and this somehow confirms that C Ronaldo will most probably feature in the England game. However unfortunately I doubt that their appeal for Deco will be successful.
Deco and Ronaldo could face England
Portugal hopeful over availability of key duo
Rob Smyth
Monday June 26, 2006
Last night it seemed as if England would be taking on a Portugal reserve side in the World Cup quarter-final next Saturday. But one by one, like heads in Marty McFly's photo in Back To The Future, the big guns who had been erased are reappearing on Portugal's teamsheet.
This morning Luis Figo was all but cleared to play against England, and now it seems that Cristiano Ronaldo and Deco will take to the field in Gelsenkirchen next Saturday.
Ronaldo limped out of Portugal's 1-0 victory over Holland with a thigh injury after a nasty challenge from Khalid Bouhlarouz, while Deco was sent off for two yellow cards. But Ronaldo could return to light training on Wednesday, and the Portugal coach Luiz Felipe Scolari hopes the Portuguese Football Federation can successfully appeal Deco's one-match ban.
Deco's first yellow card, for a ridiculous hack at Johnny Heitinga, possibly warranted a red card on its own, but the circumstances of the offence - play had been stopped due to an injury with Portugal in possession, but when play restarted Holland launched an attack - has given Scolari hope of an appeal. "The Federation could send a letter to FIFA because of the first yellow card," said Scolari. "The ball was ours, we had possession, but the Dutch player was told by his coach to continue playing. There should be fair-play guidelines from FIFA; the time has come for FIFA to think about this."
If that seems like a flight of fancy, the return of Ronaldo is much more likely. "Ronaldo has just had a scan; he's got muscular swelling in his thigh and we hope that it will ease," said the Portugal team doctor Henrique Jones. "He's having medication and he will have two daily treatments. He could begin to run on Wednesday and train on Thursday or Friday with more intensity. We are hopeful that he will recover."
Ronaldo could resume his duel with Ashley Cole, whom he left with twisted blood at the end of a glorious individual contest in the quarter-final of Euro 2004, in which both players were at the peak of their powers. Or, more probably, he could take up a position on the left and go at one of England's makeshift right-backs - Owen Hargreaves and Jamie Carragher - or Manchester United team-mate Gary Neville, who, if he recovers in time, will be sorely lacking match practice.
Either way, given Ronaldo's love of the big stage, it is a frightening prospect for England. With the suspended Costinha replaced by the equally solid Armando Petit and Deco, if his suspension stands, covered fairly capably by the excellent Tiago, Portugal's side looks nowhere near as weak as had first been hoped.