France captain Zinedine Zidane during training in Munich on Wednesday. (Reuters)

Munich: Luis Figo and Zinedine Zidane, having seen off friends, rivals and fellow national team captains from their Real Madrid days, lead Portugal and France onto the pitch on Wednesday looking for a last shot at glory.

However, there were question marks over Figo’s participation in Wednesday’s semi-finals after news that the Portugal captain is struggling to regain fitness.

“Figo and Cristiano have been training well. They know they have problems and we need to check how they are to see if they can play,” coach Luiz Felipe Scolari said on Tuesday.

France’s Zinedine Zidane and Portugal’s Luis Figo want their teams to set them up for a big career finish by winning their semi-final encounter in Munich. For Zidane, the tournament marks an end to his soccer career altogether. The winners go to Berlin for Sunday’s final. The losers go to Stuttgart to play for third place.

Figo, the winger who has drifted inside to become Portugal’s most creative influence in their best World Cup for 40 years, bade fellow No. 7 and captain David Beckham adios after beating England in a shootout in Saturday’s quarter final.

Beckham has since stood down as England captain.

Zidane, the inspirational and majestic France skipper, has said goodbye to fellow captain Raul, Ronaldo and Roberto Carlos as his revitalised team swept aside Spain and Brazil. Yet, little more than a year ago, Figo and Zidane were themselves in retirement from their national teams, fatigued, bruised and demoralised by the pressures and criticism that followed Euro 2004.

Their comebacks, like those of all great performers, have proved the old adage that form may be temporary, but class is permanent.

Zidane, who was 34 on June 23, the evening when without him due to suspension a struggling France beat Togo 2-0 and secured a place in the second round, is retiring after this tournament.

Figo, 34 in November, has left his future open but after playing with age-defying verve and energy may carry on in club football with Inter Milan for at least another season.

Some star players ? Brazil’s Ronaldinho, Argentina’s Lionel Messi, and England’s Wayne Rooney, to name a few ? have already gone home, but the pair who came out of retirement for the World Cup are leading their countries’ charge toward the trophy.

Once, like Figo, the most expensive player in the world when recruited by Madrid and a former Fifa World Player of the Year, Zidane now cares little for celebrity status or media attention.Zidane is driven still by the same personal ambition and French pride that took him, the son of Algerian immigrants, from the tough La Castellane district of Marseille to World Cup glory in 1998. He did it once. Now, he wants to do it again.

Asked if Zidane, given his scintillating form, should delay his retirement again, coach Raymond Domenech said: “I think he’s playing like this precisely because he is retiring. He can play with freedom and expression because he knows every game could be his last.”

The same may be said of Figo, a survivor of the ‘golden generation’ that won the Fifa World Youth Championships of 1989 and 1991, and his team as they bid to reach the July 9 final.

Reflecting on Portugal’s stirring progress, Figo said: “You think about what you have done, about the country behind you, supporting you, suffering with you and that gives you the strength to continue to play.”

As to his own international future, he was bluntly direct. “Every game could be my last? I’m not eternal...”

(Agencies)

TACTICAL SNEAK-PEEK

France coach Raymond Domenech is expected to name an unchanged side for the third successive game, a preferred 4-2-3-1 formation with Henry alone up front. Portugal coach Luiz Felipe Scolari prefers a combative 4-5-1 system with Pauleta as the lone striker. Facing technically superior teams in the last two rounds, Portugal have not been ashamed to use rough-arm tactics and gamesmanship to unsettle the opposition.

FRANCE

Defence: Domenech started William Gallas with Lilian Thuram in the centre of defence in the build-up to the tournament. Gallas, who had previously been made to play at left back against his will, adapted in no time and the new formula works perfectly. Right back Willy Sagnol likes to get forward. Eric Abidal, on the left, is a little more cautious. France’s tight flat back four restricted Brazil to one shot on goal during the quarter final.

Midfield: Patrick Vieira and Claude Makelele play in front of the defence, covering plenty of ground. Zidane sticks to his playmaker’s role with Franck Ribery and Florent Malouda acting as wingers, often switching sides.

Attack: Domenech will opt for a single striker in Henry, who scored the winner against Brazil.

PORTUGAL

Defence: The back four have vulnerabilities but have proved rugged and determined, held the Dutch at bay and have conceded only one goal in five games. Centre backs Ricardo Carvalho and Fernando Meira are happier on the ground than in the air while full-backs Miguel and Nuno Valente sometimes appear to enjoy getting forward more than holding position.

Midfield: Playmaker Deco and midfield holding player Costinha return after missing the quarter final against England through suspension. Maniche has been impressive so far and has two goals, while Cristiano Ronaldo has improved and is a constant menace for defenders even if his final pass is often wanting.

Attack: Pauleta took his tally to 47 goals in 85 games when he scored the winner against Angola but has been pretty well shackled since. He knows his role well though and makes endless runs off the ball to provide a target for the midfield quintet.

(Reuters)

THE KEY MEN

FRANCE

THIERRY HENRY

Often criticised for his apparent lack of performance for the national team, Thierry Henry, with already three goals under his belt, could be the biggest threat to Portugal defence. He is a dedicated professional who came through the ranks of the French national soccer academy. He is fast, highly skilled and lethal in front of goal. Against Brazil, Henry came up from almost nowhere to volley home the only goal of the match to send the holders packing. Given his current form, he may repeat the same against Portugal.

ZINEDINE ZIDANE

Dismissed as a 'finished' footballer at the start of the tournament, Zinedine Zidane has made every opposition dance to his tune. A delicate ball player, who always has something new to offer, the midfielder is one player who holds the ability to make all the difference between the two teams. Given his showings against a compact Spain defence and a highly skilful Brazil, France will once again depend on him to deliver. He is capable of tearing apart the Portuguese defence and Scolari’s demigod status.

PORTUGAL

CRISTIANO RONALDO

Under fire from British press for his role in ejecting Rooney from the pitch in the quarter finals, Cristiano Ronaldo is the livewire of the Portugal attack. One of the hottest young talents in world football, he is a treat to watch because of his surging runs and dazzling skills performed at blistering pace. Against England, after Figo was taken off, Cristiano created panic whenever he had the ball. Scolari has a lot of faith in Cristiano and once said: “Cristiano has everything needed to be one of the stars of the World Cup.”

COSTINHA

Francisco Jose da Costa, better known as Costinha, is a vital part of Scolari’s gameplan in the current World Cup and could play a crucial role in taming Zinedine Zidane. A powerful defensive midfielder, Costinha has been picked up by Scolari because of his no-nonsense attitude, despite a loss of form at the club level for Dynamo Kiev. He had personal assurances from Scolari when the Russian team relegated him to the bench. He has scored his fair share of goals despite being a defensively-minded player.