Portugal rescued by Pauleta

Pauleta's equaliser earned Portugal a 1-1 friendly draw against fellow UEFA EURO 2004™ finalists Greece in Aveiro tonight.

Karagounis off

Opening night
Portugal, who as hosts did not need to qualify for next summer's finals, had the better of the play but failed to convert a host of chances against the Greeks, who finished top of qualifying Group 6 ahead of Portugal's rivals Spain. It was a night of celebration with the match being used to mark the opening of the new of Aveiro Municipal stadium, one of the host venues for the championship

Rare attack
Lakis had put the Greeks in front after a fine move. Stylianos Venetidis broke away on the counterattack and crossed for Lakis to score at the far post with his head. It was a rare attack for the visitors who had goalkeeper Antonios Nikopolidis in fine form, most notably when performing a terrific double save to deny Figo from the spot in the first half. Karagounis had conceded the penalty by handling a headed effort from Jorge Andrade.

Fierce shot
Pauleta came closest to a winner three minutes after he had restored parity. The forward fired in a fierce shot that cannoned against both posts but failed to find its way into the net. However, if it was not the woodwork denying the home side it was Nikopolidis, with the shot-stopper a constant source of frustration.