Vicente Del Bosque praised his side’s fighting spirit and looked ahead to Sunday’s final against either Germany or Italy, saying:
“The players have played so many matches and they have to show their best in one more.”
Del Bosque added: “It was a very even match but maybe we were a little better in extra time.
“They looked a bit tired, but there were few chances before that. It wasn’t easy to get through their defence.
“They were superior when it came to defence and we didn’t have that many opportunities so it was very balanced. In extra time it was slightly different and we had lots of luck with the penalties.
“I would like to express my congratulations to Portugal because they played a great tournament, but we were luckier this time.”
Del Bosque is aware his side will need to play better in the final, although he is not worried about who they will face in the showpiece.
“Portugal were in control today [Wednesday] and both teams only had a few chances to score, so we have to improve on this,” he said.
“The other semi-final will be a great match and whoever our opponent is in the final, that will also be a great match. But we don’t care about who our opponents are.”