U21 European Championship 2015: Final Schedule After Semi-Final Results

Portugal became the first team to qualify for Tuesday's final of the 2015 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, beating tournament favourites Germany by a resounding 5-0 score. In the other semi-final, Sweden beat Scandinavian rivals Denmark 4-1.

Bernardo Silva, Ricardo Pereira, Ivan Cavaleiro, Joao Mario and Ricardo Horta all scored for the Portuguese, who dominated from start to finish and thoroughly deserved their win. Germany finished the match with 10 players.

Meanwhile, John Guidetti, Simon Tibbling, Robin Quaison and Oscar Hiljemark found the net for Sweden in their 4-1 win over Denmark, which scored their only goal through Uffe Bech. Tuesday's final will be played at 7:45 p.m. BST (2:45 p.m. ET).

Recaps

Portugal 5-0 Germany

Matthias Schrader/Associated Press

Tournament favourites Germany were embarrassed by Portugal in the first semi-final, losing 5-0 and finishing the match with 10 players after Leonardo Bittencourt received his marching orders in the second half. The sending off didn't have much of an impact on the score―the Portuguese were already up by five at that time.

Portugal dominated possession from the opening whistle and used clever tactics to unnerve the German midfielders. Manager Horst Hrubesch instructed his players to play the ball out from the back with plenty of wide passes, but Portugal countered by attacking the passing lanes rather than the man carrying the ball, causing plenty of confusion in the German ranks.

William Carvalho was incredible in midfield, simply pushing opponents off the ball with his great size, and the Press Association's Simon Peach was impressed with his raw physicality:

Sergio Oliveira blasted the first good chance of the match off the post, but minutes—and two German bookings—later, Silva opened the score for Portugal after a delightful one-two with Pereira. The latter soon added a second goal, as he was left all alone at the far post on a corner. STV Sport's Stefan Bienkowski disapproved of Hrubesch's tactics:

Germany could hardly muster any chances in response, and Portugal continued to press their advantage. Silva was masterful distributing the ball in midfield, and his team-mates continuously found open spaces behind the full-backs.

Pereira took advantage of another defensive mishap to find Mario, who teed up Cavaleiro to make it 3-0 just before half-time.

Portuguese football insider Jan Hagen couldn't contain himself:

Bienkowski thought the match was just about over:

Whatever Hrubesch told his players at half-time had no effect whatsoever, as Portugal made it 4-0 one minute into the second half. Mario's shot took a wicked deflection, giving goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen no chance.

Silva was taken off the pitch almost immediately after, and without their star distributor, Portugal became a little more static. Germany couldn't take advantage, however, and Horta added a fifth goal with about 20 minutes left on the clock to further embarrass the Germans.

Leonardo Bittencourt couldn't take it any longer, lashing out at an opponent to earn his second yellow card. WhoScored's Ben McAleer noted he didn't make much of an impact on the match:

The sending off was the final nail in Germany's coffin, and Portugal took their foot off the gas and simply played out the match.

For Germany, this result is an utter embarrassment given the immense expectations coming into the tournament. Defender Robin Knoche told Wolfsburg's official website how badly he and his team-mates wanted the title, and he was sure his team would beat Portugal. In hindsight, it's clear Portugal were simply the better team:

"

Of course it’s wonderful that we have achieved our first goal, but we really want to win the title and we know that, to do that, we need to be fully concentrated and give our all in two more games.

[...] Both teams proved during the group stage just what they are capable of and how strong they are. That said, I firmly believe we will make it into the final if we perform to the best of our abilities.

"

Portugal will be the favourites heading into the final against either Sweden, having played the latter team to a draw during the group stages. The Swedes have proven a resilient team and won't back down from the challenge, but in terms of pure quality, Portugal hold the upper hand.

Denmark 1-4 Sweden

Petr David Josek/Associated Press

Sweden beat neighbours Denmark in Saturday's second semi-final, winning 4-1 to book their spot in the final of the 2015 European Under-21 Championship. The Swedes proved to be the more clinical side in a highly entertaining match that was exciting until the final minutes.

Denmark dominated the match early, with their Scandinavian rivals happy to sit back and let the match come to them. Yussuf Poulsen thought he had given his team an early lead after a wacky sequence off a set piece, but replays showed the ball hit him on the shoulder and arm on several occasions before crossing the line—and the goal was rightly disallowed.

Petr David Josek/Associated Press

It took the Swedes 20 minutes to climb out of their shell, but they were immediately rewarded. Alexander Scholz crashed into Isaac Kiese Thelin, and the official didn't hesitate, immediately pointing to the spot. Guidetti easily converted, giving his team a lead.

Just minutes later, Tibbling made it 2-0 with a bit of luck. The midfielder kept his composure and put the ball past Jakob Busk, sending the Swedish fans into a delirium.

The Guardian's Kristan Heneage came away impressed with Tibbling:

Denmark looked shell-shocked and could hardly muster any chances of their own, and their attempt to complete the comeback took a hit when Poulsen went down with an injury.

According to Bleacher Report's Sam Tighe, that wasn't the first time we've seen Poulsen go down during this year's tournament:

Jannik Vestergaard nearly pulled one back for the Danes early in the second half, directing his header just wide of goal. Oscar Lewicki did the same for the Swedes, who knew full well a third goal would end this match.

Out of nowhere, Sweden threw Denmark a lifeline. The Swedish defence made a meal out of a ball into the box, and Bech suddenly saw the ball at his feet, rifling it home from close range.

uMAXit's Conor Kelly started getting excited for the end of this semi-final:

Vestergaard nearly equalised minutes later, but he couldn't put enough on the ball, allowing Patrik Carlgren to make a last-second save.

Denmark were pushing for a winner, but they were caught by a quick break and failed to clear the ball in time, allowing Quaison to blast the ball home and secure Sweden's passage to the final. Sweden punished Denmark even further in the last minute of injury time, as Hiljemark put the final 4-1 score on the board.

Follow @ReverschPass.