Spain striker Alvaro Negredo has admitted that he thought his side's meeting with Portugal was an 'ugly match'.

After a goalless 120 minutes, La Roja advanced to the final of Euro 2012 with a 4-2 penalty shootout victory over the Portuguese.

The Sevilla striker, who was surprised to start the match, is happy that Spain came out on top in a physical contest.

"It was a very ugly game, in the sense that there were many aerial balls, lots of clashes, tackles, and I had to fight for every inch to wear the opposition out and make way for other players who could give other abilities to the team which were important later on," Negredo told Goal.com.

"I am very happy as we finally got what we wanted, this was a great result in a very tough match and we should be proud of it even if it wasn't truly achieved in style.

"To know that I was starting took me by surprise, it took a while to sink in because I knew it was a unique moment and I had to do my best. I tried to respond to my coach's confidence and do a job that maybe wasn't very flashy but very important instead; the dirty work of a physical fight with the Portuguese defenders to wear them out. It's hard to face physical players like Pepe or Bruno Alves."

Spain will now face either Germany or Italy in the final of Euro 2012 on Sunday.