Stepover king: Cristiano Ronaldo was frustrated by the German defence

In a barnstorming finish, German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer brilliantly denied Silvestre Varela to seal the victory as Joachim Low's men made a successful start to their quest for a first European crown since 1996.

Germany featured seven Bayern Munich players, all of whom will have felt a daunting sense of deja vu in the first half as Portugal set themselves to soak up the pressure.

Although Portugal started with Ronaldo, who has scored 112 goals in 101 appearances for Real Madrid, and Nani they set themselves up to nullify Germany and play for the draw.

Mesut Ozil was the Germany's main attacking threat and the three-times European champions came close to an early goal with a header from striker Mario Gomez.

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