Talk about a fall from grace. Approximately two years ago, Bert Van Marwijk was celebrating taking the Netherlands to the precipice of a first World Cup title ever, with a massive 3-2 win over Uruguay in one of the tournament’s most memorable games. Today, he is picking up the pieces following a disastrous EURO 2012 campaign which has seen the great Oranje exit the tournament with as many points as Ireland. Ouch.

It’s hard to find a silver lining for the Dutch coach, who seemed at a loss to explain how it all went so horribly wrong. I’m not exactly a UEFA licensed coach or anything, but the obvious starting point would be figuring out how the Netherlands, with players like Robin Van Persie, Klaas Jan Huntelaar, Arjen Robben, Rafael Van der Vaart and Wesley Sneijder failed to convert one of 28 chances, with only eight of those even getting on target. The Danes were a little more accuruate, even if they only had eight shots all game, with 100 percent of their shots on target.  They even managed to slip one into the goal!

Not even taking a point from that game was nothing short of a disaster. It handed the German’s the initiative, who proved much stronger and efficient in a 1-0 win over Portugal, and it put some very unwelcome pressure on Van Marwijk’s men. It was pressure they failed to cope with, and as reports of a fractured team began to surface from the Dutch camp, everything seemed set to go horribly wrong for the Dutch.

And so it did. They would once more come to regret many a missed chance, whilst at the other end the Germans took theirs, resulting in a 2-1 loss for Holland, and leaving their fate almost entirely out of their hands heading into a clash against Portugal that neither side could afford to lose.

Enter Cristiano Ronaldo. After being criticized for failing to score in Portugal’s opening two games, the Real Madrid megastar looked a man on a mission when he took to the field against the Dutch. Van der Vaart opened the scoring with an absolute pearler, briefly igniting Dutch hopes that the impossible could come true, but Ronaldo soon had them crashing back to earth, with a fine solo goal in the first half, before sealing the win with an astute finish to Nani’s glorious first time, cross-field pass. In one fell swoop, Ronaldo revived Portuguese hopes of taking out a European title they will feel they should have won in 2004, whilst eliminating one of the supposed main challengers.

Alongside the Germans, there is no doubting that the Portuguese deserved their progression into the quarter finals. Denmark proved valiant opponents, and no one enjoyed an easy ride against the Danes, a team seemingly determined to be a protagonist in a group full of superstars. They came undone against the Portuguese and the Germans, with the pivotal moment coming late in their second game of the tournament, when Portuguese youngster Varela scored with a stunning finish to win the game 3-2.

Portugal remain, for my liking, outsiders to take out the crown, but they have proven in the group stages that they do not need to rely on Ronaldo to get the required results. The 3-2 win against Denmark was a match won by the supporting cast, as opposed to the main star, whilst the win against the Netherlands was indicative of the ability Ronaldo possesses to win a big game almost entirely on his own. If these two facets to Portugal’s game can co-exist they could yet go a long way. A quarter final against the Czech Republic, avoiding the likes of Germany, Spain, England and Italy could be the slice of luck the Portuguese need, though, as I’m sure the Greeks would remind them, complacency could be costly.

The outstanding favourite for the tournament based on group stage performances then, must surely be the Germans. Three wins from three in a group that contained Portugal and the Netherlands is a fantastic result, and is unmatched by anyone else in the tournament. They will face the Greeks in the quarter finals and with no ill effects in terms of injuries and squad harmony from the group stages, the Germans are in as good a position as ever to win a first major international title since 2006.