Portugal will kick off their Euro 2012 qualifying campaign against Cyprus on Friday without their best player Cristiano Ronaldo once again after the Real Madrid winger suffered an ankle injury in his club’s season opener against Mallorca over the weekend. The former Manchester United star missed out a large portion of his country’s World Cup 2010 qualifiers as well and will be hoping to return sooner than expected in the near future.
Portugal have never conceded a goal against the combative Crypriots on home soil and the Seleccao will be expecting another romp to three points for a strong start to their Euro 2012 campaign.
Former Inter Milan flop Ricardo Quaresma has been called up to replace Ronaldo while Portugal boss Carlos Queiroz has also handed a callup to Braga defender Silvio for the first time in his career. The 22-year-old will be hoping to earn his first cap if given a start by Queiroz while Sporting Lisbon’s Nuno Coelho and Yannick Djalo could also be given their debuts as the former Manchester United assistant manager looks to breed in some fresh faces for the future.
Meanwhile, there are just two goalkeepers in the 20-man party, with Rui Patrício sent on Under-21 duty but placed on standby − along with Paulo Machado − in case of injury.
There are few surprises in the Cyprus squad with manager Angelos Anastasiadis choosing not to rock the boat too much. Striker Ioannis Okkas is hoping for full support from fans and promised that the team will continue to fight for every point.
“The first game is always an exciting prospect and the same goes for Portugal,” said striker Ioannis Okkas. “It will undoubtedly be a tough game and for such trips you need be focused for the whole 90 minutes. Our fans should know that we will give every ounce of our strength for the best possible result.”
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