EURO 2012 LIVE: Denmark v Germany and Portugal v Holland – all the action as it happens
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UPDATED:
19:03 GMT, 17 June 2012
Follow Sportsmail's coverage of Euro 2012 as Germany look to progress to the knock-out stages as they take on Denmark, and Holland slim hopes of getting out of Group B see them needing to beat Portugal. The action kicks off at 7.45pm.
Find me on Twitter @rbsfeatures or email me at rik.sharma@dailymail.co.uk to get your views across.
MATCH FACTS
Denmark 0-0 Germany (Lviv)
Referee: Carlos Velasco Carballo (Spain)
Portugal 0-1 Holland (Kharkiv)
Goals: Van der Vaart 11
Referee: Nicola Rizzoli (Italy)
16mins: Terrible miss by Helder Postiga! The former Spurs striker is gifted the ball after some terrible play by Van der Weil but a weak shot leads to a corner.
The ball is cleared but eventually comes back to Raul Meireles, but Chelsea's midfielder slashes the ball into the near side netting.
15mins: Ronaldo drives forward against a Dutch defence backing off, but his shot hits the outside of the post and goes wide. Threatening from the super star.
He already looks better than he did against Denmark, a game in which he missed two easy chances and was generally lambasted for his display.
14mins: Van der Vaart really showed there why he should have been included from the start earlier in the tournament. Probably the best goal so far.
Meanwhile, Germany push forward against Denmark but can't break through a tough defence.
11mins: GOAL! Arjen Robben passes it (yes, really) in to Van der Vaart and the Tottenham man wraps his foot round the ball from 25 yards out and bends a stunning strike into the far left corner. Superb.
7mins: The corner is poorly cleared by goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg and Bruno Alves fires the rebound towards goal from distance, but it drops narrowly over.
6mins: First effort from Ronaldo – a free kick – is deflected over for a corner.
5mins: What a chance! Muller again with a chance at the back-post but mis-hits his shot and it's a let off for Denmark. His scuffed effort is caught by Andersen.
4mins: Bendnter's header from a corner for Denmark is comfortably collected by Manuel Neuer.
Tough: Holland must win by two goals and hope other results go their way
3mins: And Wesley Sneijder does similarly for Holland after a deep cross from Gregory van der Weil falls to him on the left.
2mins: Germany already playing some nice football, a good move culminating in Thomas Mueller blasting over from a tricky angle.
And we're off! A couple of seconds earlier in Lviv than at the Holland game, it must be noted.
7.40pm: All the teams are out for their anthems. Can you feel the tension rising
7.24pm: The group winners will face Greece in the next round on Friday June 22, while the runner-up will play the day before, against the Czech Republic.
7.22pm: There will be some big-name casualties tonight. Two of Robin van Persie, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Cristiano Ronaldo and self-proclaimed world's greatest Nicklas Bendtner will be leaving Euro 2012.
7.16pm: Does everyone remember the tempestuous Holland v Portugal clash in 2006 I hope tonight's game is as entertaining as that. Sixteen bookings and four red cards – some people complained that it ruined the spectacle, but I would argue otherwise. A real firecracker of a match and one of the most memorable I've ever watched.
7.03pm: My final input on the permutations front – until someone scores and we have to take stock of what's going on – is this (and it's a complex one, so get your thinking caps on):
Portugal can go through tonight if they win, draw or lose. If they lose by a one-goal margin and Denmark also lose, they go through. A draw takes them through as long as Denmark win. And a win of any kind is good enough, unless Denmark win by a one-goal margin with a scoreline that's not 1-0 or 2-1.
Just remember that if two teams are level on points, whichever side has the best head-to-head record against the other goes through. If more teams are level, it goes to goal difference and then to goals scored.
Hunting ground: Will these Portugal fans leave Kharkiv smiling or with their tails between their legs
6.59pm: Germany just need a draw to go through as group winners. But they can still go out – if they lose by any result other than a one-goal defeat in which they score two goals AND Portgual beat Holland.
More simply, opponents Denmark know they go through if they win, or they can progress with a draw if Portugal lose.
6.56pm: Holland have put out a very aggressive side – with Rafael van der Vaart finally starting a match at Euro 2012, ahead of defensive midfielder Mark van Bommel.
It's easy to see why though – they desperately need a win by at least a two-goal margin to go through, and even then they have to hope Denmark are beaten by Germany.
Big chance: Denmark could progress if they beat Germany
6.50pm: Denmark: Andersen; Jacobsen, Agger, Kjaer, S. Poulsen; Zimling, Kvist, Mikkelsen, Eriksen, Krohn-Dehli; Bendtner
Germany: Neuer; Bender, Badstuber, Hummels, Lahm; Khedira, Schweinsteiger, Muller, Ozil, Podolski; Gomez
Close: Germany just need a point
6.43pm: Holland: Stekelenburg; Van der Wiel, Vlaar, Mathijsen, Willems; De Jong, Van der Vaart; Robben, Van Persie, Sneijder; Huntelaar.
Portugal: Rui Patricio, Pereira, Bruno Alves, Pepe, Coentrao; Meireles, Veloso, Moutinho; Nani Postiga, Ronaldo
Oranje Army: Dutch fans brightening up the tournament
6.40pm: Good evening and welcome to Sportsmail's coverage of the final round of fixtures in Group B. It was labelled the group of death at the start of the tournament and it hasn't disappointed so far.
A quick glance at the table suggests Germany are on the verge of qualifying while Holland are on the brink of disaster, but it could all change within a matter of moments. We'll bring you the team news as soon as it's in.
Ready to go: Germany's Joachim Low watches over his side as they prepare for their final group game with Denmark