Exhilarating Night of Football Fluctuates Before Germany and Portugal Come Out on Top

Four of the biggest footballing nations in Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Portugal all played tonight in an absorbing night of sport at its best. The stage was set for one of the most dramatic nights of the tournament with all four teams able to qualify for the quarter-finals before kick-off. Neither match disappointed as football fans across Europe were taken through the ringer as the pendulum swung this way and that.

The Netherlands entered this final round of fixtures desperately needing a win to give themselves a chance of progressing to the knock-out stages while opponents Portugal knew a win would all but seal their place in the next round. The Dutch flew out of the blocks like Usain Bolt and Rafael van der Vaart gave them the early advantage with a magnificent curling strike from all of 25 yards. Portugal came close to an immediate response but Cristiano Ronaldo could only hit the base of the post when found in plenty of space. Portugal continued to threaten in an open game but Ronaldo was caught narrowly off-side and had a close-range header excellently saved by Oranje goalkeeper Stekelenburg.

Meanwhile in the other match Germany took the lead in the 19^th minute through a cool finish from Lukas Podolski after Mario Gomez appeared to mis-hit his shot. However underdogs Denmark did not lie down and scored an equaliser thanks Michael Krohn-Delhi’s head following Niklas Bendtner’s nod back across goal. This meant that as it stood Denmark and Germany were taking the top two spaces. However Danish joy did not last long as Portugal equalised through much-maligned star-striker Ronaldo. He beat the off-side trap by a whisker to collect Joao Pereira's pass and calmly slot home.

The second half continued to be tight in both matches as no one wanted to press too hard for fear of conceding what would have been a killer goal. Ronaldo silenced his critics in style when he cut inside to fire low past Stekelenburg in the 74^th minute crush Dutch hopes. The Real Madrid forward then nearly completed his hat-trick but saw his long-range left-footed drive come crashing back off the post. It did not matter though as the stuffing had long been knocked out of the Netherlands as they limped to an inadequate exit from a tournament they had been expected to feature prominently in.

Denmark continued to battle against the Germans in an attempt to find a winning goal that would have given them a chance of qualification. Unfortunately for the battling Scandinavians though Germany caught them on the counter-attack with just ten minutes left and Lars Bender fired home to seal top spot in the group and a quarter-final against Greece.

A brilliant night of football failed to let down the millions watching despite the high expectations. At the end of the day Denmark and Holland are on their way home, while Germany and Portugal march onwards to the Euro 2012 last eight.

Group Of Death Nears Thrilling Conclusion

Four of Europe's biggest footballing nations meet again today, but for two of them it will be their last involvement at these championships. Portugal are the only side in Group B without a Euro title, although they have an array of footballing talent in their current squad. A win today against the Netherlands would seal qualification and eliminate their opponents. For the 1988 champions victory against Portugal, coupled with a Germany win over Denmark would see them progress despite losing their first two matches. All three-time winners Germany need is a point against their Scandinavian rivals, while a Danish win would see them go through. The only way the 2008 runners-up can be eliminated is if they lose to Denmark and Portugal beat the Netherlands. If this happens it would come down to goal difference in matches between these three teams. 

Germany have won a record three European Championships and reached a record six finals. Their last win was in England in 1996 when they beat the Czech Republic in the final, adding to previous wins in 1972 and 1980. As Europe's most successful team and in good recent form they are one of the favourites for this tournament. They have sealed two very good wins against Portugal and Holland so far with all three goals scored by striker Mario Gomez, underlying their status as one of the championships's biggest threats. However all their good work could be undone today with a shock defeat to Denmark, who have already sprung a surprise in beating 2010 World Cup runners-up The Netherlands. 

The Oranje were hoping to bring 'sexy' football and flair to this year's Championships and to evoke memories of Marco van Basten's famous strike that sealed Euro glory back in 1988. That year they beat West Germany to reach the final and the Soviet Union 2-0 in that famous encounter. This month they arrived in Ukraine with high hopes of repeating that success, ranked number four in the FIFA World rankings and with some of the world's most celebrated players. However they have struggled to find the goals required to win games and have looked shaky at the back. Despite this other results have worked in their favour and with nothing to lose they can go out tonight and really attack Portugal from the off in an attempt to save their campaign. Rafael van der Vaart could start as well as Eredivisie's top scorer Klaas-Jan Huntelaar in an attempt to blow the Portuguese away. 

Although they are the only side in this group to have never won the European Championships, Portugal have one of the most feared sides in the world. Two-time World Player of the Year winner Cristiano Ronaldo is yet to set the tournament alight but everyone knows what he is capable of and could well be the man to make the difference when it matters most. Manchester United winger Nani always looks a threat and they have strength at the back in Pepe and Jose Bosingwa. After the dramatic 3-2 win over Denmark in their last game Portugal will be confident of qualification needing only a point providing Germany dispose of Denmark. 

However Denmark will have plenty to say about that. The shock 1992 winners are ranked at nine in the FIFA rankings and have a good squad that are always difficult to beat without lacking in quality. Striker Nicklas Bendtner scored twice as they came back from 2-0 down against Portugal and veteran winger Denis Rommedahl has always been capable of something out of the ordinary. Captain Daniel Agger is one of the world's top defenders and was immense in their opening 1-0 win over Holland. They will go all out to make life difficult for the Germans tonight as they need just a point to qualify if the Dutch beat Portugal. The Scandinavians should not be written off and could well go deep into the knock-out stages.

This evening should prove to be a footballing feast as all four teams hold realistic hopes of claiming a quarter-final spot. Last night's action could be tough to follow but this group's conclusion is sure to be a great spectacle with plenty of the world's best players going head-to-head.