Euro 2000 semi final - France 2 Portugal 1

An ugly finish to the Euro 2000 semi final saw France beat Portugal 2-1 by a 118th minute golden goal from Zinedine Zidane with a penalty kick.

Portuguese players surrounded and intimidated referee Gunter Benko before and after Zidane struck the ball high into the net to finish this close game of few chances.

Referee Gunter Benko did not see the incident in which Portugal defender Abel Xavier handled a shot from substitute Sylvain Wiltord after Vitor Baia in the Portuguese goal had palmed away a shot from David Trezeguet.

Benko missed the clear hand ball but his assistant saw the infringement and drew the referee's attention to it just as everyone in the King Badouin stadium in Brussels had settled for a draw and the first penalty shoot out of Euro 2000.

Portuguese players surrounded the officials but television replays showed the decision was a good spot by the assistant and Luis Figo dragged off his shirt and walked off the field before the protests died down and Zidane stepped up to hit the winning goal.

Nuno Gomes took off his shirt as angry protests continued against Benko and the match officials as they walked off the field. Gomes threw his shirt at the referee in ugly scenes as the first referee controversy of Euro 2000 erupted.

There can be no doubt that Xavier deliberately handled Wiltord's shot and the Portuguese reaction could see them fined heavily by UEFA.

The penalty winner brought to a close a sterile period of extra time where Portugal looked to have penalties on their minds from the start.

Even though France pressed forward looking for a winner they did not convince in attack and the Portugal team defended very well to deny clear chances to the World Cup holders.

Sylvain Wiltord hit a shot at Baia in the 105th minute and in the 94th minute Laurent Blanc received a bloody nose when he headed a corner by Robert Pires over the bar but the extra session repeated the worst parts of a second half where both sides worked hard to restrict chances to the minimum in an even but uninspired encounter.

Ironically Abel Xavier came closest to winning the match for Portugal in the dying seconds of normal time when Luis Figo struck a free kick across the penalty area and the defender sent a powerful header at goal. Fabien Barthez instinctively tipped the ball over the bar in an excellent reaction save but either side of the 'keeper and the ball was in the net.

It was the best chance for Portugal in the second half as they came under sustained pressure.

Vitor Baia produced a great save from a long distance volley from Emmanuel Petit in the 76th minute. Petit struck the ball sweetly to the corner of the goal from at least twenty five metres and saw Baia dive low to tip the ball away in a move even the French star applauded.

France scored their equaliser with the only other real chance of the second half.

Intent on getting back into the match France poured forward from the start of the second half and Portugal looked to have seen out their fiercest attacks without conceding a chance but Nicolas Anelka broke clear on the right hand side of the penalty area and cut the ball back across goal to the near post.

Thierry Henry controlled the ball and carried it away from goal before turning and firing through two markers and across goal into the far corner. From that point France looked the more likely winners but still found it hard to create chances against the Portuguese defence.

A night of bitter defeat for Portugal had started well when France had been reduced to looking for long range shots after an opening spell where Portugal were pressed back.

Portugal scored their goal from nothing as a foray up field allowed the ball to run loose to Nuno Gomes five metres outside the penalty area and the Benfica star turned and swept the ball beyond Barthez in one motion that stunned the French. It was sadly the best Portugal would see but their over reaction to the penalty decision against them perhaps betrayed their team as unlikely champions after all.