Portugal are in the semi-finals and Ricardo Quaresma is again their last-gasp hero, though this time, it came in a penalty shootout that separated two desperately tired teams. Poland's furthest run at the Euros is over. They could not repeat their flawless performance in Saturday's last-16 shootout with Switzerland.

Once Cristiano Ronaldo and Robert Lewandowski, star men and captains of their respective teams, had taken the first spot kicks, it was down to their lesser teammates to take their turns. Jakub Blaszczykowski, so often the hero for Poland and definitely crucial at Euro 2016, had his kick saved by Rui Patricio and up stepped Quaresma to fire Portugal through.

Extra time had come and gone without much excitement; its major talking point was a worryingly familiar lapse of security that allowed a pitch invader to enter and head for Ronaldo, though he calmly sidestepped the uninvited guest before some late-arriving stewards restored order.

That it went into extra time was hardly a surprise, however. Poland had beaten Switzerland on penalties in the previous round, while Portugal had not led after 90 minutes in any of their four previous matches at Euro 2016.

Portugal were struggling early, after Lewandowski broke his tournament duck within one minute and 40 seconds and his Poland side pushed on for more. Then Renato Sanches, 18 and Bayern Munich's €35 million summer signing, showed that individual flair is no longer confined to Ronaldo.

Amid the drudgery of Portugal's late 1-0 round-of-16 defeat of Croatia, Sanches won man of the match despite arriving on the field in Lens only at halftime. He seized his chance on Thursday night with even greater vigour. An injury to Andre Gomes gave him a first-ever start for Portugal and his 33rd-minute goal, a thwacking drive, might have taken a deflection off Grzegorz Krychowiak but was precisely the injection a previously lethargic Portugal needed.

Until that goal and as was the case in each of their four previous matches, Portugal were utterly lacking in flow. Sanches gave them drive, unsettling Krychowiak, Poland's usually outstanding central midfielder, in the process. Poland's natural caution set in and their prolific early form dried up. Lewandowski managed just three touches in the penalty area after scoring in the second minute.

Instead, a previously open contest ebbed into a dour battle. Both teams adopted a defensive approach and the pace slowed on a steamy Mediterranean evening. Extra time was seemingly inevitable. Portugal came close when Artur Jedrzejczyk almost misdirected a Pepe pass into his own net, though Ronaldo squandered an even better chance, failing to connect from close range after beating the offside trap and running onto a clever chip from substitute Joao Moutinho.

It came in the 86th minute; a moment to reassert greatness was gone in a colourless overall individual display. Poland, with Lewandowski and Arkadiusz Milik utterly isolated, would go on to suffer their own collective agony.