Portugal fans demand success, says Scolari

PORTUGAL coach Luiz Felipe Scolari said yesterday that only victory in the final on July 4 in Lisbon at the Estadio da Luz will be a satisfactory result for the host nation.

Speaking 24 hours before the Portuguese face Greece in the opening match of the Euro 2004 tournament at the Estadio do Dragao, Scolari made no attempt to minimise the weight of expectation in a country which at the best of times is football crazy and which at the moment is talking about little else as it prepares to stage the biggest sports' event ever held on Portuguese soil.

Scolari led his home country Brazil to the 2002 World Cup the fifth time the South Americans had won the trophy and that record from the world's biggest footballing power means that a Brazil coach will only be welcomed home at the airport if he has the World Cup in his hand luggage.

Portugal's record bears no comparison with the country that was once part of their empire. They have never reached a major final and have three times failed at the semi-final hurdle in a major tournament in the 1966 World Cup, Euro 84 and Euro 2000.

Asked what is the minimum acceptable result for a Portugal coach, Scolari smiled and said: "The only acceptable result is victory that's true not only in Brazil but all over the world. That's the law. It's the same for England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson."

Scolari, known as Felipao (Big Phil), said that he was not concerned about being considered favourites by some observers.

"It is the coaches of the other teams that are putting that pressure on us," said Scolari. "They are making us favourites but we had no say in that and we need not bother about that."

His decision to sideline Porto goalkeeper Vitor Baia, who has had an outstanding season with the European and Portuguese club champions, has rankled many in the north of Portugal Portugal coaches have always had to contend with claims they are biased either towards players with the Lisbon clubs or those in Porto.