Strengths and weaknesses

A look at the strengths and weaknesses of the four semi-finalists at Euro 2004:

PORTUGAL v NETHERLANDS (Wednesday)

Portugal:

DEFENCE: The defence has been strengthened in the last three matches by Ricardo Carvalho, who replaced skipper Fernando Couto after the opening 2-1 defeat to Greece.

The inclusion of Carvalho along with Jorge Andrade and Costinha, who plays as an additional defensive midfielder, means Portugal look far more solid at the back now. The two goals they conceded against England were down to an individual error and indiscipline that no team can legislate for in the pandemonium following a corner at the end of a match.

MIDFIELD: Coach Luiz Felipe Scolari has changed his midfield in every match and may do so again for the semi-final. Maniche, Costinha and Deco started in a three-man midfield against England with Cristiano Ronaldo in attack. Simao Sabrosa added some bite when he came on in midfield against England in the quarter-final but he is likely to start on the bench again.

ATTACK: Helder Postiga has given Scolari a great option in attack following his goal against England but the coach also has to decide whether Nuno Gomes or Pauleta, back from suspension, starts. Luis Figo should retain his place despite a below-par display against England and a petulant high profile exit down the tunnel after being substituted.

Netherlands:

DEFENCE: The addition of Michael Reiziger to the defence after the suspension of Johnny Heitinga has strengthened the Dutch back line, while Frank de Boer's injury against Sweden in his 112th appearance means a return for Wilfred Bouma alongside Jaap Stam in the centre of a defence that has now gone two games without conceding a goal. De Boer is out of the semi-final, and probably the final as well if the Dutch get there.

MIDFIELD: Edgar Davids, Clarence Seedorf and Philip Cocu have played somewhat erratically in the competition, looking inventive at times but also bereft of ideas too. However, all three should start against Portugal, Seedorf recovering from injury to take Rafael van der Vaart's place in the starting lineup with positive effect.

ATTACK: Arjen Robben, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Andy van der Meyde have worked well together throughout Euro 2004 with Van Nistelrooy, with four goals, and Robben providing much of the ammunition, one of the successes of the tournament. When flowing forward, there is not much wrong with the Dutch attack.

GREECE v CZECH REPUBLIC (Thursday)

Greece:

DEFENCE: Greece's tall central defenders Traianos Dellas and Michalis Kapsis have formed a strong partnership and had a near-perfect match against Portugal in the opening match, giving Greece renewed confidence.

Their main weakness is a vulnerability to low balls played in from the wings but overall they have looked solid and dependable.

Left back Takis Fyssas has seemed tired in the past two games but his replacement Stelios Venetidis struggled to keep up with a speedy Russian attack.

Yourkas Seitaridis on the right has so far had a remarkable tournament, apart from an indifferent game against Russia. He won the penalty for Greece against Portugal and is among the most impressive players at Euro 2004.

MIDFIELD: The midfield has been a little unsettled with Giorgos Karagounis suspended for the match against Russia and Stelios Giannakopoulos missing the last two games because of injury. Still, the midfield has worked well, although without Karagounis and Giannakopoulos it struggled to be creative.

ATTACK: Angelos Haristeas is undoubtedly Greece's most talented striker. But the Werder Bremen man is often isolated up front and much depends on him taking what chances come his way.

Zisis Vryzas and Demis Nikolaidis have been dropping behind Haristeas, leaving him to take on the whole defence alone. He could do very little against the stronger Russian stoppers.

Czech Republic

DEFENCE: The Czechs should be judged on their opening two matches against Latvia and the Netherlands and their quarter-final win over Denmark as coach Karel Brueckner made nine changes for their third group match against Germany with qualification for the last eight assured.

Rene Bolf's illness, which kept him out of the 3-2 win over the Netherlands, was a worry but now he has recovered the Czech defence is back to full strength.

MIDFIELD: Karel Poborsky, Pavel Nedved, Tomas Rosicky and Tomas Galasek have been outstanding and this quartet could lead the Czechs to victory in the tournament. All have endless energy and play with great intelligence and understanding.

ATTACK: The harmony between Milan Baros and Jan Koller was highlighted when Baros scored the equaliser against the Dutch after Koller chested the ball down for him to lash home in their come-from-behind 3-2 win.

Koller and Baros (2) also scored against Denmark in Sunday's 3-0 quarter-final victory with Baros becoming the top scorer in the competition with five goals to date.