Portugal vs. Spain Euro 2012: Fernando Torres and Others Who Must Step Up

With Spain set to take on Portugal on Wednesday in Euro 2012 action, there are several players for Spain that need to have good showings in order to win. Spain may be the defending Euro champions, but they will have to get around Cristiano Ronaldo and crew in order to maintain their success.

Ronaldo is a world-class player who deserves great recognition and attention from fans and media alike, but Spain as a whole is a world-class team. He most certainly will be given the respect he deserves from Spain, but it won't be without some contributing factors from players across the board if they hope to contain him.

These are the biggest players that will need to make an impact to see Spain victorious.

Alvaro Arbeloa

Arbeloa has the daunting task of facing Ronaldo on the defensive end, not an easy task for even the best players.

NDTV Sports stated it nicely in their coverage of the game, Arbeloa will have to be aggressive if he hopes to stop Ronaldo from taking over the game.

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Arbeloa cannot compete with his club-mate for speed, so he will seek to prevent him from building up a head of steam by intervening as soon as Ronaldo receives the ball -- if not before.

Ronaldo destroyed Gregory van der Wiel in the game against the Dutch and lost Theodor Gebre-Selassie to head home the winning goal against the Czechs, but if Arbeloa can frustrate him, Portugal's chances of succeess will decline sharply.

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Arbeloa will be expected to disturb Ronaldo at every turn on defense, making him feel uncomfortable as well as off-rhythm throughout the game. If Arbeloa can do this, he will be taking out the biggest, and most dangerous, threat in the game for Portugal.

Arbeloa has a tough task ahead of him, but he should do some great things for Spain.

Xabi Alonso

Alonso has had a solid showing thus far throughout the Euros. His passing ability is unmatchable in the tournament. He enjoys distributing the ball to teammates, and that gives Spain a great weapon in scoring as a team.  

Alonso recorded 101 passes from teammates in the victory over France, making it quite clear it is Alonso the team relies on to set their offense in motion.

If Spain wants to continue to win, they will once again look for Alonso in the open field to help establish their offensive threats. He doesn't necessarily need to score to be successful, and he will hope to show it again against Portugal.

Fernando Torres

While Fernando Torres hasn't been given the playing time many feel he deserves, he is still a threat to make an immediate impact whenever he enters the game.

Torres has been battling Cesc Fabregas for minutes and losing, rarely seeing playing time. Many of the minutes Torres has amounted, however, have been quality minutes. He scored two goals against Croatia while coming off the bench, so as he has shown before, he will still produce no matter what role he plays.

For Torres, it will be about proving his worth and putting a stamp on the tournament for good. He has been questioned for his leadership throughout the tournament, but he will look to prove those people wrong.

Everybody knows he has the skill to be great, now it's about showing it once again.

Spain is a heavy favorite for the entire tournament, but Portugal is one team that could very well knock them off. This is the stage where everything is possible and nothing is given.

In order for Spain to advance, these three players must make their mark on the contest from the early going.