Papadopoulos's late strike lifts Greece

Kyriakos Papadopoulos's late header earned Greece their third win in four qualifiers for the 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship and dealt Portugal their first defeat as Nikolaos Nioplias's side kept hold of top spot in Group 9.

Early breakthrough
Greece took the lead with virtually their first chance of the game when PAOK FC forward Vassilis Koutsianikoulis raced past Miguel Vítor then shot beyond Ventura in the third minute. Portugal controlled possession but Greece looked more dangerous and they missed two good opportunities to double their lead that half, Elini Dimoutsos hitting the post before Giannis Papadopoulos lobbed wide when clean through.

Late winner
Portgual were the brighter side in the second half and almost drew level on 72 minutes when Ukra's curling free-kick was punched away by Nikos Mpampaniotis. The equaliser, though, was not long in coming and when the Greek defence failed to deal with Rabiola's 83rd-minute corner, Miguel Vítor pounced to restore parity. Greece had held 2009 finalists England to a 1-1 draw in their previous match last month, but they went one better this time thanks to Kyriakos Papadopoulos, who rose high to head in Aristeidis Soiledis's free-kick in the final minute to leave the home side undefeated after four matches.