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Ronaldo rises to the occasion once again
With two goals against Holland, Ronaldo added to his already confident mentality. Having to live up to the legacy that former Portuguese captains left behind, Ronaldo has taken some time to get adapted. While he is undoubtedly the main star of the Portugal side, the pressure was already at an all time high.
His performance today showed that he could finally be on the right track to be the first captain to lead Portugal to glory. Helder Postiga picked up an injury mid-way through the first half and had to be taken off, but Ronaldo was always Portugal's main threat throughout the whole game.
Portugal adopted a different style of play than what we have seen in the past games, with Ronaldo playing more central. The Czech Republic was playing a deep line with almost all their players behind the ball at times, so Portugal tried to exploit the direct ball into Ronaldo.
In the first half it was clearly difficult for Portugal to get anything going offensively, but Ronaldo was able to bring down a well measured cross from Meireles, only to see his shot hit the outside of the post. For the second half, Paulo Bento made a few tactical changes, and the Portuguese began to play with more tempo and urgency.
Ronaldo once again was the main focal point and it was easy to tell from his body language that he wanted this victory. He may get criticized for his lack of defensive help, but today Ronaldo was seen on a few occasions tracking back to come out playing from the back.
As he did against Holland, he came up big for his country in the 80th minute as he laid out to meet a cross from Joao Moutinho to send his header past an incredible Petr Cech. The Czech goalkeeper stepped up on a few occasions to keep his country in the game, but Ronaldo was finally able to break the dead lock late in the match.
Pepe, Bruno Alves and Fabio Coentrao are the heart of the Portuguese defense
Once again the Portuguese defense showed up to play, as they played a superb match. Joao Pereira could be faulted for a few mental lapses, but his ability to get forward and support the offense is a great help.
Pepe and Bruno Alves showed that they are a great duo as many fans doubted them with the absence of Ricardo Carvalho. Not many fans believed that Bruno Alves could fill the void, but he has done a great job thus far. He's aggressive in the air, reads the game well and does his fair share of tackling.
Pepe on the other hand is an incredible force in the center of the Portuguese defense. He covers his outside backs like no other and his positioning on the field allows him to challenge every play. On a few occasions in the first half, the Czech Republic got behind the Portuguese back line sending in some dangerous crosses, but Pepe made sure he was their to clean up the mess.
Playing the way they are defensively, it will be difficult to break the Portuguese back line down. Their weakest point is clearly Joao Pereira's lack of size, but Pepe's vision compensates well for that.
What does the future hold for Portugal
Being the nation with the most victories in the history of this tournament, it's incredible that Portugal has yet to win the title. Having gone through a number of generations with an abundance of great talent, the Portuguese were destined to take the title on a number of occasions, but as always, they fell short.
Many would say their best chance came in Euro 2004 as they hosted the event and lost in the final 1-0 to Greece. This time around, the way Paulo Bento's men are playing, they have many people believing they can pull this off.
Up next for Portugal will be either Spain or France. The Portuguese will have some bad memories with the French in this competition as they went out to them in dramatic fashion in overtime as Zidane converted a late penalty. As far as Spain, the Portuguese may match up better against them. They will possess the ball and allow spaces behind their back line where Ronaldo and Nani can operate.
They head into the semi-finals on a high and have their captain finally playing at the level he is accustomed us too. Will Ronaldo be able to lead Portugal to their first final since Euro 2004?
