Ruthlessness, Attrition, and Contrasting Egos: Previewing Poland vs. Portugal

This article originally appeared on VICE Sports UK.

When it comes to the quarters of Euro 2016, no match is quite as finely balanced as Poland's clash with the pragmatists of Portugal. When the two sides meet at the Stade Vélodrome on Thursday evening, they will be well met and minutely well matched. While France and Belgium are clear favourites for their quarter-finals against Iceland and Wales respectively, there is practically nothing between the Poles and the Portuguese. Germany's match against Italy is a bona fide headliner, but the game in Marseille looks set to be a far more capricious and mercurial affair, and nobody can be sure quite what it will serve up.

As the quarter-final that has attracted the least global fanfare, it would be easy to assume that Portugal and Poland were two of the less consequential teams left in the tournament. They are, in fact, two of the most interesting. Both could still go on to reach the final, and perhaps achieve something truly great. The winner of their match faces a semi-final on the 'easy' side of the draw and – while there is nothing particularly 'easy' about a game against Wales or Belgium – they will at least avoid the might of France, Germany and Italy in their penultimate fixture. So who will prevail, the Poles or the Portuguese? Without trying to dodge the question, one can only say that it's uniquely difficult to tell.

While they sport nuanced tactical differences, Poland and Portugal are both built on the same foundations. Poland have played a gritty, ball-winning 4-4-2 for most of the tournament, Portugal have switched from a counter-attacking 4-3-3 to a solid 4-4-2, but both sides are heavily reliant on collective cohesion and habitually look to their defensive players first. In that sense, the game could easily become a war of attrition, with a succession of rearguard victories ultimately deciding the result. It could come down to which defence is more ruthless. Neither side should struggle to find the necessary mettle, nor players who are ready and willing to go to war.

In the slap-headed, bulge-browed form of Pepe, Portugal have one of the biggest hate figures in world football. He is lambasted by commentators, booed by supporters and roundly slated by all and sundry, but it only ever seems to make him meaner, more motivated and generally harder to beat. His fouls are appalling, he's shameless when it comes to manipulating referees, yet his antics rarely detract from his performance. He will marshall the Portuguese back four throughout the match, and do so with a roaring fury which it is almost impossible to quench.

Meanwhile, Poland have a rough-hewn mountain of a centre-back in the form of Kamil Glik, partnered by the equally boulder-like Michal Pazdan. They have conceded one goal this tournament, and that was Xhedan Shaqiri's unstoppable overhead kick. Shielding them is defensive midfielder Grzegorz Krychowiak, who has attracted some high-profile suitors at club level over the last few years on account of his marauding performances for Europa League specialists Sevilla. Those three form the rock-solid core of the Polish defence, and are complemented by the incisive talent of Lukasz Piszczek and Artur Jędrzejczyk on either flank.

Lukasz Fabiański looks set to start between the sticks for Poland and – despite once being a figure of fun to some – he's no pushover these days, and brings a high degree of solidity himself. His opposite number is Rui Patricio, a vastly experienced goalkeeper who has been first-choice for Portugal for the best part of half a decade.

It's not all about the defence, of course, with both sides boasting some decent auxiliary attackers. Portugal have the pace of Nani and the young Renato Sanches, while Poland have Borussia Dortmund stalwart Jakub Błaszczykowski on the wing. However, when it comes to their front lines, both the Portuguese and the Poles rely on a single, talismanic figure.

These men are the ego and the id of the quarter-finals, and they epitomise the balance of their two nations perfectly.

In their respective characters, Cristiano Ronaldo and Robert Lewandowski seem somewhat antithetical. Ronaldo is the preening matador, the virtuoso performer and the undeniable centre of attention, while his Polish counterpart is a muffled gunshot, an explosion without warning, a purveyor of lethal understatement and deadly surprise. If Cristiano defeats his opponents in a campy, swashbuckling Hollywood swordfight, Lewandowski is a quiet but merciless ambusher. The former is a brash manifestation of Portuguese machismo, the latter a taciturn master of Polish steel.

That said, there are clear parallels between their two campaigns. Both men have produced mixed performances so far, and both have visibly struggled under the pressure. Lewandowski goes into the quarter-finals having failed to score at Euro 2016, though his 42-goal haul for Bayern Munich last season attests to his ability to strike at almost any time. Ronaldo has scored two goals at the tournament, but both came in a mad group-stage draw with Hungary.

All in all, despite being two very different characters, the totemic forwards share some uncomfortable similarities at the moment. They are two sides of one personality, a pair of exaggerated individuals playing for a couple of seemingly inseparable teams. They are defined by their contrasts, yet they labour under the same expectations. The first one to meet those expectations shall tip the scales in his team's favour.

@W_F_Magee