Portugal enter last-chance saloon

Coach José Couceiro hopes an early goal for Portugal can spark a dramatic UEFA European Under-21 Championship play-off comeback against Russia tonight.

Early goal
Portugal's chances of progressing to next summer's finals in the Netherlands look slender after a 4-1 first-leg defeat in Moscow on Friday, but if they can make an early addition to their away goal, all may not be lost. "A goal in the first half is crucial if we are to make a comeback," said Couceiro. "Nothing is lost yet, but it will be very hard."

National backing
Talking at a pre-match press conference, Couceiro exhorted his fellow countrymen to get behind the team at the Estádio Dr Jorge Sampaio. "We are here to ask for everyone's support for this young side," he said. "We all know we have responsibilities and we know what happened in Russia. We take responsibility for what happened, but some aspects of the defeat were out of our control." Portugal were impeded by the first-half dismissal of defender João Pereira four days ago.

Defeat forgotten
Sporting Clube de Portugal midfielder João Moutinho is also determined to make amends, saying: "We are focused on winning the match. The defeat in the first leg is something we have to forget and now we want to qualify for the finals. We can promise lots of hard work and commitment and we will fight until the very last minute to reach our goal." However, a win by three goals or more against Russia will be a tall order. "To win by a three-goal margin is very difficult and we must show lots of intelligence as Russia are very strong on the counterattack," he said. João Pereira is suspended along with midfielder Paulo Machado.