A goal up after two and a half minutes, there was an opportunity to impose themselves but they preferred to sit back. So it was that Cristiano Ronaldo could end up rightly shrugging: "We were better than the English over 90 minutes."
The only time Eriksson's men threw caution to the wind all night was when they had to after Rui Costa's goal and they responded with such gusto that they had clawed it back within five minutes.
Admittedly, once they had lost Rooney, they had lost the one threatening focal point for counter-attack yet if you drop deep for an hour, chasing down fine players like these, you deserve to pay eventually.
England paid with weariness. "By extra time, the lads were knackered," admitted David James. "The gaffer said we were fitter than we were in the World Cup but the amount of defending we did against France and here took its toll."
Helder Postiga's late equaliser seemed to sum up the difference in the two teams' ambition.
Eriksson played safe but Luiz Felipe Scolari dared haul off one of the world's greatest players Luis Figo and bring on a youthful Spurs flop.
Within seven minutes, the gamble had paid off just as the other bold move to take off his full-back Miguel and bring on Rui Costa changed the face of the game.
Just luck for 'Big Phil'? "As a lot of people say I'm no good, it must be luck," he nodded, before adding pointedly: "Oh, I have won 16 lucky titles in my career."
Costa played like the champion Portugal once knew him to be. His goal was a thing of beauty.
Yet his brilliant cameo made you think of the contribution of our champion. It seems harsh to say it of someone who scrapped so valiantly for five hours in this tournament but Beckham's contribution has been lots of sweat, no inspiration and two missed penalties.
His major championship record now reads: played three, blown three.
Then there was the penalty shootout. Just a lottery? No, we can't keep saying this any more.
These mini-dramas decide championshipsand we keep losing them. That's because they are more to do with technique, skill and nerve than luck.
Was it bad luck that David James did not get a sniff of keeping one out while Portugal trusted in a keeper, Ricardo, who's renowned here as a specialist at saving spot kicks and showed why when he foiled Vassell? "That wasn't a miss. That was a great save," James admitted.
Gary Neville had been through it all before.
"Three times now for me and there'll be cynics now who say it's a mentality thing with us," he said.
"Yet tonight it was as much down to the penalty spot as anything."
Ah, the damned spot. After hearing Michael Owen explain that "we trained on the pitch on Wednesday and a lot of players were losing their footing then", it made you wonder why Beckham, as first to kick, hadn't taken more precautions about stamping down the turf. Moaning to the referee about it afterwards was a bit pathetic.
In case this all sounds too damning, it is only fair to emphasise that Eriksson's men could not for a single second be faulted for their total commitment and massive heart this past fortnight, epitomised by the extraordinary efforts of Sol Campbell and Ashley Cole last night.
Led by the unreal Rooney, they have provided some magnificent entertainment and been involved in two epic contests, letting absolutely noone down.
"I have to go and get my heart checked it was so thrilling," said Scolari. Too true. It should be a considerable consolation that England have really helped illuminate this splendid tournament.
And when Frank Lampard, one of those who has come of age here as an international, said "we have proved that we're a force and aren't far off being able to win championships", it did not sound outlandish, whereas it would have done four years ago after the misery of Charleroi.
Yet there is one thing that never seems to change.
"Tonight's was the sort of game where you know you are going to have to suffer - and we did suffer," said Neville.
"But you know if you get through them, you go on and win tournaments."
Sadly, England have still not learned how to negotiate this pain barrier.
