How to stop Scolari scoring a hat-trick of triumphs over Sven-Göran Eriksson in successive tournaments? How to imbue England with the belief, momentum and knowledge that will enable the players to step up their performance level in the quarter-final?

Matthew Syed, aided by several experts in the thinking behind sports performance, and Tony Cascarino conduct an exhaustive analysis of the tricks, techniques and tactics England must employ.

Syed, a former Olympic competitor, explores the psychological impact of nerves and how to overcome them by developing mental toughness; as well as the qualities that England’s key men will have to show tomorrow if they are to perform to their maximum.

Cascarino knows what it’s like to play in the quarter-finals of the World Cup — he did so for Ireland against Italy in 1990. Using in-depth tactical analysis, he explains how Portugal will play, what dangers their key men pose and how England can neutralise them.

He also identifies Portuguese vulnerabilities that Eriksson’s men must exploit if they are to progress to the semi-finals. With so much wisdom to hand, there’s no excuse for being outfought or out-thought tomorrow.

1 THE MIDFIELD. Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard and whoever else plays for England won’t be outmuscled. But they mustn’t be outpassed. If they are, it’ll be hard to get a foothold in the game. Portugal’s midfield has very good technical players with excellent movement and ability to keep the ball but they’re not physically powerful in the way that, for example, France and Brazil are. Whoever plays from Luis Figo, Petit, Maniche, Tiago — they won’t outbattle you, but they can outplay you.

Portugal’s game plan is to get their midfield on the ball and let them invent. England must not let them dictate play. Tiago and Maniche were not good enough for Chelsea, so there’s no reason for Gerrard and Lampard to fear them.

There’s no need to man-mark Figo. For one, I believe you should make the opposition adjust to you, not the other way around; and even if you keep a great player quiet for 80 minutes, he can do something special in the 81st.

2 PRESSURISE RICARDO. Get the goalkeeper off his line. England will probably play with only one up front, but it’s important to try it as often as possible. Corners, free kicks, crosses whipped in early — get bodies in the box, give him something to think about.

He’s an OK shot-stopper, but really, he’s not a good goalkeeper; once he’s off his line, he’s potentially disastrous. He will drop the ball, he will punch crosses that he should catch. He’s agile but not physically imposing. Tempt him out and test him. He’s afraid of crosses and there’s a good chance that if he tries to claim them under duress, he’ll hit the deck and roll around looking for a foul he might not get. Peter Crouch is a viable option off the bench to disrupt Ricardo late on.

3 PAULETA. He’s much better than he looks. This is why: he is the best in the business at making unselfish runs to separate the centre backs and open space for his team-mates. He peels away, runs towards a full back. So the centre back follows and that creates a gap in the 18-yard box for a runner from midfield to exploit.

John Terry and Rio Ferdinand must avoid being dragged out of position by Pauleta’s sideways movement. But they have to be decisive, because Pauleta can cause hesitation — do I follow him or not? The holding player must help his centre backs by tracking the runners bursting from midfield.

Don’t worry about the ball over the top to him: Pauleta’s not quick. If he gets a yard on Ferdinand, the defender will still catch him. If Pauleta tries to drag the defence forward, don’t let him. England shouldn’t try to play a high line, squeeze the play and look for offsides, because with Portugal’s pace on the wings, a through-ball could catch England out.

4 JOE COLE. The left-sided midfield player must be more of a winger. He cuts inside too often, shaping to go wide then coming in and shooting. That won’t be news, to Portugal, they’ll expect it — so surprise them. Holland tried it with some success in the round of 16, proving that it is possible to get round behind Portugal’s full backs.

As David Beckham so often sits on the other flank, it’s especially important that Cole makes runs to stretch the pitch. And Portugal are steady in the centre of defence — another reason to go wide. Wayne Rooney can turn Ricardo Carvalho with his strength and cunning, but the Chelsea man is bigger and better in the air than Rooney and Portugal didn’t crack when Holland lobbed straight balls down the middle in the last few minutes.

5 NO RED CARDS. This is most crucial. You can’t cut out fouls, but you can avoid careless tackles.

Everyone knows that in this tournament, cards are being handed out like it’s Christmas, so beware. All the tactics and ability in the world can be meaningless if a team lose a man.

England’s full backs are key here. Sven-Göran Eriksson needs to have a word with them individually, tell them: you must not pick up an early booking. Remember the old saying, let them know you’re here? Do it by getting tight, not by putting your man in the stands. Chances are, if one of the full backs gets a quick yellow card, there’ll be a red one later on because Portugal’s wingers are so hard to play against.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Simão love to run at you, pacy and direct, make you commit to a tackle, then they go down easily. It goes for everyone, but especially Ashley Cole, left, and Gary Neville: don’t be reckless. Stand up to Simão and Ronaldo, force them to pass. Don’t give the referee a reason to book you and don’t give the wingers an opportunity to fall over and con him.