Cristiano Ronaldo was ruled out of the match after picking up an ankle injury playing for Real Madrid on Sunday and although he failed to live up to his price tag at the World Cup, Portugal will miss him, especially after Simao unexpectedly quit the side last week.
Coach Carlos Queiroz is set to miss the first four qualifiers after his one-month ban from the Portuguese Football Federation's (FPF) for insulting anti-doping doctors before the World Cup was upped to six by the country's anti-doping agency.
"(The ban) will not affect the players' performances, the squad will not be affected," said FPF chief Gilberto Madail.
"The players have a lot of experience and can play in auto-pilot mode," he added.
Ricardo Quaresma, called up after Ronaldo's injury, will want to show his revival at Besiktas after a dismal spell at Inter Milan can also benefit the national side.
In defence, dependable right back Paulo Ferreira has retired from international football, making way for a debut call up for Braga's Silvio.
Holding midfielders Pepe and Pedro Mendes are injured and the vacancy is set to be filled by Valencia's Manuel Fernandes.
The dynamic and tactically astute Raul Meireles has arguably been Portugal's best performer for the last two years, but he may start on the bench against Cyprus after barely playing for Porto in the pre-season before moving to Liverpool last week.
Despite Queiroz's ban, the injuries and the retirements, anything other than a win against Cyprus would be a major upset for Portugal and bring back bad memories of the weak start to the last World Cup qualifying campaign.
