Good evening and welcome to Sports Mole's live text commentary of tonight's Euro 2012 Group B clash between Germany and Portugal in Lviv.
This group was blown wide open earlier today when Denmark recorded a shock 1-0 win over Holland in Kharkiv.
Victory for Germany or Portugal this evening could really give them the initiative in getting out of the so-called 'Group of Death'.
21.43That result puts Germany level with Denmark on three points in Group B, while Portugal and Holland must wait until Wednesday for their chance to get their first points of the tournament. Meanwhile, join us tomorrow afternoon for live commentary of holders Spain's opening Group C fixture against Italy. Thanks again for your company and goodnight!
21.40Not a classic by any stretch of the imagination, but the Germans get their Euro 2012 campaign off to a winning start thanks to Mario Gomez's header
90+3 minFULL TIME: Germany 1-0 Portugal
90+3 minBruno Alves gets his head to it, but the ball floats over the bar. Almost an equaliser for Portugal.
90+2 minMuller is off and Lars Bender is on for Germany. Here comes that corner...
90+2 minChance! Ronaldo pulls it back to Nani but his shot is blocked and out for a corner...
90+2 minThere's a very stern message on the PA system as the German fans set off a smoke bomb in the stands. We've got a minute left.
90 minWe'll have three minutes of added time...
90 minMuller's gone down like he's been shot there. He comes off second best with Veloso in the air but is making the most of it to say the least.
88 minGreat save from Neuer! The ball comes to Varela eight yards out after Oliveira's cross misses Nani and the German keeper smothers the shot in a flash.
86 minSubstitution for Germany now with Ozil being replaced by Toni Kroos.
86 minNani again! He sizes up his chances on the edge of the box and fires a left-footed drive just wide of goal.
85 minPortugal are going for it now. Nani's cross is headed away by Hummels for a corner. The resulting kick is eventually booted away by Khedira.
84 minOff the crossbar! Nani's cross comes off of the woodwork after missing everyone in the area. Nearly a bizarre equaliser there.
83 minAlmost for Portugal! Coentrao's deflected shot is dipping towards Neuer's crossbar, but goes out of play for a corner. The German shotstopper flings himself at the ball when it arrives and Germany clear.
81 minTextbook Ronaldo. He hits a swerving effort towards goal after cutting in and Neuer is able to palm it away.
81 minKlose, who is 34 today, was Germany's top scorer in qualifying with nine goals. Can he get himself off the mark at the tournament itself?
80 minGermany do make the change now as Klose comes on for the goalscorer Gomez. Meanwhile, Silvestre Varela is on for the Portuguese in place of Meireles.
77 minRonaldo is trying to make something happen now, but Oliveira can't control his pass on the edge of the box.
75 minPortugal on the back foot now. Meireles hoofs the ball out of play for a corner which is in turn seen off by Jaoa Pereira.
73 minGomez looked to have been coming off for Miroslav Klose before that goal, but Joachim Low changes his mind after what was a moment of brilliance.
72 minAnd we have our goal! Khedira launches the ball into the area and Gomez guides a wonderful header in off the post to put Germany in front. That's what the striker does best.
72 minGOAL! Germany 1-0 Portugal (Mario Gomez)
71 minMuller does brilliantly to control a long ball upfield, but his cross goes well over Podolski's head. He'd done all of the hard work.
69 minBoateng picks up a booking for a tug on Ronaldo. We've also got out first substitution of the match. The highly-rated youngster Nelson Oliveira is on for Postiga.
67 minThere's about 25 minutes left here in Lviv. Can anyone make the breakthrough? From what we've seen in this half, either side might snatch the three points.
66 minBoateng is back on.
65 minGreat defending from Boateng! Ronaldo is found in the box and is about to get a left-footed effort away on goal, but Boateng throws himself down to make the block. However, he's taken to the sidelines with what looks to be a calf problem.
61 minA rare flash of attacking intent from Schweinsteiger there as his decent cross misses his teammates. That was begging for someone to get on the end of it.
60 minCoentrao is shown a yellow for a fairly reckless tackle on Muller. That wasn't pretty.
59 minMoutinho's down now. Replays show Khedira accidentyl stepping on the midfielder's foot. He looks to be in pain, but should be okay.
56 minIt's all Germany now. Podolski whips in a ferocious cross into the box, but Gomez, who has been well below par tonight, guides his header over the bar.
55 minSome lovely work in the area from Ozil is ruined when Podolski miscontrols his pass. Goal kick.
54 min...which is eventually played into Postiga at the back post, but the cross is overhit and goes out for a goal kick.
53 minFabio Coentrao's cross isn't kept in by Neuer and Portugal have a corner...
53 minOoh, that's close. Ozil gets in a delightful cross which evades Podolski by inches. Both sides are much improved from the first half.
50 minRonaldo is back on the ball after Pepe sweeps it downfield. He runs past Boateng but sees his floated cross put out for a corner.
49 minThe Lviv crowd holds its breath in anticipation as the ball comes to Ronaldo on the edge of the box. However, he can only get away a weak shot at Neuer.
48 minThat's a ridiculous clearance from Hummels. Nani dinks in a cross after some good work on the right hand side, but the defender launches himself at the ball to head it out for a corner which Neuer punches away.
46 minEarly chance for the Germans! The ball is again flying about in the Portuguese penalty area and is eventually cleared following Podolski's cross.
45 minGermany get the action underway in the second half...
20.47Right, the players are back out in Lviv. On the count of three let's all cross our fingers for a goal in the second half. One, two, three...
20.38Both of these teams must have been buoyed by the news of Holland's shock defeat to Denmark earlier today. In this so-called 'Group of Death', a win tonight could prove invaluable.
20.35Podolski has looked Germany's best player so far, while defender Fabio Coentrao has probably been Portugal's most consistent performer.
20.33Not the most classic of opening 45 minutes, but there were one or two good chances for both sides to get their noses in front. The best opportunity of the half came with the final kick as Pepe's effort came back off the bar and onto the line.
20.32HALF-TIME: Germany 0-0 Portugal
45 minOff the woodwork! The ball comes to Pepe from a corner and crashes off the bar and onto the line. A couple of Portuguese players are claiming that it was over the line, but replays show that it was not a goal. Drama!
43 minYellow card for Badstuber. The defender clips Nani's right foot while chasing the winger down the line. The Portuguese makes a meal of it, but his side have a promising free kick...which goes straight to Neuer.
40 minWasted chance for Germany! After Gomez fails to get on the end of a cross, the ball ping-pongs about in the area before Muller guides the ball the wrong side of the post.
38 minKhedira's speculative effort from 25 yards flies into Row Z. It's all gone a bit flat in Lviv now. Portugal just seem to be biding their time...
36 minThere's plenty of patient play from the Germans at the momment. However, it doesn't seem to be getting them anywhere.
33 minThe referee blows his whistle after Schweinsteiger's studs make friends with Moutinho's back. No card for the German, though.
31 minPodolski is in there again but fluffs his lines by firing over from the centre of the box. He should have done better there.
30 minA dangerous-looking attack for Portugal ends when Jaoa Pereira's cross is headed away. Both teams lack are currently lacking that inspiration to make the breakthrough at the moment.
28 minNani gives away a foul on Ozil. The Manchester United trickster has been disappointing so far.
26 minPodolski has another chance when he is found at the far post, but the forward can only hook his volley wide of goal.
24 minIt's teed up for Podolski, whose fierce drive is blocked by the wall.
23 minGomez has the ball in the net, but the referee's whistle had already gone after Meireles fouled Khedira. It's a free kick for Germany in quite a promising position.
21 minVeloso tries to find Ronaldo with a pumped ball into the area, but Neuer comes out to collect.
20 minThe Portuguese are much more in this game now. A couple of threatening attacks seem to have given them confidence.
18 minVeloso nearly makes a connection from the set piece, but it just goes over his head and away.
17 minThat said, the winger weaves down the flank before crossing low and dangerously into the box. It's cleared and Portugal have a corner.
16 minIt has to be said that Cristiano Ronaldo has been very quiet so far. In fact, I'm not too sure he's even had a touch of the ball yet.
14 minA rare Portugal attack is snuffed out when Coentrao's weak cross is played away.
13 minWhat was that all about?! Neuer is sold short on the backpass but manages to get there before Postiga to clear. However, he's rolling about over the floor following the Portuguese striker's challenge. Postiga picks up the first yellow of the match. That looked a bit over the top from the German shotstopper.
11 minOzil up to his usual tricks around the box. He just can't get the ball out from under his feet. Otherwise he could have had a crack at goal there.
09 minOpportunity for Podolski, but his low drive is eventually saved by the keeper.
09 minGermany are really controlling things here. Their passing is crisp and the Portuguese dont' know what to do.
06 minBoateng swings in a deep cross, but it's collected by Rui Patricio.
05 minGermany are just happy to knock it around at the back now. Portugal are struggling to get the ball.
03 min...but it comes to nothing as Manuel Neuer punches the ball clear.
03 minPortugal have a corner following a run from Fabio Coentrao...
02 minEarly chance for Germany! Gomez is found in the box by Boateng, but the striker's header is easily saved.
19.45That was some rousing rendition of the national anthem from the Germans. We're about to get underway and it'll be Portugal to get us underway. Here we go!
19.40Here come the players. There's some typically dramatic music thumping out of the PA system before the national anthems start. Portugal are up first...
19.39If Germany need anything else in their favour tonight, they were the top scorers with 34 goals in qualifying but Portugal had one the leakiest defence, conceding 14 times.
19.36Germany of course won all of their qualifying fixtures for this tournament, while Portugal won five and lost two of theirs.
19.34"[Germany] have got some quality players," Harry Redknapp tells the BBC. "But so have Portugal. They're full of quality."
19.32...however, Germany went on to lose the final 1-0 to Spain in Vienna.
19.30The last time these two teams met was at Euro 2008 when the Germans edged out the Portuguese 3-2 in the quarter-finals.
19.25TEAM NEWS: Germany have named a strong attacking lineup for tonight's game, with Mesut Ozil, Thomas Muller, Lukas Podolski and Mario Gomez all starting. Meanwhile, Mr. Modest Cristiano Ronaldo leads a three-man strikeforce for the Portuguese. There's also a place for Raul Meiereles in the midfielder. You can see the full lineups here.
19.20It's been some tournament so far, hasn't it? We're only two days in but there have already been a glut of goals and a major shock. What's in store tonight?
body check tags ::
