Portugal v Spain: Third final beckons for Del Bosque’s men

As reigning World and European champions, it is unsurprising to see Spain 2/5 favourites to qualify for their third consecutive major tournament final by any means.

Portugal are 7/4 underdogs to advance on Wednesday, and make their second European Championship final in the last three renewals of the competition.

Paulo Bento’s side will be encouraged by the emphatic victory they recorded over Spain in their last meeting, and they are 10/3 shots to defeat the champions in normal time again here.

That last triumph came via a 4-0 scoreline, and optimistic punters fancying a repeat of that astonishing result can have monster 325/1 odds about the outcome occurring once again.

Spain though, despite drawing criticism in the tournament thus far, vastly improved in their last outing against France, and look appealing chances at 10/11 to win in 90 minutes.

Vicente del Bosque appears to have finally found the correct balance to his side, and having conceded only once thus far in Poland and Ukraine, the Spanish may be worth taking on at 6/5 for a clean sheet on Wednesday.

La Roja can alternatively be backed to win the match without being breached, as they have in three of their four Euro 2012 appearances, at a generous 7/4.

Three Spanish players are tied with two goals apiece for the tournament, as Cesc Fabregas, Xabi Alonso and Fernando Torres each sit a goal away from Golden Boot contention.

Fabregas is likely to start as the most advanced Spanish player in this tie, and looks well worth a punt at 3/1 to score as his side triumph.

There is an added incentive to place a first scorer bet on this game meanwhile, with Ladbrokes offering to refund losing bets up to £100 on this market should David Silva find the net at any time.

Silva has already scored at the tournament, and so this offer appeals, with Fabregas a tempting 6/1 shot to break the deadlock.

Cristiano Ronaldo will provide Portugal’s most obvious threat of course, and is 6/1 to open the scoring with his fourth of the competition, and lend further weight to his Golden Boot bid.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.