Portugal eliminates Russia; Spain ties

LISBON -- Portugal beat Russia, 2-0, yesterday at the European Championship, keeping alive its hopes of advancing to the quarterfinals while knocking the Russians out of contention.

Nuno Maniche scored for the host nation in the seventh minute to the delight of green-and-red clad fans at Benfica's Stadium of Light. Maniche took a centering pass from Deco and shot into the right corner from 12 yards.

Russian goalkeeper Sergey Ovchinnikov was ejected in the 45th minute for handling the ball outside the penalty box. The mistake looked unintentional, with his hand brushing the ball, but referee Terje Hauge disagreed.

Substitute Rui Costa scored in the 89th minute to seal the victory for Portugal, which faces a showdown with Spain Sunday. Russia needed to win to stay alive after losing to Spain, 1-0, in the opener last weekend.

Spain 1, Greece 1 -- Earlier in Porto, surprising Greece tied Spain to stay in contention for a quarterfinal berth. The Greeks beat Portugal, 2-1, in their opener. Angelos Charisteas shot under Spanish goalkeeper Iker Casillas for the tying goal in the 66th minute.

The Spaniards took the lead in the 28th minute when Greek defender Mihalis Kapsis lost possession inside his own area on the left. Raul Gonzalez pounced on the ball and deftly passed it to Fernando Morientes, who maneuvered his way wide of two defenders and fired a low shot into the far corner for a 1-0 advantage.

Spain and Greece lead Group A with four 4 points each.