be decent though if he is always in the squad.

Ricardo is always in the squad too.
BAM, there goes your logic right there! :jacko: :bob: :ewan:

But yeah, we got a very nice image of you people. I personally have always sympathized with the Irish NT... Robbie Keane's goal celebrations also help in that matter. :)

Originally posted by INFESTA
Ricardo is always in the squad too.
BAM, there goes your logic right there! :jacko: :bob: :ewan:

But yeah, we got a very nice image of you people. I personally have always sympathized with the Irish NT... Robbie Keane's goal celebrations also help in that matter. :)

yes there goes my logic:rolleyes: what a ignorant dope and your a mod lol

i hope SIMÃO unfolds one of those famous 30 meters strikes... looks like he's becoming an expert in those... (H)

Rogério Matias? Who's that? :confused:

Repulic of Ireland 2-0 Damien duff and Robbie keane (H)

Originally posted by Luis Ah-Hoy
i hope SIMÃO unfolds one of those famous 30 meters strikes... looks like he's becoming an expert in those... (H)

Rogério Matias? Who's that? :confused:

Someone.... who.... well... you don't want to know... Can't be worse than Beto, though.

Originally posted by jimbo118
yes there goes my logic:rolleyes: what a ignorant dope and your a mod lol

I got a feeling you set off my 'You don't get irony, do you?' alarm... Not a reason for us to be upset, though.

Originally posted by INFESTA
I got a feeling you set off my 'You don't get irony, do you?' alarm... Not a reason for us to be upset, though.

tbh i dont know much about ricardo so no need to have a go at me over that,also 'you people' thats a disgraceful use of language

Originally posted by jimbo118
also 'you people' thats a disgraceful use of language

Originally posted by jimbo118
what a ignorant dope and your a mod lol

:jambo:

Originally posted by INFESTA
:jambo:

ok fair enough that was uncalled 4 but so was yours

Any audio or video links to the game people?

Originally posted by Nuno79
Any audio or video links to the game people?

yeah i need 1,i know its been covered on radio but a visual 1 would be great

man, jimbo, i was coming here to compliment the irish people (i've been in Ireland severall times and I have friends there) and now I to mention what an idiot u just were...

anyway

Portugal to win 3-1

Pauleta scores 2, beats Torres' national record and stands 3 goals away from Eusebio. The other one... Ronaldo

O'Shea continues his hot goal streak and scores a header, assist by Rogerio Matias

Originally posted by Funky--K
man, jimbo, i was coming here to compliment the irish people (i've been in Ireland severall times and I have friends there) and now I to mention what an idiot u just were...

anyway

Portugal to win 3-1

Pauleta scores 2, beats Torres' national record and stands 3 goals away from Eusebio. The other one... Ronaldo

O'Shea continues his hot goal streak and scores a header, assist by Rogerio Matias

for what?i never said anything about u

nuno make me understand

Originally posted by jimbo118
ok fair enough that was uncalled 4 but so was yours

Really? I was being ironic, not at you, actually, but towards our NT manager, Scolari, for calling Ricardo. You misunderstood and thought I was being offensive.

I endured it a bit because there's nothing like a good, healthy confrontation before the match, just to raise the stakes. Hey, if we do win tonight, and let us be reminded this is just a friendly, I now have an extra reason to come back here.

Well, the game has just started, so enough with the BS, I'm off to see the game.

Originally posted by INFESTA
Really? I was being ironic, not at you, actually, but towards our NT manager, Scolari, for calling Ricardo. You misunderstood and thought I was being offensive.

I endured it a bit because there's nothing like a good, healthy confrontation before the match, just to raise the stakes. Hey, if we do win tonight, and let us be reminded this is just a friendly, I now have an extra reason to come back here.

Well, the game has just started, so enough with the BS, I'm off to see the game.

ok i TOTALLY misunderstood you, sorry and sorry funky for ruining your opinion of irish people,forgive me so i'll be in a good mood for the match;)

Some post what's happening. I can't find any text or audio that works for me.

im listening to it on the radio,nearly a goal for portugal,nuno if you go to rte.ie you might be able to get a link to the radio section and listen

The firewall at my job won't let it work.

goal ireland.....we started off good...:rolleyes:...damn


















:ewan:

What happened?

Anybody have a halftime update??.......Please..

Originally posted by Nuno79
Anybody have a halftime update??.......Please..

62nd minute... still 1-0 Ireland.

we are playing like ****

Matias... :|

Ronaldo for MANUEL FERNANDES (H)

Matias OMG :kader:

I see we're a bit rusty. Well we are missing key players.

man, Rogerio Matias is an absolute CRAP!!! Almost scored an own goal... hit the post... he can't even do that right

who da hell told this guy he could play professional football?

....anyway... we're sucking... nothing comes out right...

1-0 full time

Terrible game...

FT 1-0. Congrats Ireland.


We're lucky that this is only a friendly.

Things should be better once Scolari has had some time to get us organized again.

one shot at portuguese goal, one goal, as expected (H)

Did any of our players play good at all?

just finished watchin the england game on bbc,their report on the ireland game said that our win was 'thoroughly deserved' and that duff was fantastic and that we 'bossed' the game,supposedly your man matias hit his own post lol funky you were right,anyway the delayed full match is on at 10 so i'll watch that,englands game was crap

Who the hell, who the hell, who the hell is C. Ronaldo? Surely not the real Ronaldo (H)

Good going the Irish (Y) without that moaning :f***: Roy Keane as well.

dunno why we play international friendlies. The players clearly don't give a toss about them, and at least we wouldn't lose unnecessary prestige by getting owned by 2nd rate teams.

Watch out Portugal, Canada's next. :hit:



























:crazyboy:

Originally posted by rhizome17
Who the hell, who the hell, who the hell is C. Ronaldo? Surely not the real Ronaldo (H)

Good going the Irish (Y) without that moaning :f***: Roy Keane as well.

I hope he scores on you this weekend. Then you'll know him better.

Originally posted by Nuno79
I hope he scores on you this weekend. Then you'll know him better.

No chance. He will be shackled by the great force that is...






































Ben Thatcher (H)

I'm sure Ronaldo's trembling in his boots.

Trembling... so THATS what he is doing when he is playing with himself on the touchline :kader: (H)

If I were Ronaldo I would be, the guy can't even get past the Irish defence. (H)

Case Closed (H)

You won't be laughing this weekend.

congrats to Ireland. The result was more or less expected..


I really wonder if Scolari had ever even seen Matias play before he called him up, or if he was just going on recommendations from his assistants? There are at least 3-4 defenders who could have gone instead and played a lot better.

Originally posted by Nuno79
You won't be laughing this weekend.

I beg to differ, I don't really care whether he scores or not, I just think its funny to see him desperatly try and climb out of a mediocre defenders pocket

ronaldo was crap today... as the whole team.

Terrible game...Portugal was so baaaad :-(

But the players don't want to get injured...I hate friendly games! :rolleyes:

@ the end we played with so many defensive Players....:confused:

ADC

Milhazes to the NT (H)

kiddin!!!

im not worried, nuno valente is recovering fast

Damien Duff is a class !
I do expect Ireland could win in this match & they did.

up the EIRE !

(H)

Who is Rogerio Matias?
Why hasn't Bruno Basto been called up yet?

I thought this could be a great match, 2 good sides that play good football, but instead of that we got a crappy game. :S
Portugal shouldn't play friendlies...
Duff is in a terrific form, what a player! Deserved win for Ireland.

(Greece won against Denmark :f***: )

yeah i agree with whoever said some of the portugese players werent really up for it particurly deco who looked like he was freezin to death,typical friendly tbh.felt sorry for matias,he was never given any help except from petit against duff and even then it didnt help,we coulda scored more if andy reid had a right foot,he was through on goal a few times but he doesnt have a decent right foot so fluffed his chances,lol at duff and ronaldo squaring up,bet mourinho in the crowd loved that,supposedly he was there to see fernandes or someone like that,once again a team came to play us with the usual cliches,'we expect a physical game blah blah',we are a bit more than that these days,14 in the world too,nice to see mcgeady get a run out,looked like a decent winger for the future

In fact, there were some positive performances from some portuguese players:

Simão - best portuguese player in the game... he played very well and owned his markers a few times... one of his low crosses to the penalty area should have been rewarded with a goal...

Manuel Fernandes, nice debut. He played so confortably, it looked like he was playing in a SuperLiga game... Hugo Viana, nice touches and that shot, wow... it fouled everybody :D

Luis Boa-Morte could make his mark as a striker... nice touches from him too, and a shot with some intentionality... Jorge Andrade - reliable center-back... consistent performance from him...

And nothing more to add...

and Simão played on the right. he is much better in the left wing where he uses his best weapon, the speed and that diagonals to shot.

Originally posted by Virgo
dunno why we play international friendlies. The players clearly don't give a toss about them

That sums it all up for us.

A few thoughts:

* I thought Simão was one of the few that actually tried, although he was clearly less than his own Superliga 'persona' (as usual, btw...).

*Boamorte and Matias shouldn't be called back ever. Dear lord. I honestly felt sorry for Rogério Matias. I could see in his face how much he wanted the game to end.

* Funny nobody mentioned Ricardo Costa after the heat he got from most people on this board... I though he was solid enough to deserve another call.

* I wish Manuel Fernandes had more minutes to play yesterday. He was good as usual but needed more time to put his game on the field.

* Deco was the laziest of the lot, followed closely by... err... everybody else.

* Congrats to Ireland (including jimbo118) for their attitude throughout the game. Fully deserved win, with a talented Duff tormenting our slow midfield and defense. However, his tackle on Ronaldo near the end of the match was uncalled for, which makes him a bit of a moron in my view. That's a shame bcs he should also be a good sport.

Originally posted by INFESTA
That sums it all up for us.

A few thoughts:

* I thought Simão was one of the few that actually tried, although he was clearly less than his own Superliga 'persona' (as usual, btw...).

*Boamorte and Matias shouldn't be called back ever. Dear lord. I honestly felt sorry for Rogério Matias. I could see in his face how much he wanted the game to end.

* Funny nobody mentioned Ricardo Costa after the heat he got from most people on this board... I though he was solid enough to deserve another call.

* I wish Manuel Fernandes had more minutes to play yesterday. He was good as usual but needed more time to put his game on the field.

* Deco was the laziest of the lot, followed closely by... err... everybody else.

* Congrats to Ireland (including jimbo118) for their attitude throughout the game. Fully deserved win, with a talented Duff tormenting our slow midfield and defense. However, his tackle on Ronaldo near the end of the match was uncalled for, which makes him a bit of a moron in my view. That's a shame bcs he should also be a good sport.

lol thx,i actually thought the challenge on ronaldo was pretty funny he was almost crying but im a man utd fan so dont want to see him injured dunno why duff went after him so much,maybe hes taken a leaf out of keanos book,yeah i agree about deco,the weather was miserable so i dont blame him,viana looked alright,nice to see him and given have a joke after the game,did you guys get the portugese players comments after the game as i only heard the irish teams comments.

anyway our run keeps going,havent been beatin at home in ages,bring on israel

Originally posted by INFESTA
That sums it all up for us.

*Boamorte and Matias shouldn't be called back ever. Dear lord. I honestly felt sorry for Rogério Matias. I could see in his face how much he wanted the game to end.

* Funny nobody mentioned Ricardo Costa after the heat he got from most people on this board... I though he was solid enough to deserve another call.

Why Boa-Morte shouldn't be called ever? :confused:
did u see something wrong with him in that game? Well, i didn't.... actually i thought he played well, and was striving to create something for the team, ever since he came on...

As for Ricardo Costa... sorry, but he didn't play long enough for one to take any conclusions of him. Even Deco played well some periods of the game.... but generally he sucked... so..... maybe that's the reason why he wasn't mentioned....

true, i don't see what was wrong with Boa Morte...:confused:

i really think Boa-Morte would be useful as a Striker, for the Portuguese NT..... :)

he generally under-performs, when he playing LWM for the NT, but in the only game Scholari change his position to ST, he performed well... plus, he's an agressive player, unlike Pauleta and certainly..... Nuno Gomes.... :rolleyes:

I hope Duff disclocates his shoulder again. Ronaldo is now a major doubt for the Manchester derby on Sunday.

I think BM is an okay player for a certain type of football, but one that our NT has never and will never use!
From the top of my head I remember 2 occasions from wednesday's game where a decent player would have created a dangerous play but BM simply wasted them with some poor ball control.

Don't we have better players to fill up his spot? If we want wingers, that's probably what Portugal produces in more quantity and quality. I hope nobody believes BM is better than Simão, Cronaldo or Quaresma...

Originally posted by INFESTA
I think BM is an okay player for a certain type of football, but one that our NT has never and will never use!
From the top of my head I remember 2 occasions from wednesday's game where a decent player would have created a dangerous play but BM simply wasted them with some poor ball control.

Don't we have better players to fill up his spot? If we want wingers, that's probably what Portugal produces in more quantity and quality. I hope nobody believes BM is better than Simão, Cronaldo or Quaresma...

I'm a fan of Boa Morte myself, but you said something that I think is very true, and that's that he's the type of player for a certain type of football. I've come to the same realization over time that he seems to be more at home in a scrappy, less technical type of game....probably why his biggest success has been in Enlish Div. 1 footy..

Portugal's game revolves around ball control. Pauleta, Nuno Gomes are both forwards that can protect and distribute the ball. Boa Marte cannot protect, dribble or distribute the ball as well as those two can. I don't think he's a bad player, just not seleccao material.

Originally posted by INFESTA
I think BM is an okay player for a certain type of football, but one that our NT has never and will never use!
From the top of my head I remember 2 occasions from wednesday's game where a decent player would have created a dangerous play but BM simply wasted them with some poor ball control.

Don't we have better players to fill up his spot? If we want wingers, that's probably what Portugal produces in more quantity and quality. I hope nobody believes BM is better than Simão, Cronaldo or Quaresma...

If you guys are talking about previous performances from him, for the NT side, then i agree... he sucked !!! But try to understand my point.... in this particular game, against Ireland, he didn't play as a Winger.... Scholari introduced him as a Striker (he even shout to Petit, to remember him and the rest of the team that Portugal were playing with 2 strikers at that moment)...

And i insist that he played decently that game, even though he played just for a few minutes.... but he didn't do anything wrong during that time, and the ball was often at his possession... so guys, i think you're critisicing him unfairly....


Oh my.... 400th post.... :rockman: :) (H)