Nuno Gomes aiming for repeat performance against Turkey

Bruno Alves praises “world-class” options in defence

As Portugal continue to prepare for their first match of Euro 2008 against Turkey on Saturday evening, one player in particular has fond memories of facing the same opposition in the same tournament 8 years ago.

At the 2000 European Championship held in Holland and Belgium, after sailing through the group stage with three straight victories, Portugal beat Turkey 2-0 in the quarter-finals thanks to a brace from Nuno Gomes. “It would be great for us if there was a repeat of Euro 2000,” said Gomes.

The match also sees the Benfica striker meet up again with Turkey coach, Fatih Terim, for whom he played under during his time in Italy’s Serie A. It was the Turk who brought Gomes to Florence, and the two enjoyed an excellent 2000/2001 season, with Fiorentina finishing 3rd and winning the Italian Cup.

Gomes was full of praise for the man charged with plotting Portugal’s downfall in the weekend opener. “It’s always a pleasure to see Fatih Terim again as he was the man who took me to Fiorentina. He’s a great coach and a great person who left an excellent impression on me.

“Above all he manages to transmit great motivation to the squad and to unite the group. This is one of his weapons and that’s why we’re going to face opposition who will give their all on the pitch.

“He’s very ambitious and knows how to motivate players. Turkey will definitely be very motivated when they face Portugal.

“I have a lot of respect for Terim but on June 7th the circumstances will be different because we’ll be opponents. Both will be giving their best for their country,” added the striker.

Phenomenal support

One thing Luiz Felipe Scolari and his players can certainly not complain about is lack of support during the tournament. The huge Portuguese emigrant community in Switzerland gave the squad a magnificent welcome on the weekend, with over 10,000 people congregating at their training base at Neuchatel to greet their heroes.

And yesterday the 12,000 capacity stadium where Portugal are training was packed to the rafters as Portuguese supporters paid the admission fee to watch the lively training session.

They saw that Scolari still appears in two minds as to his preferred centre-back pairing and Bruno Alves has some sympathy for the Brazilian. “All the centre-backs are world-class players,” said the FC Porto hard man, who is competing with Pepe to play alongside Ricardo Carvalho at the heart of the defence, with Fernando Meira also itching for an opportunity.

“I feel privileged to be here competing in the European Championships. I feel satisfied and fulfilled. What I can promise is hard work to make sure I am at my best.”


Euro 2008 Portugal diary