Victory Offers New Dawn for Both Finalists

Portugal take to the field at the Estadio da Luz in Lisbon on Sunday night for a showdown not only with surprise opponents Greece but with destiny. In the final of Euro 2004 on home soil, the core of a team which promised the world finally gets the chance to deliver -- with the help of a new "golden generation."

With Luis Figo, Fernando Couto and Rui Costa expected to call it a day on the international scene after Sunday's showdown with Greece, the continuing hopes for Portuguese soccer will be passed to the likes of Christiano Ronaldo, Helder Postiga and Deco. If those hopes can be passed to the new stars along with the title European Champions, then coach Luiz Felipe Scolari will have laid the foundations for a possible Portuguese legacy.

Scolari sticks with Pauleta

The Portugal coach has had his fair share of detractors, both outside and within the team, but if Portugal wakes up on Monday sporting a nationwide hangover and the Henri Delauney trophy on its way to the a Lisbon engravers, then his decisions will be vindicated. Questionable tactics such as beginning the tournament with Ronaldo and Deco on the bench and substituting Figo in the quarter-final against England when losing will be forgotten if the ribbons on the cup are green and red come the day after.

Scolari plans to test the faith of the faithful even further ahead of the final with his decision to stick with striker Pauleta against Greece despite his lack of goals. "Pauleta may not be scoring but he helps the team in other ways. I have every confidence in him," the Brazilian coach told the pre-final press conference. "His participation is always important for his determination, commitment and involvement in the group. In theory, we shouldn't have to make changes. We're playing well but we're going to have to play better."

Greece surprised Portugal by beating the hosts in their opening game, and Scolari is expecting another closely fought contest at the Luz Stadium. "Greece will be strong rivals for us and I think the game could be decided in one small moment, like at a dead ball situation. If we win, I'll have a smile all the way across my face. It will be the realization of all I imagined and dreamed."

"Whatever happens in the final Greece will be the big winners at Euro 2004.

Portuguese respect first game victors

In an attempt to make sure that Greece are not the actual winners at Euro 2004, star midfielder Maniche has warned his teammates to remain patient against Otto Rehhagel's Greeks. "We know we'll need to be on form and mentally strong to win. It will take patience. We've all seen that Greece are a very compact side, who defend with discipline, but if we stay calm I'm convinced we can win."

"We are absolutely not the favorites," said the Porto player who scored perhaps the goal of the tournament so far with a 30 meter curling shots against Holland in the semi-final. "We have home advantage but England had more fans than us in our match and we still beat them."

To win their first major tournament, the Portuguese need to beat the team that gave them such a traumatic start to the tournament. "Portugal is a friendly country and we wouldn't think about getting revenge," Maniche said. "We respect Greece."

Fatigue hindering Greek effort

Greece may need every piece of respect and will hope that respect will lead to early trepidation in the hosts as the glorious Greeks fight a different battle - that of tiredness. Greek defender Michail Kapsis believes that the extra day Portugal had to recover from their semi-final could play an important part in the final. The Greeks were pushed to the first half of extra-time by the Czech Republic and have had 24 hours less to rest.

"This is a real disadvantage for us. We played against the Czechs for 105 minutes and have another hard game three days later," Kapsis told reporters. "Everybody in Greece expects us to win, but Portugal have played well since we beat them in the opening game."

Supporters may hold the key to superiority

The defender, who is struggling to make the final after picking up a knee injury in a training session on Saturday, feels that the crowd will play an integral role in driving the Greeks to unprecedented heights. "They will have a lot of support but we know the crazy fans of Greece will help make it good for us. We are very thankful for our nation and want to applaud our fans."

"Most serious for us is that during the European championship we have been able to prove that Greece is a good, organized footballing country. I want to tell truth, before the matches started none of us expected to be at the final. We believed in our team and ourselves but we did not think we would get this far."

Greece to feel Karagounis loss

Greece will be without Georgios Karagounis, who picked up a second yellow card against the Czechs, and the loss of the influential midfielder could hinder the Greeks' chances, according to veteran defender Nikos Dabizas. "I think it is a great loss, he is one of the most valuable players in the team. He is gutted not to be there and I think he deserved to be able to play"

"But he is very energetic and gets very excited sometimes. He lost his temper and he knows the rules of the game." Karagounis is expected to be replaced by Vassilios Tsiartas.