Midfielder Joao Mario says his Portugal team-mates know the Euro 2016 final against hosts France will be the "game of our lives".
The 23-year-old Sporting Lisbon midfielder said coach Fernando Santos has instilled a self-belief in the squad that can take the Portugal side one step further than their 2004 runners-up placing.
He said: "The French team are playing at home and they have every right to think about winning but we have our own mission, we know about our past against France.
"I'm certain that the whole group will think of it as the game of their lives because Portugal have never won a title.
"We want to make history, we can go down in Portuguese history. There is nothing like playing in a competition like this for our country."
The Euro 2016 final in the Stade de France in Paris on Sunday evening will pitch Cristiano Ronaldo into his second European Championship final.
The Real Madrid forward featured as an 18-year-old in the 2004 team that lost 1-0 to Greece as tournament hosts.
Losing a final is something Mario has in common with Ronaldo, having endured the pain of losing the climax of the Under-21s European Championship last year on penalties to Sweden - and he is using that to spur himself on.
"I have lost a final last year and I hope this year things are different," he said.
"I am certain that 100 per cent of the Portuguese believe that Portugal will win and that is what we want to believe, that is what we want to dream."
Mario was full of praise for coach Santos, who took over at the helm of the national side in September 2014, a month before a 1-0 Euro qualifiers win over Denmark started them on the road to the final.
"From the first day he gave us the idea of winning the European Championship, from the first day he was with us, and the squad began to believe more and more that it was possible.
"We believe in our ideas and it's an all or nothing for us.
"I've got a lot of motivation to win. In this part of the season, taking part in a final in this moment in my career, I don't think about the physical issue. This is a unique opportunity and I want to make the most of it if I'm picked.
"Our team is a mix of youth with some experience, it was the perfect combination, that is what brought this.
"There are some older players who give us advice above all, the coach has given us these chances and we have to make the most of them.
"The age of the player does not really count, the coach picks us on what the players can produce."
Meanwhile, central defender Pepe continued to train on his own as the remainder of the squad geared themselves for Sunday's showdown against the hosts in Paris.
The 33-year-old Real Madrid star, who has played a key role in his country's route to the final, completed a series of stretches and warm-ups during a 15-minute work-out in front of the Portuguese media at the team's base in Marcoussis.
Pepe missed the semi-final win over Wales due to a leg muscle problem that has been troubling him for some time.