Coentrao ruled out of Norway Euro 2012 qualifier

Portuguese defender Fabio Coentrao was ruled out on Saturday of Tuesday’s Euro 2012 qualifier against Norway after injuring his right thigh in Friday’s opening qualifier a 4-4 draw with Cyprus.

The 22-year-old Benfica defender underwent scans on Saturday and it was decided that he would not be able to recover in time for Tuesday’s match with the Norwegians.

Portugal are going through a rough patch after a much criticised World Cup finals campaign which saw them go out 1-0 to eventual winners Spain in the second round, their coach Carlos Queiroz has been suspended for six months and star player Cristiano Ronaldo is injured.