England v Portugal
Saturday 01 July 2006
World Cup, Quarter-Final
Veltins-Arena, Gelsenkirchen
4pm kick off (London Time)

Joe Cole is backing England to beat Portugal in a thrilling clash next weekend - and reach the World Cup semi-finals.

Cole knows there are tougher and tougher games ahead for the Three Lions as they get to the business end of the tournament. But he has ultimate belief in the team's potential.

He said: "We know we're going to have to play really well to beat Portugal but people shouldn't forget we haven't conceded a goal in open play and we're defending really well as a team.

"I thought there were some positives against Ecuador. We should have scored more goals in the second half but we're in the quarter-finals of the World Cup.

"We're not singing from the rooftops but we're mentally very focused and ready for the next match."

Cole admits the 1-0 victory over Ecuador in steamy Stuttgart wasn't the best performance he has ever seen. But when it comes to winning World Cups the performance is not the only factor!

He said: "The only thing which matters is that we're in those quarter-finals. We're not up in the clouds playing wonder football, we're not going to get mugged that way. But we're focused. We know there are still things to improve on but we're getting better and better each game.

"The result is what it's all about. We could have played brilliantly and be packing our bags.

"Give us some credit. We played a good side in Ecuador. They've beaten Argentina and Brazil in their qualifying tournament.

"We did it in the heat and humidity, paced ourselves better this time, showed good fitness and got the job done."