Brazilian World Cup-winning coach Luiz Felipe Scolari arrived in Lisbon to take charge of Portugal's underachieving national team on Saturday saying his goal was to win the 2004 European championship.
Scolari said Portugal, host country for the June Euro 2004 finals, had the raw material to win their first major international title despite a humiliating first-round exit from the World Cup this year.
"We didn't come here just to do a good job," Scolari told a news conference broadcast live on radio and television.
"We came here to reach the goal of the entire Portuguese people...to reach the European championship final in the role of winners," he said referring to himself and his Brazilian assistant coach Flavio Teixeira and trainer Darlan Schneider.
Scolari said he would look beyond such stars as Real Madrid midfielder Luis Figo and AC Milan playmaker Rui Costa in putting together his squad. He stressed that he was looking for team players.
"Any player who has the will, the discipline, who wears his jersey with honour, with loyalty, who is an athlete who makes up a part of the team, is welcome on the national squad," he said.
Scolari, 54, faces a major task rebuilding the confidence of a Portugal squad who were among the favourites going into the World Cup finals in May and June.
WORLD-CUP FAILURE
Portugal suffered a shock first-round exit after losses to the United States and co-hosts South Korea and left under a cloud after two players were sent off against the co-hosts.
Coach Antonio Oliveira was fired and caretaker Agostinho Oliveira has steered the squad until Scolari's hiring. Portugal automatically qualify for the Euro 2004 tournament as hosts.
The championship is a major investment for Portugal, one of the poorest countries in the European Union and facing a government budget crisis. Portugal is building or revamping 10 stadiums at a cost of 550 million euros ($562 million).
Portuguese Football Federation chairman Gilberto Madail said hiring Scolari was "a calculated financial risk". Details of his contract Scolari signed on Saturday were not disclosed.
Although Scolari has less than two years to get Portugal out of the doldrums, he performed a similar task with Brazil in just 14 months.
Known as "Big Phil", Scolari steered Brazil from one of the lowest points in their football history to a record fifth World Cup title with a 2-0 win over Germany in the Yokohama final.
Scolari was in charge of Kuwait when they won the Gulf Cup and Brazil's Palmeiras and Gremio clubs when they took the South American Libertadores Cup.
He will begin working with the national squad in January. His first game as head coach is a friendly against Italy in Florence on February 12.
Asked how he would feel when Portugal played Brazil in a friendly next year, Scolari said he would always root for his own country's team.
"But in this (Italy) game, my heart will be Portuguese," he said.
