Pepe: Germany did not deserve to beat Portugal

Pepe has asserted his belief that Germany did not run out deserved winners on the night, after they beat Portugal 1-0 in the first round of Group B fixtures in Euro 2012 on Saturday.

The Nationalelf emerged victorious in the contest thanks to Mario Gomez's second-half header, with the striker climbing above the Seleccao defender to nod the ball beyond Rui Patricio.

Speaking after the match, Pepe insisted his side should have amounted to more over the 90 minutes in Lviv, and went on to claim that his Real Madrid team-mate, Germany's Mesut Ozil, agreed with his analysis.

"In the first half, the game was very even, and we had one good chance to score. Then, we were unlucky in the second half," he told reporters.

"In fact, for Germany's goal, the cross deflected off Joao Pereira and I mistimed my challenge. It was a shame because we had good opportunities.

"We worked hard and we had more chances to score. I spoke with Mesut Ozil after the game and he said that we are a great side and that the fairest result would have been a draw.

"They run out winners in a match they did not deserve to win."

Regarding his shot that cannoned off the bar, Pepe added: "I was trying to aim for the corner because I had several players in front of me. I thought it was the best place for it go in, but unfortunately it did not.

"We showed our quality and had an excellent game."

Portugal play Denmark on June 12 in their next Euro 2012 clash.