Emboldened by a win over Iceland last week, Norway is looking to beat a diminished Portugal on Tuesday in the second 2012 European Championship qualifier for both teams.
Norway manager Egil Olsen said he hopes to capitalize on Portugal's disappointing 4-4 draw against Cyprus last week, as well the absence of injured Real Madrid winger Cristiano Ronaldo.
However, Norway will also be without one of its top players after John Arne Riise sustained a concussion in practice Monday, although Aston Villa striker John Carew is expected to return from an injury layoff.
Olsen said while he believes Norway will beat Portugal to retain its position atop the Group H table, he worries Portugal's disappointing result last week might prove a dangerous motivation for the team.
"It's no help to us that they now want to make up for their loss," Olsen said. "It probably would have been easier to play them if they had won their first match. Against us, they'll play a more carefully balanced game than they did last time."
Portugal captain Ricardo Carvalho confirmed his team's intention to fulfill Olsen's prediction.
"We have to be more compact, especially at the back," the Real Madrid defender said. In last week's qualifier, "we played well going forward, but we're normally more secure in defense."
Still, Norway will face a diminished Portuguese defense as Benefica defender Fabio Coentrao is slated to miss the match after sustaining a thigh injury.
Portugal coach Carlos Queiroz will also miss the match after the Portuguese Football Federation suspended him for one month on a misconduct charge. An internal inquiry found he had insulted an anti-doping team sent to test the Portugal squad ahead of the World Cup.
Agostinho Oliveira, Queiroz's assistant, is temporarily in charge of Portugal.
Ronaldo was ruled out for the first two qualifiers after picking up an injury playing for Real Madrid.
Norway, on the other hand, is coming off two significant wins - a 2-1 victory over Iceland on Thursday in its first European Championship qualifier and a 2-1 win over France in a friendly last month.
"Things are going our way these days, and the team's spirits are very high," Carew said. "This will be the toughest match we've played in a long time. But I believe we'll get the three points."
Carew missed Norway's first qualifier because of a knee injury.
Norway captain Brede Hangeland said the team is "absolutely able to beat Portugal."
"But we're playing what's generally thought to be (Group H's) best team, so we're going to have to give it our all," the Fulham defender said.
After one qualifying match, Norway leads Group H with three points, while Portugal is in third with one point.
