The major concern with Portugal is not personnel but energy. 120 gruelling minutes in the hot German heat, followed by the emotion of penalties will undoubtedly have taken its toll on Luiz Felipe Scolari's men.
This is coupled with the touch-paper incident that was Wayne Rooney's sending off and the treatment they received at the hands of partisan England fans and it may all be too much for the Iberians.
The good news for Scolari is that midfield playmaker Deco and defensive rock Francisco Costinha will both return from suspension.
Portugal are a different proposition with Deco in the side as without him they looked quite ordinary. A versitile midfielder, they missed his ability to stamp his authority in the middle of the park. This allowed Lampard and Gerrard to enjoy greater freedom in the centre of the pitch last Saturday and it was this that was behind Eriksson's tactic of trying to play every attack through the middle.
England were dominating the game before Rooney's sending off and you feel that had Deco been playing some of England's approach work would have been snuffed out.
At the other end of the pitch Portugal missed the mastery of the Brazilian born player as they failed to trouble Paul Robinson for much of the game. Not a prolific goalscorer (only three in thirty-seven) he has played a more attacking role in this world cup and this has led him to net one goal, against Iran in the Group stages.
It must be remembered however that Deco has been used sparingly in this competition, only playing about half of Portugal's matches before his suspension. Their strength in depth has been able to cover for this, suggesting that Scolari has numerous tactical options and approaches each game differently.
It is likely that Scolari will go for his first-choice 4-5-1 formation, playing both Deco and Costinha in the midfield. Deco will be expected to pick up balls from the defence and pass them forward to Pauleta, ably supported by Chelsea's Maniche Ribiero on the left and Dynamo Moscow's Francisco Costinha on the right.
The return from suspension of Costinha is a major philip for the Portuguese too. He too has only played half of Portugal's games but his experience will help Portugal. He was a member of the squad that played in the Euro 2004 Final and with forty-seven caps to his name, the big occasion will certainly not phase him.
He is a more defensive midfielder, albeit one that operates on the right wing. His role will be to provide the balls for the strikers, particularly the impressive Pauleta. He should work in tandom with Cristiano Ronaldo down that right side and his job will be to snuff out the French attacks and allow Ronaldo to let his skill do the talking.
Against France however there is talk that Costinha will be asked to mark Zinedine Zidane. The veteran French playmaker was in a rampant mood against Brazil and was rightly considered the Man of the Match. Nearly all of France's creative play came through him and Brazil's inability to nullify him cost them dear. Another legend on a swansong he will be determined to retire from football on a high and Portugal must pacify him if they want to win this match.
Scolari has learnt from this and is expected to guard against it with his role for Costinha. It is a big ask as Costinha has just returned from suspension but he has the experience to cope with the Frenchman. Costinha has also played his club football in France and this knowledge will be vital if his side are to secure a win here.
Expect Valencia's right-back Luis Miguel to assume his old position of winger for this game, getting forward more often. This will allow Costinha to deal with Zidane in the middle of the pitch whilst also allowing Portugal to retain their attacking dimension. As only one of three Portugal players to play against the French six years ago, he has the experience to deal with the midfield playmaker as well as the knowledge to calculate how best to nullify his opponent.
With Chelsea's Ricardo Carvalho and Stuttgart's Fernando Meira providing the rocks in the heart of the defence, Miguel should have licence to do this without significantly weakening the Portuguese backline. As long as Vieria can be watched then this policy may work to the great advantage of the Portuguese.
Cristiano Ronaldo is a doubt for this game although whether that has more to do with the controversy surrounding him than for any injury is difficult to tell. Scolari however called Eriksson's bluff on Friday in stating that the Manchester United frontman was unlikely to play. This time Scolari believes he will but he may be playing mindgames with the French.
Luis Figo is also likely to be out and is considered more of a doubt than Ronaldo. A veteran on the World Stage now, the thirty-three year old will be determined to play if he can, knowing that, like Zidane, this is his swansong. Despite what Scolari says, he is more than likely to appear at some point during the match.
One player who definitely won't appear is Benfica's Armando Petit. The tough holding midfielder is suspended after picking up his second successive booking in the game against England. Portugal will miss his strength and gile in the heart of the midfield and will rely on Costinha and Maniche to add the grit necessary to win the ball. If the former can thwart Zidane's moves then Petit's absence should not be too badly missed however if Costinha fails then it could be a very difficult tie for Portugal. In many ways this tie is down to the performance of the Dynamo Moscow midfielder.
Petit will also be missed for his powerful assist play so expect Maniche to play a more versatile role than is normally requested of him.
FRANCE v PORTUGAL INDEX INCULDING THE OTHER PARTS OF THIS PREVIEW
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PORTUGAL v FRANCE - ANOTHER CLASSIC NO-LOSE BET
For yesterday's Germany v Italy arbitrage preview, we guaranteed you a withdrawable cash profit, whatever the outcome of the match and it worked like a dream.
The maximum profit was realised with the draw at ninety minutes and the intention was to repeat the formula today, however, the bet was so good that one of the bookies got on our case and asked us to pull it or they would stop doing business with us.
We take a very dim view of that action and in no way will it stop us doing arbitrage as this site was set up to advise our readers how to profit from the bookies. If they don't like it, they are in the wrong business.
So here's our France v Portugal arbitrage preview and it's a little bit different as we only need to back two possible outcomes to guarantee a withdrawable cash profit, whatever the outcome of the match.
The whole system hinges on the bonuses that you get from our two chosen bookies so you can't do this if you already have an account at either firm. If that is the case, let us know and we'll try to find you an alternative bookie.
Here we go then. Follow these simple instructions for a guaranteed cash profit on France v Portugal.
1. Open Your New Accounts
Open an account with
Open an account with Extrabet
You have temporarily laid out a total of £137. I stress temporarily...
2. Place Your Bets
Back Portugal to qualify at 11/4 with £37 with
Make sure you back them to qualify and not to win in ninety minutes. Portugal v France is on the front page of the site. On the right there is a button called 'More Bets'. Hover over it and a pop up will appear. The first link is the one we want, 'to qualify'.
Back France @ 1/2 with £100 Extrabet
Again, make sure you back them to qualify and not to win in ninety minutes. Go to 'Football' (top left hand link) and hit 'To Reach Final' (second link under World Cup).
3. Collect Your Winnings
If Portugal qualify for the final, you will collect £138.75 from
If France qualify for the final, you will collect £150 from Extrabet
As you will have noticed, you will make a profit on the match, whoever qualifies but here comes the best bit...
4. Collect Your Bonuses
If Portugal qualify for the final you will collect an extra £100 bonus from
If France qualify for the final win, you will collect an extra £12.50 bonus from Extrabet
5. The Summary
You are about to lay out £137 for the duration of the match and at the final whistle you will end up with a profit of either £1.75 or £13.
You will then collect a bonus of either £100 or £12.50 making the very worst case scenario a £25.50 cash profit on the whole deal, if France make it to the final.
However, if Portugal prevail you will make a clear £101.75 profit.
There are no free bets involved in this bet. Everything that you make will be clear cash profit and is withdrawable as soon as it hits your account.
Too good to be true? Well here's the catch for you. If you follow the instructions to the letter and it doesn't happen like we say it will, then we will refund any losses that you make. No strings, no catches, just a straight refund of your losses if you don't make what we say you will make.
As with any offer, there are obviously terms and conditions attached, available on the relevant sites. There is nothing unusual about the t's & c's from our chosen three companies but you should have a read anyway.
If you already have one or more accounts with our chosen bookies, you won't be able to qualify for the bonuses, which is what this whole thing hinges on. But don't worry. Just drop us a quick email and we will try to find you an alternative bookie.
Finally, the odds can change and even though this is rare, you should check them before placing your bets.
Don't forget that if this doesn't work for you, we will refund any losses that you make, provided that you follow the instructions to the letter and are not already an existing account holder at either of the bookies that we have chosen.
Please feel free to mail us with any questions that you may have. We'll get back to you well before the match.
Steve Goldby
NB: YOU MUST CLICK ON THE BANNERS OR LINKS ON THIS PAGE TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR THE REFUND GUARANTEE.
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