Portugal national football team |
Although the Portuguese national football team has never won any major competition at senior level nor have
reached a final, they usually play very attractive football and can produce some great performances, playing head-to-head with
the world's best national sides.
Portugal's best performance yet, was back in the 1966
World Cup, in their very first World Cup appearance, when they reached the semi-finals and lost only to later world champions
England. Led by their legendary player
Eusébio, they put up amazing performances, knocking out previous World Cup champions
Brazil and fighting back from a 3-0
result in the quarter-finals against North Korea, winning by 5-3. Portugal eventually finished in third place and
Eusébio was considered the best player of the tournament.
Few national teams have had to live up to greater expectations than the Portugal team from roughly 1994 to 2004. The Portugal under-20 national team won two successive FIFA World Youth Cups in 1989 and 1991 with a virtual galaxy of stars, the greatest of whom were midfielders Luis Figo and Rui Costa; these stars were dubbed the golden
generation. However, they have yet to transfer their success at youth level to senior level. The upcoming EURO 2004 will be the last chance for the
"golden generation" to fulfill its promise.
World Cup record
- 1930 - Did not enter
- 1934 - Did not qualify
- 1938 - Did not qualify
- 1950 - Did not qualify
- 1954 - Did not qualify
- 1958 - Did not qualify
- 1962 - Did not qualify
- 1966 - Third place
- 1970 - Did not qualify
- 1974 - Did not qualify
- 1978 - Did not qualify
- 1982 - Did not qualify
- 1986 - Round 1
- 1990 - Did not qualify
- 1994 - Did not qualify
- 1998 - Did not qualify
- 2002 - Round 1
European Championship record
- 1960 - Did not
qualify
- 1964 - Did not
qualify
- 1968 - Did not
qualify
- 1972 - Did not
qualify
- 1976 - Did not
qualify
- 1980 - Did not
qualify
- 1984 - Third place
- 1988 - Did not
qualify
- 1992 - Did not
qualify
- 1996 - Quarterfinals
- 2000 - Third place
- 2004 - Advanced to
quarterfinals
Famous players
External links
|