Soccer News
Ecstacy for Portugal, agony for Spain
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| Portugal's forward Nuno Gomes (down) is congratulated by his teammates after scoring the opening goal for his team, 20 June 2004 at Jose Alvalade Stadium in Lisbon, during the Euro 2004 group A football match between Spain and Portugal, at the European Nations championship in Portugal. AFP PHOTO Francois Xavier MARIT |
Portugal breathed a collective sigh of relief on Sunday when they won Group A to make the Euro 2004 quarter-finals thanks to a lone strike by Nuno Gomes in the 57th minute that eliminated Spain.
Greece finished second in the group despite losing 2-1 against Russia but go through on goals scored as Spain suffer heartbreak yet again.
In a highly tense match, Gomes made the difference when he picked up a pass from Luis Figo, found enough space on the edge of the box and fired a low accurate shot past the despairing dive of Iker Casillas.
Greece lose and prosper
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| Russian Striker Dmitry Bulykin celebrates after scoring a goal, 20 June 2004 during their European Nations Championship football match at Faro stadium. Russia and Greece are competing in Group A with Spain and host Portugal. |
Greece qualified for the Euro quarter-finals for the first time in their history Sunday despite losing 2-1 to eliminated Russia, they scraped second place in Group A behind Portugal.
Dimitri Kirichenko scored in only the second minute while Dimitri Bulykin made it 2-0 for Russia after 17 minutes, heading home unmarked.
Greece pulled what was to be a crucial goal back through striker Vrizas Zisis two minutes before the break. A goal that gave them a better goals scored tally than Spain, beaten 1-0 by Portugal in the other Group A tie and eliminated with Russia.
Kirichenko scores fastest goal
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| Russian Striker Dmitry Kirichenko (L) is congratulated by his teammate midfielder Dmitry Alenichev after scoring a goal against Greece, 20 June 2004 during their European Nations championship football match at Faro stadium. Russia and Greece are competing in Group A with Spain and Portugal. |
Russian striker Dmitri Kirichenko scored the fatest ever goal in European championship history when he fired home after one minute and six seconds against Greece in Faro.
The 27-year-old, appearing in his first match of the tournament, seized on a missed clearance by Konstantinos Katsouranis to shoot past Greek keeper Antonios Nikopolidis.
The CSKA Moscow player's feat bettered that of four players, who have scored in the third minute, England duo Alan Shearer and Paul Scholes, Hristo Stoichkov of Bulgaria and Russia's Sergei Alenikov.
Swiss hope for French feat
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| Swiss defender Patrick Mueller adresses a press conference in Praia del Rey 20 June 2004. Swiss striker Alexander Frei risks missing the final Group B match with champions France after UEFA announced on 19 June it was to hold a disciplinary hearing into claims he spat at England midfield player Steven Gerrard during their Group B match in Coimbra. AFP PHOTO JOHN MACDOUGALL |
Senior Swiss players Patrick Muller and Fabio Celestini have found reason to be upbeat over their chances of beating France in Group B and making the quarter-finals on Monday.
"Before the Euro we thought it'd be impossible but seeing as the French have had their problems we may just get the result," figured Muller.
"We'd have preferred to have four points in the bag going into such a tie but our opening period against England has given us all hope," added Celestini.
Santini still at French helm
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| French defender Marcel Desailly answers journalists' questions during a press conference, 20 June 2004 in Coimbra on the eve of the Euro 2004 match France vs Switzerland. France are still hot favourites with British bookies to retain their Euro 2004 crown despite two indifferent performances in Group B against England and Croatia. AFP PHOTO FRANCK FIFE |
France coach Jacques Santini was forced to defend his tactics on Sunday after senior players including Zinedine Zidane and Marcel Desailly expressed their unhappiness to his choices.
Desailly, France's most capped player, said: "A group of four or five of us got together and we found a coach who was receptive to what we had to say.
"I don't want to share with you what he said, that will stay between us. Everyone put forward their arguments but it's the coach who will select the team for the Switzerland match. He is attentive, but he is the only captain on board."
Country before club for Beckham
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| England's David Beckham plays with the ball during a training session with his team, 11 June 2004, at the Estadio Nacional, in Lisbon in preparation for the European Nations championship. England will play 13 June its opening game at the Euro 2004 vs title-holder France. |
David Beckham has revealed that winning Euro 2004 with England would top any of his achievements in a trophy-laden club career.
"I've won a lot in my career," the England captain said. "I've been lucky enough to play in European Cup finals, FA Cup finals, winning the Premier League and coming second in the world player of the year. But to win something for my country would top it all off for me."
"I'd just love to win it for the whole country. I feel we deserve it as a nation and our fans deserve it.
"The support we get in games is incredible. You never see that anywhere else in the world. I'd love to win it just to see the adulation and the atmosphere in going back to London afterwards and seeing all the crowds".
Butt could be back for semis
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| England's midfielder Joe Cole (L) fights for the ball with midfielder Nicky Butt during a training session at the Estadio Nacional in Lisbon, 11 June 2004 on the eve of the start of the 2004 European Nations Championship. England will play its first Euro 2004 match against France 13 June. AFP PHOTO Paul BARKER |
England midfielder Nicky Butt's Euro campaign may not be over after all despite suffering knee ligament damage he's started training again just in case his teammates get to the latter stages out in Portugal.
"He (Butt) has started running and jogging a little and it's getting better and better so it's very positive for him and for us. So if we go further who knows?" smiled England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson.
"If we reach the semi-finals he may be ready but it's very difficult to say for sure. But he's working and that's good," he added.
Hargreaves ruled out
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| England's Owen Hargreaves, who plays for Bayern Munich, is seen during a mixed zone interview session at the England training camp, near Lisbon 10 June 2004. Speculation surrounds whether England Manager Sven Goran Eriksson will replace the injured John Terry with King. AFP PHOTO ADRIAN DENNIS |
England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson's options in midfield were further depleted on the eve of the crucial clash with Croatia with the news Owen Hargreaves will not take any part because of an upset stomach.
"Owen is not very well. I'm almost sure he is not available - he's not eaten for 48 hours," Eriksson said who is already without Nicky Butt.
"He (Hargreaves) is very useful when you want to defend a result," said Eriksson.
"He can play anywhere in the midfield and when he comes on he's always ready and always aggressive.
"He can keep the ball and is very strong."
Voller wary of weakened Czechs
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| Germany's coach Rudi Voller shouts at his team, 19 June 2004 during their European Nations football championships match against Latvia at Bessa stadium in Porto. Latvia and Germany are competing in Group D with the Netherlands and the Czech Republic. |
Germany coach Rudi Voller insists defeating the Czech Republic on Wednesday will be far from easy even if the Czechs rest key players for the knockout stage.
The 1996 finalists are set to field a second team, but Voller pointed to the defeat against Portugal in Euro 2000 in similar circumstances.
"I am not interested in whether they rest players," said Voller.
"The Czechs have a good squad and we just have to remember the game against Portugal four years ago when they left out some of their stars."
"We have to think about our strengths and what we can do," he added.
Olic escapes failed drug test ban
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| Croatia's forward Ivica Olic (L) vies with Switzerland's defender Bernt Haas 13 June 2004 at the Pessoa stadium in Leiria, during their Euro 2004 football match at the European Nations championship in Portugal. AFP PHOTO John MACDOUGALL |
Croatia striker Ivica Olic is free to play on at Euro 2004 despite testing positive for a banned substance after the 2-2 draw with France last Thursday UEFA said Sunday.
Olic tested positive for methylpresnisolone after the France match having been given a medicament containing it when he suffered a rib injury in a friendly against Denmark on 5 June.
UEFA fined the Croatian Football Federation 6,600 euros for failing to submit the necessary Therapeutic Use Exemption form (TUE) to them. Use of the medicament would have been deemed acceptable had the TUE been submitted.