Portugal Vs. Denmark: Watch Live Stream Online of Euro 2012 Group B Clash; Prediction, Probable Lineups, Preview
When and where: The Group B match kicks-off from Arena Lviv in Lviv, Ukraine at noon ET. Coverage will be provided by ESPN, with a live stream available on ESPN3.
Preview: Following their surprise victory over the Netherlands in their opening match, Denmark will be looking to upset the odds once more as they take on Portugal in Lviv.
Ask the Danes, though, and they are likely to balk at the mere suggestion that a win would warrant begin referred to as a shock. Group B may have quickly been referred to as the group of death when the draw was made, but Denmark were equally as hastily written off as the fall guys to the expected battle between Germany, the Netherlands and Portugal for the top two spots.
As they proved against the Dutch, that was a dramatic oversight for which the Danes will relish continuing to demonstrate. Indeed, Denmark could rightfully feel that it is they who should be favorites against the Portuguese.
The two sides have met in qualifying for both these championships and the 2010 World Cup, with Denmark winning two and drawing one of the four matchups and, crucially, finishing top of the group on both occasions.
One man in particular likely to be relishing the chance to go up against Portugal once more is Nicklas Bendtner. The unashamedly self-confident striker has scored four times against the Iberian outfit and in all three competitive fixtures between the sides.
Denmark coach Morten Olsen is likely to stick with the game plan that served his team so well against the Dutch; defending with discipline while showing no hesitation in committing men forward when the opportunity arises.
One possible change for the Danes is to bring in the more defensively minded full-back Michael Silberbauer for Simon Poulsen, with the twin wing threat of Cristiano Ronaldo and Nani in mind.
It is a very different mindset that Portugal is faced with heading into game two. Paulo Bento's side lost a closely fought opening match 1-0 to Germany and now will surely be looking for a victory to put them back into contention of making the quarter-finals.
Though they may consider themselves hard done by after going down to Mario Gomez's second-half goal, Portugal must also take a large chunk of responsibility after showing little ambition in the face of an underwhelming German performance until they went a goal behind.
The defeat was not wholly without encouragement for Bento, however. Once his side did commit to a more attacking approach they gave Germany plenty of problems and were close to forcing an equalizer on more than one occasion.
Young striker Nelson Oliveira played his part in Portugal's greater threat late in proceedings after coming on for a largely impotent Helder Postiga and he must be in Bento's thoughts regarding a starting place against the Danes. Though the more experienced Hugo Almeida, fully fit after suffering from a bout of flu, could be the man to make his first appearance of the competition.
Denmark (probable, 4-2-3-1)
G: Andersen
D: Jacobsen, Kjaer, Agger, S. Poulsen
M: Kvist, Zimling
Rommedahl, Eriksen, Krohn-Dehli
F: Bendtner
Portugal (probable, 4-3-3)
G: Rui Patricio
D: Pereira, Pepe, Alves, Coentrao
M: Meireles, Veloso, Moutinho
F: Nani, Almeida, Ronaldo
Prediction: With few changes in personnel, Denmark's strong recent record against Portugal cannot be overlooked. Neither can the way the Danes coped with the threat of an admittedly subpar Netherlands.
Portugal know that realistically they need a win and must surely look to get on the front foot early. Key to their hopes could be getting playmaker Joao Moutinho on the ball in areas where he can feed in the likes of Ronaldo and Nani as well as a forward-breaking Raul Meireles. The quest goes on, though, to incorporate the phenomenally skilled Ronaldo into a cohesive team performance.
As much as Portugal should cause problems going forward, Denmark are equally capable of making hay in their attacking forages. An entertaining draw could be on the cards.
Denmark 2-2 Portugal
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