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Team News

In an interesting clash, Arsenal goalkeeper Szczesny will be up against one of the world’s sharpest forwards, Cristiano Ronaldo. There’s good news for Sebastian Boenisch who’s recovered from a terrible knee injury. The Werder Bremen defender makes his return in Poland’s national team after a year out.

For Portugal, Carlos Martins and Varela are ruled out but 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup star Nelson Oliveira could make his debut. Paulo Bento could lose or benefit from the Real Madrid trio composed of Pepe, Fabio Coentrao and Cristiano Ronaldo in Portugal's starting XI.

These three players will probably play cautiously as Jose Mourinho wouldn’t like to have them injured. However, Portugal coach Paulo Bento could use the fact that they know each other very well on the pitch to the fullest.

Match analysis

Poland vs. Portugal is meant to be a friendly encounter but the atmosphere on the pitch might showcase something different. The clash is expected to be tense like a competitive fixture as both countries are hungry for success at the top level. The UEFA Euro 2012 tournament is only a few months from now so there’s no way Portugal and Poland will misuse the opportunity that Wednesday night’s friendly match presents.

Poland, who will be participating as co-hosts, didn’t go through a series of qualifying fixtures. Between September and November 2011, the Poles played 5 international friendly games and won 2 of those.

Portugal, meanwhile, endured rough moments all the way to the finals. Last year’s brilliant victory over Bosnia & Herzegovina in the play-offs has given confidence to Paulo Bento’s outfit.

The Portuguese’s aim is to increase momentum within the squad as the task ahead is a scary one. Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands are all in their group. This tells that poor preparations would surely result in death for Portugal at Euro 2012.  

Poland and Portugal head-to-head

Poland’s last 5 international matches (all friendly matches):

September 6, 2011: Poland 2-2 Germany
October 7, 2011: South Korea 2-2 Poland
October 11, 2011: Belarus 0-2 Poland
November 11, 2011: Poland 0-2 Italy
November 15, 2011: Poland 2-1 Hungary

Portugal’s last 5 international matches (all Euro 2012 qualifiers):

September 2, 2011: Cyprus 0-4 Portugal
October 7, 2011: Portugal 5-3 Iceland
October 11, 2011: Denmark 2-1 Portugal
November 11, 2011: Bosnia 0-0 Portugal
November 15, 2011: Portugal 6-2 Bosnia

Previous meetings between Poland and Portugal:

June 10, 2002: Portugal 4-0 Poland (World Cup qualifier)
October 11, 2006: Poland 2-1 Portugal (European Championship qualifier)
September 8, 2007: Portugal 2-2 Poland (European Championship qualifier)

Winner

Cristiano Ronaldo is fresh from scoring a splendid back heel goal for Real Madrid against Rayo Vallecano at the weekend in La Liga. Eventually, Portuguese fans are expecting a lot from the team’s captain. Cristiano Ronaldo was also terrific in Portugal’s last international match (against Bosnia & Herzegovina) so he’ll be keen to take it from there and to pursue his good form – both at international and club level.

Poland may struggle to maintain the 27-year-old superstar. Whether the game produces a flurry of goals or only a few chances for both teams, whether it’s a one-sided affair or not, Portugal should come up on top at the end of the 90 minutes.

Prediction: Poland 1-2 Portugal

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