MARSEILLE, France (AP) -- If Cristiano Ronaldo is to send Portugal to the semifinals and match Michel Platini's all-time European Championship scoring record, he'll have to find a way through a Poland defense that's among the toughest of the tournament.
Ronaldo has scored eight goals from four championships, one shy of Platini's nine, though he's been on inconsistent form in Platini's home country.
Frustrated and angry in Portugal's opening draws with Iceland and Austria, Ronaldo has shown flashes of his true talent since then, scoring two goals in a 3-3 draw with Hungary and setting up Ricardo Quaresma's winner against Croatia in the round of 16.
Poland's defense looks formidable after conceding just a single goal in four games. And even that needed a stroke of genius, in the form of Xherdan Shaqiri's spectacular overhead kick for Switzerland in the last 16.
Despite a lack of well-known defenders - the first-choice center-backs play for Torino and Legia Warsaw - the Poles have made a virtue of scraping through games, with two 1-0 wins and a victory on penalties against the Swiss. They also neutralized the attacking play of World Cup champion Germany in a 0-0 draw in the group stage.
Just like his great rival Lionel Messi, Ronaldo has never won a major title with his country. On what is widely considered the easier side of the draw, with a potential semifinal against Wales or Belgium, this could be his year.
While Portugal
beat a solid Croatia team 1-0, it didn't register a single shot on
target until deep into extra time. Winning ugly is fine for center-back
Jose Fonte, just as long as Portugal is winning.
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