I'd rather play ugly football and stay in Euro: Portugal's Danilo

Portugal midfielder Danilo has said that he would prefer playing ugly football and remain in the European Championship rather than provide an impressive performance and get eliminated.

Portugal failed to win a single match in the group stage and advanced to the pre-quarterfinals where they just managed to beat Croatia 1-0. In the quarter-finals, Portugal beat Poland 5-3 in a penalty shoot-out to enter the semi-finals.

"We know that we haven't played our best football during this tournament. We're aware that we are capable of much better but I would prefer to play ugly football and still be in the competition than play fancy football and be out like many of the other teams who have been sent home," he said.

When asked about Wales, Portugal's semi-final rival, the Porto player said: "We know how dangerous they are from set-pieces and training ground moves.

"They are very strong in the air and we are expecting it to be a complicated game but we are convinced that we will make it through to the final."

Danilo stressed that he has already studied all of Gareth Bale's skills, and there is no need to resort to the Welsh superstar's Real Madrid club-mate Cristiano Ronaldo to get more details.

--IANS

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