Cristano Ronaldo: Star Must Get Help to Capture Euro 2012 Title

Portugal's chances at winning the European Championship have taken a huge hit now that they are firmly situated in Group B, which has come to be known as the group of death.

The Netherlands, Denmark and Germany make up the other three quarters of the group, and are ranked No. 4, No. 10 and No. 2 in the FIFA World Rankings, respectively. As if Portugal could afford for things to go any worse, they open up the tournament against the Germans on June 9.

Cristiano Ronaldo is the captain and the best player that will be on the pitch for Portugal. He comes into the tournament playing some of the best football of any player, as he notched 11 goals in his last 9 matches with Real Madrid. Chances are, he's going to keep performing at the top level that we're used to, but he is going to need help from his teammates if Portugal is going to win the 2012 European Championship.

Boss Paulo Bento must demand and receive strong performances from forwards Helder Postiga, Hugo Almeida and Nani.

Postiga needs to work with Ronaldo to open up shots from a distance for both players. Most of the attention will be on Ronaldo, as teams will be trying to prevent him from striking from long range. So if Postiga can put together a string of games where he takes plenty of effective shots, both players will benefit.

Nani needs to open up the field for both Postiga and Ronaldo. He's as talented as most players when it comes to dribbling and making key passes, so if he is able to make plays for his fellow attackers, Portugal will have a much easier time competing in the group of death. If Nani can dribble his way into the offensive zone, Ronaldo will be able to cut inside and make close opportunities for himself.

If Ronaldo is able to cut inside, teams will have to worry about his inside game and outside game. When the opposition can't key in on one particular aspect of Ronaldo's game, and has to worry about a dual threat, he's that much more dangerous.

We know of Ronaldo's brilliance on the pitch, especially his brilliance when it comes to set pieces. It makes it much easier for him to be effective when his teammates are drawing attention from the defense also. He's so versatile in his ability to facilitate for his teammates or capitalize on their playmaking, but none of that matters if his teammates aren't at their best.

The defense needs to step up as well if the Portuguese team is going to be able to withstand the relentless attacks of the three other members of their group.

They'll need Fabio Coentrao to play the possession game whenever he can, utilize his passing skills to his advantage and feed the attackers up front to spark counterattacks whenever possible. Pepe is more of the same on the back line, as the two need to use their capable tackling abilities to keep their opponents' shots to a minimum. What the two lack in aerial prowess is made up for by Bruno Alves, who can compensate for that deficiency.

Portugal knows what they are going to get out of Ronaldo on a match-to-match basis, but it's his teammates who are often questioned. If the aforementioned players can put on an above-average showing in the group stage, this Portuguese team may be able to make a run.