New coach Bento targets 2012 berth

New Portugal coach Paulo Bento has refused to write off his country’s chances of qualifying for Euro 2012, insisting “anything is possible”.

Bento was formally unveiled as the successor to Carlos Queiroz at a press conference in midweek after finalising a contract with the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) until July 2012.

The new man’s primary task is to salvage the team’s Euro 2012 qualifying campaign, which started in dismal fashion with just one point collected from their first two games.

“We are conscious that things are difficult for us now. Having only one point is not good enough,” said Bento, whose previous managerial experience came with a four-year stint at the helm of Sporting Lisbon between 2005 and 2009.

“We still have the possibility to reverse things. Our mission is difficult but anything is possible. There is quality and motivation within the team.”

The appointment of 41-year-old Bento, who was capped 35 times by Portugal, comes less than a fortnight after the FPF dismissed Queiroz due to off-field issues and the team’s poor performance in their opening qualifiers.

Queiroz had been serving a six-month ban for his alleged misbehaviour during an anti-doping testing session before the World Cup and was sacked two days after Portugal suffered a surprise 1-0 defeat to Norway.

Portugal were also held to a 4-4 draw by Cyprus in their opening qualifier.

Agostinho Oliveira deputised for Queiroz in those matches, with the stand-in coach presiding over the country’s worst start to a qualifying campaign since 1996.

Despite the upheaval, Bento insists he will not offer any excuses if his new charges fail to reach the finals in Ukraine and Poland.

“From now on, any negative thing happening within the national team will be my responsibility,” he said.

Portugal are second from bottom in Group H and already trail leaders Norway by five points.

Bento will bid to get Portugal’s campaign back on track in their next qualifier at the Estadio do Dragao against Denmark on October 8 before playing Iceland in Reykjavik four days later.

“I wish to see Estadio do Dragao full,” Bento added.

“I know we are not in a position to ask anything. First we have to deliver. But I want to be at the Euros.”