United Portugal show their class

A united front was crucial as Portugal made their way to the last eight of UEFA EURO 2012 with a 2-1 win against the Netherlands, with João Pereira and Miguel Veloso proud of the cohesion they showed in setting up a quarter-final against the Czech Republic.

João Pereira, Portugal
Ronaldo was very well placed [for the first goal]. I was lucky enough to see him. The pass was also lucky enough to get through and the ball ended up going in. We deserved it. We'd had many scoring opportunities. We won but the result could have been bigger.

We've made it through to the quarter-finals – that was our main goal in a very difficult group, and many doubted us. We showed we're a united team, despite what the press has been saying. All of us fight for the same side and that shows on the pitch, where we were able to better ourselves and, despite going behind, we showed we're united and we turned it around.

We'll have time to think about the Czech Republic. They're obviously a good team because they also made it through to the quarter-finals. But right now we'll rest and make good use of our day off tomorrow to restore our energy. We need it badly.

Miguel Veloso, Portugal midfielder
The important thing is that once again we demonstrated the cohesion within this group. We played a great game. Once again I'll repeat that it's not easy being behind and then turning around the game against a team as strong as the Netherlands. I think the secret of our success is knowing how to defend, knowing how to handle the pressure, and the humility we showed on the pitch, and our unity. Not just the midfield but all the parts of the team, from the defence and the goalkeeper to the forwards. Because we were united, once again we managed to play a great game, to achieve a win, which was important.