Our look at the sides fighting to be champions of Europe continues with a look at one of the favourites, Portugal.

PORTUGAL

Current FIFA ranking

9 - Between Greece and the Netherlands

Route to finals

Finished as Group A as runners-up to Poland on the final matchday when a 0-0 draw with Finland gave them the point they needed to seal their place in the finals ahead of Serbia. Although they only lost once - away to the group winners - there were some nervy moments. An injury-time goal from Cristiano Ronaldo secured a vital 2-1 win in Kazakhstan, while they could only manage a 1-1 draw in Armenia and win 1-0 in the return fixture.

International pedigree

Following their Eusebio-inspired third-place finish at the 1966 World Cup, the Portuguese largely returned to the obscurity from which they came. That was until the group of players dubbed the 'Golden Generation' - including Luis Figo, Rui Costa and Pauleta - reached the semi-finals of Euro 2000, only to fall at the first hurdle at the 2002 World Cup. A new wave of world-class players then graduated into the side, and they reached the Euro 2004 final as hosts, only to suffer a shock defeat at the hands of Greece. Reaching the semi-finals of the 2006 World Cup proved that this time they are ready to stay at the top.

Coach

Brazilian coach Luiz Felipe Scolari achieved international recognition after winning the World Cup with his home country in 2002. Despite that success, he resigned soon afterwards as he was never fully forgiven by the public for refusing to pick legendary striker Romario for his squads. The following year he took over Portugal and, despite failing to win Euro 2004, his reputation as one of the world's top coaches was assured. In the build-up to the 2006 World Cup, England approached him to take over from Sven-Goran Eriksson after the tournament in Germany. After talking with the FA, Scolari declined the offer, saying it would compromise his position with the Portugal squad that summer. Scolari's team went on to eliminate England on penalties and reach the semi-finals.

Familiar faces

The most prominent name is of course Cristiano Ronaldo, who the Portuguese can rightfully boast as the best player at the tournament, and probably the world. His Manchester United team-mate Nani (pictured with Ronaldo) will be gracing his first major tournament. Chelsea defensive duo Ricardo Carvalho and Paulo Ferreira will be joined by Jose Bosingwa next season. Barcelona's Deco and Porto's Ricardo Quaresma are both from the top drawer of international midfield talent and regularly light up the Champions League.

Potential stars

Defensive midfielder Miguel Veloso has impressed greatly since breaking into the Sporting Lisbon side last season. He has only recently turned 22, but already has plenty of European experience ahead of his first international tournament.

Chances

Historically, Portugal's problem at major tournaments has always been their lack of firepower. The wealth of attacking talent in the current squad should ensure that will not be the case this time around. They have the players and the manager to go far, if not all the way, but they may have missed their chance four years ago.

Possible starting XI

Ricardo (Real Betis); Jose Bosingwa (Chelsea), Pepe (Real Madrid), Ricardo Carvalho (Chelsea), Jorge Ribeiro (Boavista); Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United), Deco (Barcelona), Miguel Veloso (Sporting Lisbon), Simao (Atletico Madrid), Ricardo Quaresma (Sporting Lisbon); Nuno Gomes (Benfica)

Back-ups

Goalkeepers: Rui Patricio (Sporting Lisbon), Quim (Benfica); Defenders: Miguel (Valencia), Fernando Meira (Stuttgart), Paulo Ferreira (Chelsea), Bruno Alves (Porto); Midfielders: Nani (Manchester United), Joao Moutinho (Sporting Lisbon), Petit (Benfica), Raul Mereiles (Porto); Forwards: Helder Postiga (Porto), Hugo Almeida (Werder Bremen)

Group A fixtures

07/06/08 Turkey

11/06/08 Czech Republic

15/06/08 Switzerland

Tony Mabert / Eurosport