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Arshavin stars as Russia oust Sweden

2008-06-19T10:53:00.000-07:00

Guus Hiddink's gamble of taking the previously suspended Andrei Arshavin to UEFA EURO 2008™ paid off in spectacular fashion with the forward putting in a fine performance as Russia downed Sweden 2-0 to set up a Basel quarter-final against the Netherlands on Saturday.

Back in style
The FC Zenit St. Petersburg player was a constant menace to a Sweden side requiring only a draw to stay above their opponents on goal difference, scoring Russia's second goal and striking the post in the second half. If Arshavin showed what Russia had been missing in their first two games, his team-mates displayed class of their own when a fine move resulted in Roman Pavlyuchenko's breakthrough strike after 24 minutes in Innsbruck.

Guessing game over
With much of the talk in the build-up to the Group D decider centring around Arshavin and Zlatan Ibrahimović, the news that both were starting came as something of a surprise. Hiddink had hinted that Arshavin was not match-fit while the condition of Ibrahimović's knee meant the target man was a doubt until the last minute. The Russia coach was at least true to his promise that his side would chase victory from the off. Arshavin's pass into the middle of the Sweden area saw Igor Semshov and Diniyar Bilyaletdinov collide with the goal at their mercy, although Lars Lagerbäck's men threatened in return soon after. Anders Svensson's cross found Ibrahimović, only for the No10's downward header to be collected by Igor Akinfeev with Henrik Larsson lurking.

Fine opener
Arshavin and Bilyaletdinov missed chances as the quarter-hour approached before the former sent in a cross-shot that goalkeeper Andreas Isaksson tipped over. From Konstantin Zyryanov's corner, Yuri Zhirkov's thunderous shot zipped just wide. Then Russia's moment arrived. Arshavin released Zyryanov down the right and the midfielder in turn found Aleksandr Anyukov's run inside the box. The right-back rolled a pass to Pavlyuchenko and the tall striker calmly finished for his second goal of the finals. Sweden almost levelled moments later but Larsson's clever header from a Mikael Nilsson cross bounced back off the bar. At the other end, Pavlyuchenko's next effort struck an upright after another slick interchange involving Arshavin and Bilyaletdinov.

Lead doubled
Five minutes after the break and Russia had their second goal. Makeshift left-back Zhirkov found himself racing away from the Sweden defence before he crossed for the returning hero – on the run, Arshavin had no problem directing the ball past Isaksson's right hand. Sweden were visibly rocked and although their players began to react in the final third of the pitch, the best they could manage was an Olof Mellberg header that flew harmlessly over Akinfeev's crossbar. It was turning into the Andrei Arshavin show and after the little maestro was booked for upending substitute Kim Källström, he was almost through on goal again but was finally outmuscled by Fredrik Stoor.

Spurned chances
With the contest entering its closing stages, Russia should have enhanced their advantage as their enterprising attacking play produced several late chances. Zyryanov went close when his deflected attempt came back off the post before Pavlyuchenko spurned two great opportunities – first heading straight into the grateful hands of Isaksson, then mis-hitting a shot with only the goalkeeper to beat. No matter: the 2-0 scoreline was enough for them to overhaul Sweden by three points and finish second behind Spain.

Greece Euro Campaign Ends On A Sad Note

2008-06-19T10:49:00.000-07:00

First international goals for Rubén de la Red and Daniel Güiza earned a second-string Spain team a 2-1 comeback victory as Greece's hope s of ending their UEFA European Championship title defence on a high were spoiled at the last.

Comeback
RCD Mallorca's Güiza rose unmarked with two minutes remaining to head in Sergio García's cross and complete an impressive second-half revival by Spain, who had fallen behind to Angelos Charisteas's header just before the break. However, after a tepid first half, Spain began the second with renewed vigour – Xabi Alonso hitting the post before Real Madrid CF's De la Red made it 1-1 on 61 minutes, rifling in after Güiza had nodded the ball into his path. The same pair almost added gloss to this third successive win for Spain, while Charisteas grazed the outside of the post at the other end, but it was Güiza who had the last word.

Nikopolidis nerves
With the fate of the two sides bookending Group D already decided, and given the belated arrival of the Austrian summer, an end-of-term feel prevailed early on in Salzburg. For Greece's captain for the day, goalkeeper Antonis Nikopolidis, it was exactly that, with the 37-year-old having announced his international retirement in the wake of his error against Russia that sealed the holders' elimination. But while he may have been forgiven a few pre-match nerves at the Stadion Salzburg Wals-Siezenheim, these were quickly eased. The cheers of the Greece supporters behind his goal had barely died down when Nikopolidis was presented with a comfortable save, collecting Güiza's dinked cross after the forward failed to realise how much time Andrés Iniesta's expertly disguised pass had given him.

Alonso special
It was a false dawn in terms of attacking spectacle. Stung by the premature end to their campaign, Greece were circumspect at first despite the wide threat of recalled pair Giorgos Karagounis and Dimitris Salpingidis. Spain had the better of the possession, even if García and Cesc Fàbregas in particular did not make the most of it. Alonso offered a more serious threat midway through the opening period when he almost caused Nikopolidis embarrassment after spotting that he had been drawn off his goalline. The Liverpool FC midfielder nearly added another to his collection of goals from his own half, but with Nikopolidis scrambling, his attempt dropped just the wrong side of the upright.

Charisteas strike
If Spain were not exactly peppering Nikopolidis's goal, however, it was still more than Greece were mustering. Yet Otto Rehhagel's UEFA EURO 2004™ winners in Portugal were hardly renowned for their attacking play either – instead neutralising opponents and making their few chances pay, often from dead-ball situations. They found exactly that route to goal three minutes before half-time, with Karagounis's free-kick finding Charisteas all alone and the No9 burying his header into the top-left corner.

Turnaround
Goaded into action, Luis Aragonés's team were almost level soon after half-time as space opened up for Alonso to rifle an unstoppable effort that Nikopolidis was grateful to see come back off his post. It was a brief let-off for the Blue and Whites, and just after the hour De la Red restored parity with a fulsome finish. Both sides had opportunities to add to the scoring but the stage was set for Güiza, who ensured Spain would go into Sunday's quarter-final against Italy in Vienna on the back of a 100 per cent record in Group D. For Greece, it is home time.

Italy continues to dominate france

2008-06-19T10:45:00.000-07:00

World champions Italy qualified for the UEFA EURO 2008™ quarter-finals in impressive fashion on Tuesday as they defeated France 2-0 at the Letzigrund Stadion and Romania lost by the same scoreline to the Netherlands.

Pirlo penalty
Romania had begun the evening second in Group C and would have progressed regardless of events in Zurich had they beaten the already-qualified Dutch. But their reverse opened the door to the Azzurri who clinically grabbed the opportunity, inflicting another painful defeat on France and condemning the FIFA World Cup finalists to last place in the section. The game's turning point arrived in the 24th minute when, after fouling Luca Toni, Eric Abidal was sent off and Andrea Pirlo converted the resulting penalty. Daniele De Rossi's second-half strike added gloss to a wonderful evening for Italy, dampened only by the yellow cards for Pirlo and Gennaro Gattuso which mean they will miss the quarter-final against Spain on 22 June in Vienna.

Ribéry injury
France almost handed Italy an ideal start when Toni pounced on Abidal's slip, only to shoot narrowly wide. Having started slowly in each of their first two matches, Les Bleus were keen to seize an early grip and Franck Ribéry twice fired efforts wide before, to the dismay of the France fans, the winger injured his left leg in the tenth minute and was carried off. Samir Nasri was sent on, yet France's focus appeared to waver and Claude Makelele immediately needed to clear a Christian Panucci header off the line.

Red card
Italy looked menacing every time they broke and after Simone Perrotta had narrowly failed to collect Pirlo's pass, France finally cracked. Abidal fouled Toni as he bore down on goal, prompting the referee to point to the spot and brandish a red card. Pirlo made no mistake, expertly dispatching the ball into the top left-hand corner. The double blow left France reeling and despite defender Jean-Alain Boumsong replacing the unfortunate Nasri, the two-time champions were in disarray. Toni might have scored three in as many minutes before the half-hour, but after skilfully back-heeling Antonio Cassano's cross fractionally past the post, the FC Bayern München forward twice missed the target with only Grégory Coupet to beat.

Gross free-kick
Thierry Henry had a chance to raise French spirits in the 34th minute but after racing on to Jérémy Toulalan's slick pass, the FC Barcelona forward directed a cross-shot past the post. With the strikers struggling to find their range, Fabio Grosso looked to show them the way just before half-time, curling a brilliant free-kick towards the bottom corner only for his Olympique Lyonnais team-mate Coupet to push it on to the post.

Almighty roar
Despite playing with ten men, France began the second period in the ascendancy, with Karim Benzema volleying over before Henry had two shots comfortably saved by Gianluigi Buffon. News that the Netherlands had opened the scoring against Romania prompted an almighty roar from the Azzurri faithful and the celebrating continued when De Rossi scored on 62 minutes. The AS Roma midfielder's 30-metre free-kick took a cruel deflection off Henry, wrong-footing Coupet and effectively ending the French challenge. Although Benzema subsequently saw his swerving shot brilliantly tipped wide by Buffon in the 74th minute, there was no way back for France, who finished with just one point after losing back-to-back matches for the first time in 15 years.

Dutch on a roll

2008-06-19T10:40:00.000-07:00

Second-half goals from Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Robin van Persie ended Romania's hopes of a quarter-final place in Berne as the Netherlands rounded off an impressive Group C campaign with a third successive victory.

Netherlands on top
Romania knew three points would ensure they joined their opponents in the last eight, but Victor Piţurcă's side were always on the back foot and Huntelaar, having passed up one presentable opening in the first half, clinically guided in Ibrahim Afellay's teasing right-wing cross nine minutes into the second. The win was sealed for a largely second-string Oranje team with three minutes left as Van Persie drove in his second goal in as many games.

New-look lineup
With progress already assured following victories against Italy and France, Marco van Basten named a much-changed lineup with only Khalid Boulahrouz and Orlando Engelaar retaining their places. That was little relief for Romania, however, given that the reshuffle brought Arjen Robben, Van Persie and Huntelaar into the XI, and the Netherlands started the match showing their usual command of possession, Romania having to hector and hassle for every touch. Nonetheless, the best the Dutch had to offer in the early exchanges was an Engelaar shot from distance which Cristian Chivu bravely charged down. If the key to tackling Van Basten's side was to deny them space, it seemed Romania had found it with everyone chipping in to cut the Oranje supply lines.

Near misses
The Netherlands were not held entirely in check, as Van Persie headed wide from an Engelaar cross. Romania then threatened for the first time, Adrian Mutu collecting a throw-in and twisting and turning to work space only to pull his shot across the face of goal. Next, Boulahrouz got behind the Tricolorii back line on the right, cutting the ball back for Huntelaar, but the AFC Ajax striker lifted his effort over. Robben was soon guilty of a more glaring miss, running on to a Huntelaar flick only to nudge his attempt wide of Bogdan Lobonţ's right-hand post. Paul Codrea may have been equally disappointed to have missed the target after Răzvan Raţ's teasing pass from the left wrong-footed the Dutch defence as half-time approached.

Huntelaar strike
The Group C winners took up where they had left off after the interval and might have broken through within four minutes of the restart when a long ball found Van Persie with only Gabriel Tamaş for company. But while the Arsenal FC attacker spun his marker, Lobonţ turned his low shot round the post brilliantly. The goalkeeper had no chance five minutes later, however, Afellay's ball from the right finding its way through a crowded penalty area for Huntelaar to guide in expertly.

Late clincher
With news filtering through that Italy had taken a 2-0 lead against France, Romania's situation now looked desperate. Still unable to master possession, they continually found themselves on the defensive but while flying interceptions and timely challenges kept Piţurcă's men in contention, it was goals that were needed. Mutu set up substitute Florentin Petre for an overhead kick that looped over but for all their efforts, Romania were not to conjure up a second Miracle of Berne at the stadium that hosted West Germany's 1954 FIFA World Cup triumph, Van Persie underlining the class divide with the fiercely-struck second goal. The Netherlands will play either Sweden or Russia in the last eight in Basel on Saturday, while Romania finish in third position.

Euro 2008 standings

2008-06-17T11:40:00.000-07:00

STANDINGS

Group A
Group B
Group C
Group D

Group A

Teams	Pld	+/-	Pts
Portugal	3	2	6
Turkey	3	0	6
Czech Republic	3	-2	3
Switzerland	3	0	3

Group B

Teams	Pld	+/-	Pts
Croatia	3	3	9
Germany	3	2	6
Austria	3	-2	1
Poland	3	-3	1

Group C

Teams	Pld	+/-	Pts
Netherlands	2	6	6
Romania	2	0	2
Italy	2	-3	1
France	2	-3	1

Group D

Teams	Pld	+/-	Pts
Spain	2	4	6
Sweden	2	1	3
Russia	2	-2	3
Greece	2	-3	0

Croatia Storms Into Quarter-Finals

2008-06-17T11:36:00.000-07:00

Croatia rested a host of players yet still proved too strong for Poland as they won 1-0 in Klagenfurt to finish on maximum points in Group B and confirm their opponents' early exit.

Klasnić winner
Ivan Klasnić scored the winner early in the second half at the Wörthersee Stadion to end another defiant show from goalkeeper Artur Boruc and further boost Croatia's confidence before they tackle Turkey in the quarter-finals on Friday. Poland's slim qualifying hopes rested on at least a two-goal victory here and a win for Austria over Germany, and neither came off as Michael Ballack struck the only goal in Vienna.

Duo retained
Poland needed goals so it was something of a surprise that Leo Beenhakker chose to omit Euzebiusz Smolarek, whose marksmanship played a big part in securing qualification to UEFA EURO 2008™ as group winners ahead of Portugal. The coach also left out defender Jacek Bąk who had been hoping to make his 97th appearance. As expected, Slaven Bilić made wholesale changes to the Croatia team with only two players retained from the starting XI who had conjured the famous victory over Germany.

Knežević injury
One of those was left-back Danijel Pranjić and when he made an early forward raid it left a gap which Poland were quick to exploit. Marek Saganowski headed on for Wojciech Łobodziński whose cross brought goalkeeper Vedran Runje out to clear, injuring Dario Knežević in the process. Although the right-back played on after treatment, he was eventually forced off in the 27th minute. By that stage Croatia were taking a firm grip on proceedings and only the brilliance of Boruc kept the score at 0-0. Mladen Petrić played Klasnić in but out came the Poland No1 to make another of those blocks that so frustrated Austria four days ago. From a difficult angle, Ivan Rakitić then found Boruc in the way as he attempted to clip the ball across into the area.

Klasnić goal
After a promising start in which Dariusz Dudka got up well to meet a corner only to place his header wide, Poland were largely on the back foot. On the stroke of half-time Boruc came to the rescue again after Klasnić had skilfully worked an opening. In the 53rd minute Klasnić at last got the better of him. The architect was Pranjić and when he picked out the striker in the penalty area, Klasnić stylishly whipped the ball back across Boruc and into the far corner. Despite the introduction of Smolarek, things remained relatively easy for Croatia's defence with Dario Šimić, winning his 99th cap, also looking to attack from right-back when the opportunity presented itself.

Poland chances
A smart turn from Roger Guerreiro almost brought Poland back into the contest but he was narrowly wide of the mark. It was a rare moment of hope for the massed ranks of their supporters seated behind the Croatia goal, though another arrived soon after when Marcin Wasilewski's header forced Runje to stretch. Bilić could afford to give Nikola Kalinić his first run-out at the tournament and only his second cap late on, although Poland did threaten parity when Smolarek fired just wide and substitute Tomasz Zahorski saw a great opening closed by the diving Runje.

Ballack Takes Germany To Quarter-Finals

2008-06-17T11:31:00.001-07:00

Germany captain Michael Ballack booked his side's place in the UEFA EURO 2008™ quarter-finals with a thunderous free-kick, ending the hopes of Austria despite a valiant effort from the co-hosts in Vienna.

Clinical strike
To overtake their opponents and claim the runners-up spot in Group B, Austria needed to beat their neighbours – something they had not achieved since defeating West Germany in 1986. The home team enjoyed long periods of possession but, as in their February friendly loss in this stadium against the same opposition, were made to pay for a lack of a cutting edge up front – Ballack settling the contest in the 49th minute with a characteristically clinical set-piece. Coach Joachim Löw, who was sent to the stands with his Austria counterpart Josef Hickersberger just before half-time, can look forward to a quarter-final against Group A winners Portugal in Basel on Thursday.

Remarkable miss
Hickersberger made three changes to the side that snatched a last-gasp draw with Poland on Thursday, surprisingly giving 21-year-old Erwin Hoffer his second senior start in place of Roland Linz up front. If that was designed to improve the co-hosts' potency, it initially backfired as Germany enjoyed the better of the early exchanges and, but for a remarkable Mario Gómez miss, the home crowd would have been silenced by the fifth minute. Miroslav Klose was the architect of the move, tricking his way down the right and delivering a low cross that bypassed goalkeeper Jürgen Macho, only for Gómez to mistime his shot at the unguarded net, allowing György Garics to head his looping effort off the line.

Austria advance
Gómez then drew a regulation save from Macho with a low angled drive, before Hoffer began to provide evidence of the poaching skills that made him such a prolific scorer in his country's youth teams, narrowly failing to control an Andreas Ivanschitz cross which would have left him clear. Austria nevertheless took heart from that opening and enjoyed their first spell of sustained pressure, Jens Lehmann diving to his right to touch behind René Aufhauser's low shot, although Macho had to do likewise to keep out a Lukas Podolski attempt from distance.

Ballack breakthrough
With so much at stake, it was little surprise that tensions were running high on and off the field, and following a heated exchange on the touchline Hickersberger and Löw were dismissed. It was the latter whose side seemed less affected by their coach's absence, however, and within four minutes of the restart Germany were ahead. Ivanschitz pulled down Philipp Lahm as the left-back drove forward and Ballack exploited the resulting free-kick to the full, driving an unstoppable shot high into the net from 25 metres.

Positive omen
Lahm and Podolski both missed the target while Macho saved from Per Mertesacker and Klose as Germany sought to increase their advantage. Nonetheless, Austria never lost heart and Hoffer flashed a shot just wide of Lehmann's goal. Germany have now won their last five games against these opponents and at the final whistle celebrated reaching the last eight for the first time since 1996 – when they went on to lift the trophy. Meanwhile, for the first time no host nation will be represented in the knockout rounds.

Turkey Magic Ends Czechs Euro Dreams

2008-06-17T11:24:00.000-07:00

Two late Nihat Kahveci strikes booked ten-man Turkey a place in the quarter-finals of UEFA EURO 2008™ in an exhilarating climax to their Group A match against Czech Republic in Geneva.

Gripping finale
Jan Koller gave the Czechs a 34th-minute advantage with a thumping header before Jaroslav Plašil turned in Libor Sionko's cross to double the lead two minutes past the hour. Turkey gave themselves a fighting chance thanks to Arda Turan's low effort before Nihat capitalised on a Petr Čech mistake to level three minutes from time. With a penalty shoot-out looming, Nihat galloped clear to send Turkey through with a spectacular finish, although there was still time for goalkeeper Volkan Demirel to be sent off for shoving Koller. Tuncay Şanlı took the gloves as Fatih Terim's men set up a quarter-final against Croatia.

Koller in
The two teams kicked off with identical records and a draw would have necessitated a penalty shoot-out to decide who took second place behind Portugal – an outcome both coaches were anxious to avoid. Karel Brückner opted to start with Koller up front, and his height ensured the Czechs had the better of the opening period, with Tomáš Ujfaluši launching long passes forward for him to knock down to Libor Sonko and Plašil. Such direct tactics nearly paid dividends as Sionko headed Marek Jankulovski's free-kick wide.

Tuncay shot
Koller was causing havoc every time the Czech Republic pushed forward, steering one header narrowly over before finding Marek Matějovský for an attempt that was well dealt with by Volkan. Turkey were struggling to get into the game but finally registered their first effort on goal when a Tuncay strike fizzed wide of Čech's upright, although it was the Czechs who continued to look the more likely to make the crucial breakthrough.

Perfect delivery
That opening goal eventually arrived in the 34th minute from a predictable source as Zdeněk Grygera escaped down the right to deliver a perfect cross for Koller to nod his 55th international goal beyond the despairing dive of Volkan and give his side a richly-deserved lead. If their first-half travails were not worrying enough for Turkey, they also had the knowledge that the Czechs had never lost a competitive match in which Koller had scored.

Czechs in control
That statistic seemed ever more relevant in the 62nd minute when Plašil met another fine centre, this time from Sionko, with a sliding first-time volley that Volkan could not keep out. Despite the increased deficit there had been hope for Turkey, with Nihat and Tuncay both going close after the restart as Terim's team finally began to find their feet on a slippery surface. In the countries' previous meeting, Turkey had scored twice in the closing two minutes to earn a draw but such a scenario appeared a long way off as the Czechs threatened again as Jan Polák rattled the upright.

Nihat impact
Suddenly, however, Turkey revived as Hamit Altıntop cut in from the right for a cross that found Arda – the hero against Switzerland – at the far post to halve the deficit. The Czechs still looked like holding on, until an uncharacteristic error from Čech shattered their chances. The No1 dropped another Altıntop centre at the feet of Nihat, who duly prodded in. Two minutes later Altıntop's pass sent Nihat through and the Turkey captain clipped the ball in off the underside of the crossbar under extreme pressure to take his side through. They will play Group B winners Croatia in Vienna on Friday, when Mehmet Aurélio will be suspended along with Volkan.

Yakin goals send hosts out on a high

2008-06-17T11:21:00.000-07:00

Co-hosts Switzerland brought the curtain down on their UEFA EURO 2008™ campaign with a stirring performance at St. Jakob Park, signing off with a victory thanks to two second-half goals from Hakan Yakin.

Pride restored
Though it was not enough to take them off the bottom of Group A, the win restored pride in a side who had been left with little else to play for after opening the tournament with successive defeats. Yakin struck on 71 minutes then again from the penalty spot with seven minutes left. Prior to that, a second-string Portugal team – featuring only three starters from their previous victory – had made enough chances to win the game, although they should be back at full strength when they return here for Thursday's quarter-final.

Popular choice
Köbi Kuhn was overseeing his last match in charge of Switzerland and he recalled the ever-popular 37-year-old goalkeeper Pascal Zuberbühler for his first taste of UEFA EURO 2008™ while midfielder Johan Vonlanthen replaced Tranquillo Barnetta. Though there was nothing at stake in the group, Switzerland fans were determined to give Kuhn and his side a rousing send-off and they were in full voice early on. Portugal, though, were giving more reason to cheer. Luiz Felipe Scolari's reserves were playing for their places and Ricardo Quaresma showed his credentials on seven minutes with a delightful pass flicked from behind his standing leg which Hélder Postiga headed wide. Ten minutes later Nani caught the eye, firing a low free-kick into the box to Pepe whose touch was spectacularly tipped on to the bar by Zuberbühler.

Give and take
It was not all one-way traffic, however. On 19 minutes, goalkeeper Ricardo pushed a Gökhan Inler effort over before blocking Valon Behrami's shot with his legs. In an entertaining encounter, chances were coming thick and fast, and just before the half-hour Ricardo was again pressed into action to palm away Yakin's header. With the latter stages of the competition in mind, Scolari brought on Jorge Ribeiro – brother of Maniche, a star of the 2004 finals – for Paulo Ferreira in the 41st minute as the Chelsea FC full-back had been booked.

Woodwork
The start of the second half brought more missed opportunities. Postiga headed over, Nani hit the post when clean through, and Zuberbühler saved from Quaresma. Quite what Eusébio, watching on from the stands, made of such profligacy did not bear thinking about. Portugal were almost made to pay when substitute Barnetta snapped a shot at goal from close range on the hour – Pepe coming to the rescue with a brilliant block. Four minutes later Vonlanthen had the cow bells ringing again with a rasping drive that clipped the post.

Breakthrough
The breakthrough finally came on 71 minutes when Eren Derdiyok's deft touch slipped Yakin in behind the Portugal defence and the 31-year-old rifled the ball beyond Ricardo. Yakin made sure of the points after 83 minutes with a powerfully struck penalty after Fernando Meira had impeded Barnetta's run in the box. That left St. Jakob Park buzzing, yet it is the Portuguese who live to fight another day.

Greece out of the euro cup

2008-06-17T11:16:00.000-07:00

Russia's young stars had been urged to "learn fast" by their coach Guus Hiddink and they came of age in Salzburg as Konstantin Zyryanov's solitary goal earned them a 1-0 win against Greece, thus ending Otto Rehhagel's team's reign as kings of Europe. After both sides had lost their opening matches in UEFA EURO 2008™ Group D, the stakes were high at the Stadion Wals-Siezenheim, but Russia emerged victorious to knock defending champions Greece out of the tournament.

Nikopolidis error
The only goal will haunt Greece goalkeeper Antonis Nikopolidis long into the night as he inexplicably chased a cross by Diniyar Bilyaletdinov that had already cleared his posts by five or six metres all the way to the touchline, and he was made to pay the full price for his 33rd-minute excursion. The Olympiacos CFP keeper was beaten to the ball by Russia captain Sergei Semak, who hooked it back over his head and Zyryanov was on hand to guide it ever so simply into an unguarded net.

Constant threat
Roman Pavlyuchenko, who recovered from a groin injury to start the match, was a constant threat to Greece and he created the first real opening in the 14th minute with a curling shot from the corner of the penalty area and Nikopolidis had to be at full stretch to tip it over the bar. From the resulting corner, Yuri Zhirkov flashed a shot a metre wide and Russia appeared the stronger of the two teams in the opening exchanges. The closest Greece came to Russia's goal in the first half came in the 20th minute when Angelos Charisteas just failed to connect with a free-kick cross from his captain, Angelos Basinas. Midfielder Igor Semshov cleared the danger in highly irregular fashion, the ball bouncing up off his boot and into his face before passing harmlessly wide.

David villa fantastic form continues

2008-06-17T11:07:00.000-07:00

David Villa struck two minutes into stoppage time as Spain defeated a stubborn Sweden 2-1 at the Stadion Tivoli Neu in Innsbruck to guarantee their presence in the UEFA EURO 2008™ quarter-finals as Group D winners.

Spain through
The game had looked like ending in a draw after Zlatan Ibrahimović's second goal in as many games had wiped out Fernando Torres's 15th-minute opener on a chilly evening in the Austrian Alps. Yet Villa, the scorer of a hat-trick in the opening triumph against Russia, had other ideas as he raced on to Joan Capdevila's pass and dispatched it low into the net. Russia's later 1-0 win against Greece confirmed Spain's progress and completed a clean sweep of groups clinched with a game to spare after the efforts of Portugal, Croatia and the Netherlands. To earn a quarter-final against the Dutch, Sweden must now get at least a point against Russia here on Wednesday.

No surprise
Spain coach Luis Aragonés surprised no one by selecting the same XI that had started the Russia game, but there were only hints of the devastating fluidity of that 4-1 win as Sweden hustled and harried effectively. Ibrahimović could even have given Lars Lagerbäck's side the lead inside the opening minute only for the FC Internazionale Milano striker's normally assured touch to escape him when well placed inside the box.

Netherlands Dream Run Countinues

2008-06-14T00:58:00.000-07:00

The Netherlands secured their place in the UEFA EURO 2008™ quarter-finals with a game to spare after producing another devastating display against France in Berne, with Dirk Kuyt, Robin van Persie, Arjen Robben and Wesley Sneijder all scoring in a memorable win.

Clinical counterattacks
Twenty years after his goals led the Netherlands to the European title, Marco van Basten's 2008 crop underlined their case as serious contenders by building on their defeat of Italy to tie up first place in Group C. There may have been less of the flamboyance they had shown in beating the Azzurri – the Dutch riding their luck at times after Kuyt's early breakthrough – but the speed of their counterattacking play was again in rich evidence, never more so than in the second goal scored by Van Persie after a lightning surge by Robben. Even when Thierry Henry halved the deficit, Robben immediately restored the two-goal cushion to leave France, punished further by Sneijder, bottom of the section with a solitary point – and with everything to do against Italy on Tuesday, when the Netherlands play second-placed Romania.

Early setback
France, under pressure to perform following their opening stalemate against Romania, came out with Henry installed as leader of the line in place of Nicolas Anelka and Sidney Govou drafted in on the right, allowing Franck Ribéry to play as second striker. "Time to step up a gear" declared the front page of the morning's L'Equipe newspaper yet within nine minutes they were behind, Kuyt striking from the game's first corner. Rafael van der Vaart swung the ball in and the Liverpool FC forward got in front of Florent Malouda to nod past Grégory Coupet.

France threat
Kuyt then nearly profited from Lilian Thuram's misdirected header but, at full stretch, steered over. Les Bleus gradually found their stride, however, with Govou stepping past Joris Mathijsen and sending in a low drive that Edwin van der Sar saved with his legs. The volume of the France supporters began to rise as Florent Malouda, Govou and then the busy Ribéry all tested Van der Sar and Domenech's team picked up where they had left off on the restart as Henry pounced on a deflected centre by Patrice Evra – starting instead of Eric Abidal – and shot goalwards only to be denied by André Ooijer's block.

Substitutes combine
The FC Barcelona striker had an even better chance soon after but put too much weight on his lob after Malouda's acrobatic chip had sent him clear. How he was left to rue that miss when the Netherlands' two substitutes combined for the second goal after 59 minutes. Ruud van Nistelrooy sent Robben speeding down the left and his cross was volleyed in by Van Persie off the hand of Coupet.

Spectacular fourth
The excellent Van der Sar palmed away Ribéry's shot as France sought a lifeline and it came when Willy Sagnol provided the low ball for Henry to reduce the shortfall with a neat flick after 71 minutes. Yet hopes of a comeback lasted less than a minute. The tannoy music had barely stopped playing when Robben concluded a three-man move by blasting the ball between Coupet and his near post. Things only got worse for France, for whom this defeat was the worst in UEFA European Championship finals history, as Sneijder rounded off a stunning win in suitably spectacular fashion – driving in a fourth off the underside of the bar in added time.

Buffon Keeps Italy Afloat

2008-06-14T00:52:00.000-07:00

Romania coach Victor Piţurcă declared himself "satisfied" with Friday's 1-1 draw against Italy at the Letzigrund Stadion, although he felt the Azzurri were "lucky" to escape with a point after Adrian Mutu's late penalty was saved by Gianluigi Buffon. His Italian counterpart, Roberto Donadoni, said his team had the better of the Group C game and apologised to the 'tifosi' "because we did not get the three points we deserved".

Victor Piţurcă, Romania coach
We didn't win but this is a good result for Romania. We have played the champions and the runners-up of the last [FIFA] World Cup and we still have a chance. If we play as well in our next match [against the Netherlands] we can qualify. It was a fair result, and though we should have scored our penalty, we can be satisfied with 1-1. Of course you could say Italy were lucky. When you have a penalty against you and the player doesn't score, that is a lucky thing for Italy. I wasn't surprised we made so many chances – Italy are not at their best and I counted on this.

The fact Mutu missed a penalty is part of the game, it is nothing new. I am more upset by the way they were able to score against us than by the penalty miss. Penalties have been missed, are missed, and always will be missed. I told Mutu to focus and concentrate and hit the ball very hard but maybe he was influenced by the fact Buffon is one of the greatest goalkeepers in the world. He didn't miss – it was Buffon who made a great save. We did have our moments and passed the ball around well. We had some bad moments too, as far as our defence was concerned, but it was a more spectacular game today because both teams needed a win.

Roberto Donadoni, Italy coach
We played well, we were determined and I am pleased with the performance. We pushed forward but we also suffered at times because Romania are a team to be reckoned with. They don't concede much space as you saw against France. We were hurt [after losing 3-0 to the Netherlands] and sorry for hurting so many Italian fans. We are sorry tonight as well because we did not get the three points I think we deserved. In terms of chances and general play, we were better than Romania. Their defence is very good so my congratulations to Romania, but I think we had more openings. Just because [Alessandro] Del Piero and [Luca] Toni were top scorers in their leagues you can't expect them to score all the time. I'm not worried about it either. They haven't scored so far but this happens.

I didn't see any bad defending from us. [Gianluca] Zambrotta's [misplaced header which led to Mutu's opening goal] was more of a mishap, an accident. In fact, Zambrotta deserves a word of praise. He did well in all areas of the pitch and linked up well in attack. I liked Toni's performance very much – he gave everything. He fought and he also created for others. Alex [Del Piero] sacrificed his attacking instincts to make passes for his team-mates. He had to ask for a painkiller because he was having a few problems which is why I replaced him, he seemed tired. The next game will be very important and we will use this adrenalin to prepare for France. The players are disappointed because they did not get their rewards, but the disappointment is short-lived. It only lasts overnight because tomorrow we focus on the next game.

Austria Draws With A Late Penalty By Josef Hickersberger

2008-06-14T00:47:00.000-07:00

After requiring a 93rd-minute penalty to scrape a draw with Poland, Josef Hickersberger is banking on improved finishing from his forwards when Austria tackle neighbours Germany in their decisive Group B fixture.

Nail-biting night
The brilliance of Poland No1 Artur Boruc and the profligacy of the Austrian forwards contributed to a nail-biting night at the Ernst-Happel-Stadion, where Vastic drove in a stoppage-time spot-kick to earn the co-hosts their first-ever point in a UEFA European Championship. They will need three more on Monday to stand a chance of qualifying, and Hickersberger remains undaunted. "With the support of the fans to inspire us, it won't be a hopeless case against Germany," said the 60-year-old. "The team put in a fantastic performance in the first half but we just didn't take our chances to score."

No advantage
Hickersberger played both in the Bundesliga – for Kickers Offenbach 1901 and Fortuna Düsseldorf – and in Austria's only competitive victory against their rivals, a 1978 FIFA World Cup tie which put paid to West Germany's chances of advancing in Argentina. Although he would love to repeat that that feat on home soil, the veteran trainer refused to see any portents in history. "That's far too long ago and doesn't have any bearing on what's going on here," he said. "Any player who thinks that we have any kind of advantage over Germany going into this game needs to get it out of his head over the next few days."

A Dream Victory For Croatia

2008-06-14T00:41:00.000-07:00

Croatia defender Josip Šimunić paid tribute to his team's hunger and dedication after their 2-1 victory against Germany in Klagenfurt helped them seal first place in UEFA EURO 2008™ Group B.

'Outstanding game'
Darijo Srna slid in the opener for Slaven Bilić's men after 24 minutes and, instead of being forced back as they were against Austria at the weekend, they added a second through Ivica Olić after Ivan Rakitić's deflected cross had come back off a post. Lukas Podolski then made things interesting again with eleven minutes to go, but Croatia comfortably held on. "We didn't have the best of games against Austria and we wanted to show that we can play a lot better," Šimunić told euro2008.com. "We played an outstanding game and every player on the field gave his heart. We deserved to win. In every duel, our players showed we wanted the ball and we showed initiative going forward. We defended very well and every player did his job all over the park."

Blossoming partnership
One feature of the match was the virtually faultless display by Šimunić and Robert Kovač in the centre of Croatia's rearguard. Šimunić has only recently cemented his place in the middle after being mostly used as a left-back by his country, but he was immaculate at the Wörthersee Stadion, heading away ball after ball that looked destined for Miroslav Klose. "I've actually got a headache," the Hertha BSC Berlin man joked. "Myself and Robert have a good partnership. We actually had a lot of people criticising us before the tournament, but I think that in the last two games we, and the rest of the team, have shown what we can do. We had a big blow before the tournament, losing Eduardo da Silva, and people were writing us off, but we're still showing we can come up with good results."

'Zagreb is on fire'
The 30-year-old was also quick to praise Croatia's fans, who provided raucous backing in Klagenfurt and have been swept up in the tournament back home. "I think this will mean a lot [to them]," he said. "A few of my friends have sent me messages saying Zagreb is on fire. They're celebrating and they have every reason to do so. Our fans are outstanding." The players themselves are not getting carried away yet, however. "It's a nice feeling but we still haven't achieved anything," added Šimunić. "Our goal before the tournament was to reach the quarter-finals and we're playing one game at a time. But we're enjoying it – we're having fun."

Euro 2008 standings

2008-06-12T06:22:00.000-07:00

STANDINGS

Group A
Group B
Group C
Group D

Group A

Teams	Pld	+/-	Pts
Portugal	2	4	6
Czech Republic	2	-1	3
Turkey	2	-1	3
Switzerland	2	-2	0

Group B

Teams	Pld	+/-	Pts
Germany	1	2	3
Croatia	1	1	3
Austria	1	-1	0
Poland	1	-2	0

Group C

Teams	Pld	+/-	Pts
Netherlands	1	3	3
France	1	0	1
Romania	1	0	1
Italy	1	-3	0

Group D

Teams	Pld	+/-	Pts
Spain	1	3	3
Sweden	1	2	3
Greece	1	-2	0
Russia	1	-3	0

Kuhn: The party will go on

2008-06-12T06:18:00.000-07:00

Switzerland coach Köbi Kuhn has vowed "the party will go on" despite the co-hosts' early exit from UEFA EURO 2008™.

Early exit
An injury-time goal in Basel last night gave Turkey a 2-1 win against Switzerland that means Kuhn's side will definitely finish bottom of Group A regardless of Sunday's result against Portugal at St. Jakob-Park. But the coach, who will step down to be replaced by Ottmar Hitzfeld after the tournament, has said the different nationalities represented in Switzerland will ensure that the atmosphere will not deflate and the home fans will overcome their disappointment.

'Life goes on'
"The party will go on, no doubt about it," Kuhn said. "Switzerland is a multicultural country, there are enough Germans, Portuguese, French, Italians living here. It will remain a wonderful party and I'm sure the Swiss will not hold back and celebrate as best they can. And they deserve to celebrate. I am very disappointed but life goes on."

Group A decider could go to penalties

2008-06-12T06:14:00.000-07:00

If Turkey and the Czech Republic draw their final Group A match in Geneva on Sunday, second place and a quarter-final berth will be decided on penalties.

Shoot-out chance
The Czech Republic lost 3-1 to Portugal on Wednesday evening and then Turkey beat Switzerland 2-1 – both after added-time goals. That leaves the Czech Republic and Turkey level on points, goal difference and goals scored, and according to Article 7.08 in the official 2008 UEFA European Championship regulations, in that instance, if the two equal teams are playing in the last game, their match is decided by spot-kicks after 90 minutes should it finish level.

Regulations
Article 7.08 reads: "If two teams which have the same number of points, the same number of goals scored and conceded play their last group match against each other and are still equal at the end of that match, the ranking of the two teams in question will be determined by kicks from the penalty mark, provided no other teams within the group have the same number of points on completion of all group matches." The full regulations can be read by clicking here. Whoever finishes second in Group A will play the winners of Group B in Vienna on 20 June. Portugal, as Group A winners, face the Group B runners-up in Basel the night before.

Precedent
The situation has arisen before in a UEFA final tournament. In the 2002/03 UEFA European Women's Under-19 Championship in Germany, Italy and Sweden went into their last group game exactly level. A last-gasp Italy goal made the score 3-3, and Sweden won the shoot-out 4-1, though they were to lose to Norway on penalties in the semi-finals. Meanwhile, while Turkey have never been in a major penalty shoot-out, the Czech Republic beat France 6-5 to reach the 1996 UEFA European Championship semi-finals and Czechoslovakia defeated West Germany 5-3 in the 1976 final and France 9-8 in the 1980 third-place match, giving the nation a major tourmament record of three wins out of three with all 20 attempts converted.

Experience
Meanwhile, both likely goalkeepers on Sunday have recent experience of major penalty shoot-outs. Turkey's Volkan Demirel saved three spot-kicks as Fenerbahçe SK defeated Sevilla FC 3-2 on penalties in the UEFA Champions League first knockout round in February. Fenerbahçe then lost to Chelsea FC, who reached the final only to be beaten 6-5 in a penalty competition by Manchester United FC in Moscow, Petr Čech saving from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Sweden Humilates Greece

2008-06-11T04:45:00.000-07:00

The lacklustre nature of their loss to Sweden may have been a bitter pill to swallow for Greece, but with Giorgos Samaras insisting that there is "no point crying over spilled milk", the holders' UEFA EURO 2008™ campaign appears far from over.

No spark
The grim looks on Greek faces said it all. It was not so much starting their UEFA European Championship defence with a 2-0 loss to Sweden that was difficult to swallow, but the manner of defeat. Ninety minutes had brought only five shots by the holders, their circumspect performance meaning that as soon as Zlatan Ibrahimović gave the Swedes the lead with a sumptuous strike, a way back never looked on the cards. "Our passing game lacked spark and creativity," admitted centre-back Traianos Dellas. "Sweden played behind the midfield and it was difficult for us to move forward. It became increasingly obvious that the team that scored first would claim all three points. An outstanding goal by Ibrahimović gave the Swedes the edge. That's football."

Waiting game
That strike also drew admiring glances from Giorgos Samaras, who added: "He was off our radars for one second and he delivered. It was an outstanding goal. For a player like him, all it takes is one moment." Petter Hansson soon sealed Greece's fate at the Stadion Salzburg Wals-Siezenheim, though for Nikos Liberopoulos, watching from his vantage point on the substitutes' bench, it was at the back where Sweden were superior. "Watching from the sidelines, it was obvious that we feared the Swedes and they feared us," he said. "They are a very well organised team and had done their homework extremely well. They were patient, waiting for us to take the initiative and Greece are not used to playing like that. We still have two matches to go and we can still turn this situation around."

'Nothing is over'
That optimism was echoed throughout the Otto Rehhagel's camp, and the towering Dellas has been around for long enough to know there is still time for the holders to turn it around. "Nothing is over yet," the 32-year-old insisted. "We will explore our options, and we have to change some things. It's not my place to point out what must be changed – we have a coach who makes the decisions – but we need to remain calm, relax for a couple of days and be stronger against the Russians." Samaras was even more to the point, insisting that there is "no use crying over spilt milk". He added: "The only thing left for us now is to collect ourselves and plan for the two remaining encounters. It was an off day, a bad day at the office. Hopefully we will do better against the Russians."

David Villa Hatrick Ruins Russia

2008-06-11T04:29:00.000-07:00

A scintillating hat-trick from David Villa gave Spain a clear-cut 4-1 victory over Russia in their first outing at UEFA EURO 2008™ and confirmed the immense power of the Valencia CF striker's partnership with Fernando Torres.

Thrilling match
In a high-quality Group D encounter, Russia provided moments to indicate that Luis Aragonés's side may still be vulnerable at the back and gained consolation with Roman Pavlyuchenko's 86th-minute header. But Villa's second goal in particular was a stunning team move which may already be one of the goals of the tournament. Only the seventh player in finals history to score three in a game, the 26-year-old's treble was the first in a EURO since Patrick Kluivert's against Yugoslavia eight years ago. Villa then utterly stamped his class on the match, crossing for Xavi Hernández to volley and substitute Cesc Fàbregas to head in the fourth in stoppage time.

Unerring finish
Torres has always asked for a quick supply of the ball at international level and in the 20th minute he got it. Courtesy of a Joan Capdevila interception and a notable right-footed pass from the left-back, the Liverpool FC forward was left one on one with his marker. Torres used good upper body strength to put Denis Kolodin under immense pressure and when the Spaniard skipped clear he allowed goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev to try and dive at his feet before slipping the ball to the right, into the path of Villa who finished unerringly. Such was the drama of the contest that within seconds Russia nearly equalised. Their love of overlapping full-back play had already caused havoc in the jumpy Spain back line, but instead of Aleksandr Anyukov this time it was Dmitri Sychev whose right-wing cross drifted, agonisingly, across Carles Puyol, Marcos Senna and even Andrés Iniesta before Konstantin Zyryanov cracked the ball off the post.

Second goal
Instead of daunting Spain, it seemed as if the players in red took their luck as an indication that this was their night. Within six minutes of Villa's first goal, he and Torres had created three outstanding opportunities – two of which needed smart blocks by Akinfeev. Russia, for their part, were fighting like terriers to impose themselves, repeatedly catching Iniesta in possession, and Pavlyuchenko even hit the bar with a left-footed shot though referee Konrad Plautz had already called a foul. Villa closed a sparkling 45 minutes with Spain's second, however, following a brilliant move. Zyryanov attempted an ambitious pass across the Spain box and David Silva ran to retrieve it, sparking a lightning-quick passing movement through Silva, Capdevila and Iniesta which left Villa sprinting into the box where he slipped the ball between Akinfeev's legs.

End to end
The introduction of Vladimir Bystrov for Sychev made an impact as Russia sought a way back. Guus Hiddink's men pushed forward relentlessly and Bystrov's header from Zyryanov's cross in the 51st minute brought Iker Casillas into action before Diniyar Bilyaletdinov shot narrowly wide eight minutes later. However, Spain were irrepressible. Fàbregas came on for Torres as Aragonés chose to rest his striker and give the Arsenal FC man a taste of the action. Villa almost had his hat-trick in the 66th minute but was prevented by a superb Anyukov tackle, yet the forward did not have to wait much longer. With 15 minutes left, he turned Roman Shirokov inside out and finished expertly with his right foot. It was just that Russia's commitment to attack eventually won some reward in the final minutes. Zyryanov, culpable for the second goal but Hiddink's best player, took a corner which Shirokov nodded on and Pavlyuchenko headed in at the back post. Even then Villa had the last word, though, creating Spain's fourth and Fàbregas's first for his country.

Euro 2008 Standings

2008-06-10T06:21:00.000-07:00

STANDINGS

Group A
Group B
Group C
Group D

Group A

Teams	Pld	+/-	Pts
Portugal	1	2	3
Czech Republic	1	1	3
Switzerland	1	-1	0
Turkey	1	-2	0

Group B

Teams	Pld	+/-	Pts
Germany	1	2	3
Croatia	1	1	3
Austria	1	-1	0
Poland	1	-2	0

Group C

Teams	Pld	+/-	Pts
Netherlands	1	3	3
France	1	0	1
Romania	1	0	1
Italy	1	-3	0

Group D

Teams	Pld	+/-	Pts
Greece	0	0	0
Sweden	0	0	0
Spain	0	0	0
Russia	0	0	0

Netherlands Makes History In Euro Cup Starter

2008-06-10T06:17:00.000-07:00

Marco van Basten believes his Netherlands team "can have nice dreams" if they continue to play with the quality which enabled them to brush aside Italy in Berne. The legendary striker was proud to watch his team make history – and finally get one over on the world champions after losing four times to the Azzurri as a player. His opposite number and former AC Milan team-mate Roberto Donadoni was philosophical in defeat, saying: "It was definitely a bad night but we'll take stock of what happened and look to the future."

Marco van Basten, Netherlands coach
You could say that I'm proud. I'm proud that we won against the world champions, and at the way we played football tonight, scoring three goals and playing until the last minute. It was a historic result because in the past we have never beaten Italy 3-0 – this was a serious performance. The players responded in a wonderful way and played like a team, showing amazing spirit. If we play with this quality we can have nice dreams. Until the very last minute we tried to play proper football, and made life difficult for the Italians. In spite of their pressure we continued playing and I have to congratulate my team for pushing on and scoring.

We cannot talk of a new era, we have won one game – the first in our pool. I'm very happy to beat a big opponent but we have only taken one step. If you have the spirit we had tonight you're able to do nice things, but there are a lot of other good teams here. In several areas we were better than the Italians but they have many good and experienced players in their team. I'm convinced they'll recover as they have too much class not to. This is only one game, and we will prepare in the same way for the others. If we lose to France, we have problems again. This is only the first step, and we'll have to see if we can repeat it against France and Romania.

Roberto Donadoni, Italy coach
When we went 1-0 down things got complicated and for the second we were not quick enough to recover our positions after the corner. We looked strong physically and created a few chances but it wasn't our night. I think the Netherlands played as well as we expected them to. We knew they were capable of creating chances and making life difficult for us and that's what they did but we made mistakes and paid for it. It started badly and ended up worse but this is already history and we need to think about the next game against Romania. We need to recover physically and mentally so we can put things right straight away.

If we're not optimistic we should go off on holiday instead of taking the flight to Zurich. The players need to put this defeat behind them, understand the mistakes we've made. As of tomorrow we'll start working on them so they don't happen again. We were naïve at conceding goals on the counterattack. We took a corner and were not attentive enough afterwards. We didn't defend properly. Obviously in the light of this result, we're happy that France and Romania drew. It's to our advantage but also shows that Romania are a team who'll make it difficult for us.

France draws 0-0 with Romania

2008-06-10T06:09:00.000-07:00

Romania made a promising start to their UEFA EURO 2008™ campaign, holding one of the tournament favourites, France, to a goalless draw at the Letzigrund Stadion in Group C.

Anelka chance
Victor Piţurcă's side, appearing in their first major finals for eight years, restricted Les Bleus to a handful of half-chances as the two-time European champions struggled to impose their quality on proceedings. Nicolas Anelka was guilty of missing the game's clearest opportunity when he headed Franck Ribéry's cross over in the first half, but with Thierry Henry confined to the substitutes' bench, Raymond Domenech's men lacked a cutting edge and rarely put the well-organised Romanians in serious difficulty.

Cagey start
These teams boasted two of the meanest defensive records in qualifying and from the opening exchanges it was obvious the contest would be tight. France monopolised possession early on yet rarely threatened Bogdan Lobonţ's goal as Mirel Rădoi, Răzvan Cociş and Cristian Chivu tenaciously closed down space in front of their back four. With Henry still not fully fit, Anelka and Karim Benzema started in attack for the first time, and both fired in wayward shots during a cagey first ten minutes.

Instant response
Daniel Niculae had been given the task of leading Romania's front line on his own and succeeded in posing problems to Lilian Thuram and William Gallas. In the 16th minute, the striker, who plays in France with AJ Auxerre, might have done better than drag his shot wide after Adrian Mutu's deft knockdown. The French response was instant, though, Claude Makelele releasing Florent Malouda through the middle, only for Lobonţ to sprint off his line and deny the Chelsea FC winger.

Frustration
That would prove the only time the pacy France forwards got in behind Romania's canny defenders. Ribéry and Benzema began interchanging positions without much joy, although the FC Bayern München playmaker did lay on a golden chance for Anelka on 33 minutes. After playing a corner short, Ribéry's cross found the Chelsea striker unmarked but he headed over. Anelka vented his frustration four minutes later by blasting into the side-netting from an impossible angle, as Benzema's calls for a cross went unanswered.

Mutu free-kick
Both sides began the second period in more attack-minded fashion. Malouda was the first to threaten, bursting past Cosmin Contra but shooting over the crossbar, before Romania enjoyed their best spell. Chivu's influence was growing and when his slide-rule pass found Mutu, the ACF Fiorentina player was felled by Willy Sagnol on the edge of the box. But as the France fans held their breath, Mutu directed his free-kick disappointingly into the wall.

Vocal fans
Despite the attempts of the vocal Romanian supporters to suck the ball towards Grégory Coupet's goal, Les Bleus finished in the ascendancy. Ribéry's low centre from the right reached Benzema unmarked just inside the penalty area but his first-time shot was straight at Lobonţ on 57 minutes. The Lyon youngster then miscued another right-footed attempt after latching on to Anelka's header. Bafétimbi Gomis and Samir Nasri were introduced for the closing stages, yet neither succeeded in making inroads, as Romania held firm until the very end.

Euro 2008 Tournament Schedule

2008-06-09T04:30:00.000-07:00

Saturday 7 June 2008
1 Grp A Switzerland Czech Republic Basel - St. Jakob-Park
2 Grp A Portugal Turkey Geneva - Stade de Genève
Sunday 8 June 2008
3 Grp B Austria Croatia Vienna - Ernst Happel
4 Grp B Germany Poland Klagenfurt - Wörthersee
Monday 9 June 2008
5 Grp C Romania 18:00 France Zurich - Letzigrund
6 Grp C Netherlands 20:45 Italy Berne - Stade de Suisse
Tuesday 10 June 2008
7 Grp D Spain 18:00 Russia Innsbruck - Tivoli Neu
8 Grp D Greece 20:45 Sweden Salzburg - EM Stadion Wals-Siezenheim
Wednesday 11 June 2008
9 Grp A Czech Republic 18:00 Portugal Geneva - Stade de Genève
10 Grp A Switzerland 20:45 Turkey Basel - St. Jakob-Park
Thursday 12 June 2008
11 Grp B Croatia 18:00 Germany Klagenfurt - Wörthersee
12 Grp B Austria 20:45 Poland Vienna - Ernst Happel
Friday 13 June 2008
13 Grp C Italy 18:00 Romania Zurich - Letzigrund
14 Grp C Netherlands 20:45 France Berne - Stade de Suisse
Saturday 14 June 2008
15 Grp D Sweden 18:00 Spain Innsbruck - Tivoli Neu
16 Grp D Greece 20:45 Russia Salzburg - EM Stadion Wals-Siezenheim
Sunday 15 June 2008
17 Grp A Switzerland 20:45 Portugal Basel - St. Jakob-Park
18 Grp A Turkey 20:45 Czech Republic Geneva - Stade de Genève
Monday 16 June 2008
19 Grp B Poland 20:45 Croatia Klagenfurt - Wörthersee
20 Grp B Austria 20:45 Germany Vienna - Ernst Happel
Tuesday 17 June 2008
21 Grp C Netherlands 20:45 Romania Berne - Stade de Suisse
22 Grp C France 20:45 Italy Zurich - Letzigrund
Wednesday 18 June 2008
23 Grp D Greece 20:45 Spain Salzburg - EM Stadion Wals-Siezenheim
24 Grp D Russia 20:45 Sweden Innsbruck - Tivoli Neu
Thursday 19 June 2008
25 QF Winner Grp A 20:45 Runner-up Grp B Basel - St. Jakob-Park
Friday 20 June 2008
26 QF Winner Grp B 20:45 Runner-up Grp A Vienna - Ernst Happel
Saturday 21 June 2008
27 QF Winner Grp C 20:45 Runner-up Grp D Basel - St. Jakob-Park
Sunday 22 June 2008
28 QF Winner Grp D 20:45 Runner-up Grp C Vienna - Ernst Happel
Wednesday 25 June 2008
29 SF Winner #25 20:45 Winner #26 Basel - St. Jakob-Park
Thursday 26 June 2008
30 SF Winner #27 20:45 Winner #28 Vienna - Ernst Happel
Sunday 29 June 2008
31 F Winner #29 20:45 Winner #30 Vienna - Ernst Happel

Podolski Scores Twice As Gemany Witness Their First Euro Cup Win

2008-06-09T04:23:00.000-07:00

An emotional Lukas Podolski struck in either half to give Germany an ideal start to their UEFA EURO 2008™ Group B campaign with victory against debutants Poland in Klagenfurt.

Star turn
The Polish-born FC Bayern München forward produced a vintage display as the three-time European champions recorded a solid win, putting Germany in front with a simple finish midway through the first half. Poland, in their first EURO finals match, pressed for a way back into the game but struggled to unpick Germany's defence and Podolski finally ended their hopes with an emphatic volley.

Modric Penalty Leads To Austria Defeat

2008-06-09T04:17:00.000-07:00

Austria went the same way as co-hosts Switzerland, opening their UEFA EURO 2008™ challenge with a narrow defeat as Luka Modrić's early penalty gave Croatia victory in Vienna.

Fastest penalty
The midfielder scored the only goal of the first Group B game in the fourth minute, firing in after Ivica Olić had been brought down by René Aufhauser – the fastest penalty converted in the history of the finals. The home side took time to find their feet after that setback, but mounted a stirring late charge with substitute Roman Kienast heading centimetres past the post seconds before the whistle.

Czech Republic Survives Early Scare As Svěrkoš Scores

2008-06-09T04:12:00.000-07:00

Czech Republic substitute Václav Svěrkoš crashed the party for co-hosts Switzerland by scoring the only goal of the UEFA EURO 2008™ curtain-raiser in Basel.

Deflated
Svěrkoš struck after 71 minutes to defeat a home side already deflated by a knee injury to forward Alexander Frei. The closest the Swiss came to rescuing a Group A point was a late Johan Vonlanthen shot off the underside of the crossbar.

Portugal Thrash Turkey In Euro Opener

2008-06-09T04:05:00.000-07:00

Losers on the opening day four years ago, Portugal made a sure-footed start to UEFA EURO 2008™ as second-half strikes from Pepe and substitute Raul Meireles secured all three points against Turkey at the Stade de Genève.

Just deserts
It was a deserved victory for Luiz Felipe Scolari's men who also rattled the woodwork twice through Nuno Gomes. For Turkey, by contrast, defeat here continued their unhappy sequence of results against not just Portugal, who had previously bettered them at the 1996 and 2000 finals, but also teams coached by Scolari – his Brazil beat them twice at the 2002 FIFA World Cup – and made Wednesday's Group A meeting with Switzerland a virtual eliminator.

Euro Cup 2008 Standings

2008-06-09T03:56:00.000-07:00

Group A

Teams	Pld	+/-	Pts
Portugal	1	2	3
Czech Republic	1	1	3
Switzerland	1	-1	0
Turkey	1	-2	0

Group B

Teams	Pld	+/-	Pts
Germany	1	2	3
Croatia	1	1	3
Austria	1	-1	0
Poland	1	-2	0

Group C

Teams	Pld	+/-	Pts
Netherlands	0	0	0
Italy	0	0	0
Romania	0	0	0
France	0	0	0

Group D

Teams	Pld	+/-	Pts
Greece	0	0	0
Sweden	0	0	0
Spain	0	0	0
Russia	0	0	0

A True Soccer Legend - David Beckham

2008-03-21T12:04:00.000-07:00

David Beckham - What's it all about?

When you watch David Beckham with a ball you watch someone at the very pinnacle of their profession. The master craftsman, perhaps even a great artist! Europe is in mourning as he leaves for America and yet many in his new homeland aren't sure what it's all about.

Soccer is growing in The States, no question about that and its about to get a whole lot bigger. Many in The States cannot get excited about soccer but even they wonder what's so special about David Beckham playing soccer?

To understand the phenomena that is David Beckham you need to understand the player. The reason he first won the England fans over and then the Real Madrid fans was not because he was the best player in the team, he wasn't. Nor was it his speed, or his ball juggling skills, his witty after match comments etc.

The reason his fans love him and even supporters of rival teams admire him so much is because the guy just never gives up. His team can be 2 goals down with a few minutes left on the clock but Beckham will be running and chasing to win the ball. It is this will to win and belief in himself that will win over America's arm chair sports fans. He plays with his heart on his sleeve and always has done.

He is of course the worlds greatest crosser of a soccer ball which helps win the fans over and his free kicks still rank him along side the worlds best dead ball specialists. But even these skills are acredited to his never give in spirit and his will to succeed. David was never a great natural player, someone born with a gift like a George Best or a Maradona. His skills were learnt as a necessity because as a young player trying to break into the first team at the great Manchester United the young David Beckham had a problem - He could not get past a defender!

He soon realized if he was to progress under the ever watchful eye of the great coach Sir Alex Ferguson he needed a solution. So instead of trying to beat the defender and losing the ball he simply learnt to cross the ball into the danger area for others, learning how to make it swerve around the defense and thereby completely removing the need to worry about a little thing like defenders!

All this practising with a moving ball meant his dead ball skills went through the roof and he soon established himself as Manchester United's and then England's free kick specialist. His peers regard him the finest free kick taker in the world.

As David Beckham sets off on a new adventure both the L.A. Galaxy and arm chair fans will soon come to understand why we loved him so much and why we miss him already.

Ronldo career in Jeopardy

2008-02-20T01:13:00.000-08:00

Brazil's president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has urged international striker Ronaldo to keep his head up and work hard to overcome his latest career-threatening knee injury.

The 31-year-old AC Milan player underwent surgery on his left knee in Paris on Thursday after collapsing in pain during a game against Livorno in Italy, fuelling speculation the Brazilian's storied career may be over.

Lula, a self-described sports fanatic who peppers his speeches with soccer metaphors, said on Friday he and "millions of Brazilians" were saddened by Ronaldo's latest injury but also confident the three-times World Player of the Year would make another triumphant comeback.

"Young man, keep moving forward, be strong, don't give up," Lula said in an open letter to Ronaldo. "I have faith, just as the Brazilian people do, that you will return to the playing field and once again you'll be an example of perseverance and courage."

Ronaldo, suffered a similar injury on his right knee while playing for Inter Milan in 2000 but recovered to help Brazil to win a fifth World Cup in 2002.

In 2006, Ronaldo became the all-time leading scorer in World Cups with 15 goals in three tournaments. Since then, he has been plagued by injuries and has played sparingly.

Kevin Keegan conquers Newcastle United For the Third Time

2008-01-18T04:51:00.000-08:00

Kevin Keegan will outline his future plans for Newcastle United when he is officially presented at a media conference at St James' Park on Friday (1400 GMT).

The 56-year-old began work on Thursday when he took his first training session and spent time with club chairman Chris Mort ahead of his first match in charge against Bolton Wanderers in the Premier League on Saturday.

Keegan's third coming at Newcastle after his previous incarnations as player (1982-84) and manager (1992-97) has galvanised the soccer-mad city, but Friday's media conference will be a relatively low key affair.

Keegan has asked that the ground should not be open to fans while he meets the media. The fans, though, will give him a rapturous welcome on Saturday.

He will quickly need to turn his attention to the transfer market, with the window closing in two weeks, if he is to strengthen his side, currently in mid-table.

He is also yet to announce who his assistant will be with former right-hand man Terry McDermott a possible choice.

Chris Coleman, who resigned as manager as Real Sociedad on Wednesday and was Keegan's captain when he was manager at Fulham, has also been mentioned as a possible candidate for the job.

Keegan has confessed to not seeing a match live since he left his last job as Manchester City manager in 2005, but he saw Newcastle beat Stoke City 4-1 in an FA Cup third round replay on Wednesday.

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Kaka, Iraq Emerge winners

2007-12-14T01:44:00.000-08:00

LONDON - AC Milan star Kaka looks set to collect a sweep of player of the year awards after scooping more than 50 per cent of the votes in the annual poll conducted by the respected magazine World Soccer, whose readers also gave Iraq the team prize. Kaka, who is the hot favourite to pick up the FIFA player of the year award on Monday and already won European soccer's Golden Ball, finished way ahead of his rivals in a poll of the magazine's readers.

The Brazilian received 52.8 per cent of the votes ahead of Barcelona's Lionel Messi (17.6) and Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo (16.0). Messi won the young player award ahead of Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas.

The biggest surprise in the poll was Iraq winning the vote for world team of the year.

Winner of the Asian Cup in July, the Iraqi team not only overcame stronger teams but also achieved the triumph against a background of chaos and tragedy back home in its war-torn country.

Iraq edged Milan, which won the Champions League for its seventh triumph in European soccer's most prestigious competition, with two-time UEFA Cup winner Sevilla a distant third.

Manchester United's Alex Ferguson captured the coach of the year award after leading the Red Devils to their ninth Champions League title in 15 years. Ferguson edged Juande Ramos, who won back-to-back UEFA Cup titles with Sevilla before moving on to Tottenham.

Ronaldo double lifts Man U

2007-12-07T00:05:00.000-08:00

Cristiano Ronaldo made up for missing out in the European Footballer of the Year award by scoring both the goals as Manchester United moved to within three points of leaders Arsenal with a 2-0 win against Fulham at Old Trafford on Monday.

Ronaldo who was overlooked in favor of Ac Milan’s Brazilian forward Kaka for the Ballon d’Or award that was announced on Sunday, proved too good for Fulham, who saw their woeful Premiership away record stretch to 24 games without victory as Sir Alex Ferguson’s team cruised to the win.

United had allowed themselves to fall off the Premiership pace by losing 1-0 at Boltan in their last league outing and nothing but three points against Fulham would do for the champions with Arsenal stretching their lead to six points with a weekend victory at Aston Villa.

Argentinian striker Carlos Tevez should have hit a hatrick during that period as three golden chances fell into his path, but the former West Ham forward failed to take any of them.

Where Tevez was wasteful, however, Ronaldo was lethal and Portugal International gave United the lead on ten minutes with a thunderous volley that left Neimi completely helpless.

On the occasion, poor defending by Fulham unlocked the door for United. Lawrie Sanchez’s team failed to properly clear Ryan Giggs’s corner and the ball ultimately fell to Ronaldo on the edge of the six yard box after the flick-on from defender Nemanja Vidic.

Unmarked, Ronaldo simply lashed a right-foot volley into the roof of the net to put United ahead and claim his twelfth goal of the season.

Sanchez’s team could not hold out until the end of the game, though, and Ronaldo doubled United’s lead when he headed In John O’Shea’s cross from close range on 58 minutes.

MaClaren sacked

2007-12-03T05:08:00.000-08:00

Steve MaClaren was sacked as England head coach today following their failure to qualify for Euro 2008, the football Association confirmed.

“The FA board unanimously decided to terminate MaClaren’s contract with immediate effect,” FA chairman Geoff Thompson told a news conference. The FA said it has also terminated the contract of assistant coach Terry Venables.

England miss Euro ’08 bus

2007-11-25T23:36:00.000-08:00

England hopes of a place in Euro 2008 finals disappeared at Wembley yesterday when they lost 2-3 to Croatia after fighting back from conceding two early goals to pull level. Subsequently, head coach Steve MaClaren was sacked.
Instead of hanging to the point that would have secured their place in the tournament co-hosted by Austria and Switzerland, they conceded a third goal 13 minutes from time, allowing Russia to steal into second place in Group E and qualify with Croatia.
It was the first time since 1984 that England missed out on the European Championship finals and the first time since the 1994 World Cup that they failed to qualify for a major tournament.
Former England captain David Beckham, a second-half substitute said, “This is a big setback, not just for the players but the nation… We have to show the English way which is to fight back.”
The home crowd was stunned after eight minutes when Scott Carson, controversially chosen in goal after making his debut in a friendly only last week, allowed a speculative shot by Niko Kranjcar to skid off him and into the net, and it looked all over when Ivica Olic doubled the lead six minutes later.
England pulled level with a 56th-minute Frank Lampard penalty followd by a great goal by striker Peter Crouch, who expertly controlled a cross from half-time substitute Beckham before volleying the equalizer.
Croatia, though, continued to look dangerous and won it in the 77th-minute when substitute Mladen Petric lashed in a shot from the edge of the box.
The Croatians will be among the second seeds when the draw for the finals is made in Lucerne, Switzerland on December 2.

Bolton hold Bayern Munich 2-2

2007-11-14T22:31:00.000-08:00

Struggling Bolton Wanderers held European soccer aristocrats Bayern Munich to a 2-2 draw in UEFA Cup Group F on Thursday. Bolton, second from the bottom in the English Premier League , shocked Bayern with an eight minute opener in Munich, the first goal in five years for defender Ricardo Gardner.
Bayern, 9past winners of four European Cups, a cup Winner’s Cup and a UEFA Cup, replied with goals from Germany striker Lukas Podolski either side of half time.
But Kevin Davies made it a night to savour for new coach Gary Megson with an 82nd minute strike against the run of play.
Bayern stay on top of the group with four points from two games.
Aris Salonika jumped to second after beating Red Star Belgrade 3-0 and Bolton are third a point behind.

Arsenal Face Action

2007-11-13T01:54:00.000-08:00

Three season ticket holders at English Premier League side Arsenal claim the club could be in breach of contract for allegedly allowing racist chanting at their stadium, a report said. The Independent newspaper said the trio had written to the club chairman, claiming that the use of the words “Yid” and “Yiddos” to refre to fans of Tottenham Hotspur broke human right laws.

Man U, Arsenal advance

2007-11-11T22:11:00.000-08:00

Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger have very little nice to say to each other and little in common but for once they shared the headlines for the right reasons as Manchester United and Arsenal became the first clubs to qualify for the knockout stages of the Champions League.

Their means of qualifying like their managers, couldn’t have been more contrasting as united whipped once proud Ukrainian outfit Dynamo Kiev 4-0 , while a second-string Arsenal side drew 0-0 away yesterday at Slavia Prague – a team they trounced 7-0 a fortnight ago.

Gerard Pique nodded United ahead with his first goal for the club and Carlos Tevez scored his first in the Champions League after a darting run hand one-two with Wayne Rooney.

Record Win for Liverpool

2007-11-09T23:04:00.000-08:00

English giants Liverpool registered a record win in he Champions League group stage, thrashing sorry Besiktas 8-0 in their clash at Anfield.
“The Reds” showed no stage fright whatsoever in a must-win match as led by a hat-trick by Yossi Benayoun, they trod all over a side they lost to a fortnight ago and kept themselves in with a fighting chance of making it to the knockout stage.
While Benayoun took the scoring honors of the night’s Champions League action, the seemingly ageless 34-yr old Italian forward Filippo Inzaghi went level with Gerd “Das Bomber” Muller in the history of the European cup scoring charts as his double in the 3-0 away win for AC Milan over Ukrainian outfit Shakthar Donetsk liftem him to 62 goals.

Arsenal Stay Unbeaten

2007-11-07T00:30:00.000-08:00

Willam Gallas scored a injury-time equalizer for Arsenal to draw 2-2 with Manchester United and stay unbeaten in the English Premier League.

Gallas’ shot crossed the line before it was pushed out by Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin ven der Sar, with the linesman awarding the goal.

“The referee interrupted the game and I thought he had given a free kick against us because the wall was in,” Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored in the 83^rd minute to give Manchester United 2-1 lead, Gallas had scored an own goal in first-half injury time before Arsenal leveled through Cesc Fabregas in the 48^th.

Arsenal stay on top on goals scored with 27 points – the same as United – but the Gunners have played one game less.

Chelsea, Arsenal in League Cup quarters

2007-11-03T02:55:00.000-07:00

Frank Lampard scored his third goal in injury time to give defending champion Chelsea a 4-3 victory over Leicester in the League Cup Wednesday, while Arsenal also moved into the quarter finals of England’s second-tier cup competition with a 3-0 win at Sheffield United.
Chelsea trailed twice against Leicester, but Andriy Shevchenko and Lampard both scored in the last three minutes for the victory.

Arsenal on top after draw with Liverpool

2007-10-31T22:29:00.000-07:00

Arsenal regained first place in the Premier League thanks to a Cesc Fabregas equalizer in an entertaining 1-1 draw with Liverpool at Anfield. The Gunners trailed to Steven Gerrard’s seventh-minute free kick but the inspirational Fabregas stole in with 10 minutes remaining to give the visitors a deserved share of the points.

Arsenal have 26 points from 10 matches while champions Manchester United, 4-1 winners at home to Middlesbrough on Saturday, also have 26 from 11 but have scored fewer goals.

Liverpool are sixth with 20 points from 10.

Liverpool and Arsenal, both undefeated in the league this season, served up a treat in the weekend’s outstanding fixture which was seen as a major test of Arsenal’s credentials.

The home side, looking to hit back from a damaging 2-1 Champions League defeat by Besiktas on Wednesday, made a stirring start with Gerrard forcing a fine early save from goalkeeper Manuel Almunia.

A minute later, they went ahead when Gerrard’s fierce free kick from the edge of the area flew through a hole in the Arsenal wall into the bottom left corner.

Gerrard stung Almunia’s fingers with another shot soon after but Arsenal, seeking a 13th consecutive victory in all competitions, hogged possession for the rest of the half with their fluent passing game forcing Liverpool deep.

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez sent Crouch for the injured Fernando Torres after the break and the giant striker forced a great save from Almunia and then missed narrowly with another chance.

Fabregas wasted a glorious chance to equalize after 53 minutes when Emmanuel Eboue’s low shot hit the base of the post and rebounded to him but he fired wide with the goal gaping.

He made amends with 10 minutes remaining however, running on to Alexandr Hleb’s astute pass before toe-poking a shot pass Liverpool keeper Pepe Reina yesterday.

Fabregas then hit the post with a curling effort and William Gallas went close as Arsenal went for the victory in a breathless finish.

Kroos sees Bayern home

2007-10-27T11:20:00.000-07:00

Teenager Toni Kroos scored in injury time to give Bayern Munich a 3-2 win over Red Star Belgrade on the opening night of the UEFA Cup group stage.
Kroos, a 17-yr-old midfielder, scored with a freekick after Miroslav Klose had twice equalised for Bayern Munich.
Bayern is one of the favorites to win the UEFA Cup, which it claimed in 1996. But after that trophy, the four-time European Champion played in the European Champions League for ten straight seasons and only dropped into Europe's No 2 competition beacuse it finished fourth in the German league last season.
Red star led in the 16th minute with a low shot from Ognjen Koroman, and Nenad Milijas put the Serbian side ahead 2-1 in the 74th minute with a long -range half volley. Klose equalised in the 84th with a header and also scored in the 20th from a rebound.
Red star defender Milos Bajalica was red-carded in injury time and Kroos scored from the resulting freekick.
Bayern, playing without Martin Demichelis, Franck Ribery, Luca Toni and Daniel van Buyten, had difficulty controlling the game on the slippery and difficult field at the Red Star Stadium.

Didier Drogba Shows His Class

2007-10-22T11:48:00.000-07:00

Didier Drogba let his actions speak louder than words as he fired Chelsea to a 2-0 win at Middlebrough.
Drogba dropped a bombshell this week by revealing he is determined to leave the London club because the squad's morale had been shattered by Jose's Mourinho's departure.
But Chelsea manager Avram Grant kept faith with the Ivory Coast striker at the Riverside Stadium and got the perfect response, with Drogba laying the foundations for the team's third successive win yesterday.
It took drogba just eight minutes to show Chelsea what they would be missing if he did leave. He collected Frank Lampard's pass and drove a perfectly placed shot past Mark Schwarzer for the third goal of the season.

Aggressive Kuyt Strikes Again

2007-10-22T11:35:00.000-07:00

Liverpool striker Dirk Kuyt's stoppage time penalty snatched a dramatic 2-1 win over nine man Everton in the 206th Merseyside derby.
Kuyt had already scored from the spot once at Goodison Park to cancel out Sami Hyppia's first half own goal and he held his nerve again to get Rafa Benitez's team back on track.

Man U back in second spot

2007-10-22T11:30:00.000-07:00

Wayne Rooney scored twice as Manchester United stormed back into second place with a 4-1 win at nine=man Aston Villa.
Gabriel Agbonlahor had given Villa a 12th minute when he added in Ashley Young's cross. But Zat Knight gifted United an equalizer soon after when he let Nani's low cross run through to Rooney who tapped in.
Then Rooney notched his fourth united goal in three games with fine low strike before Craig Gardner turned Rio Ferdinand's header into his own net just before half time.

Aston Villa Successful Run Countinues

2007-10-21T02:28:00.000-07:00

Aston Villa beat West Ham 1-0 in Saturday’s other match, though a Craig Gardner free kick in the 24^th minute. It was villa’s fourth successive home win.

Manchester United hit top spot

2007-10-21T02:19:00.000-07:00

Champions Manchester United went top of the premier League for the first time this season when they scored four times in the second half to crush Wigan Athletic 4-0 at Old Trafford on Saturday. Two goals from Cristiano Ronaldo and one each from Carlos Tevez and Wayne Rooney secured United’s sixth successive league win without conceding a goal and took them above Arsenal into first place.

England in jeopardy As John Terry Misses Euro Qualifiers

2007-10-18T01:29:00.000-07:00

The next coming days could well be the most outlining moment in Steve McClaren’s career as the national coach of the England football unit. England might have retrieved somewhat in the otherwise shaking Euro 2008 qualifiers last month when they won two matches against Israel and Russia at Wembley but Saturday’s match with Estonia and the mega clash against Russia in Moscow on Wednesday will bring to conclusion England's chances in the qualification campaign.

But the non-existence of England captain and legend defender John Terry from the Estonia game could well prove to be the crucial factor. The Chelsea captain was found uncomfortable during a training session on Wednesday and has been ruled out of Saturday’s crucial game with a knee injury. Terry is also likely to stay on the bench when England travel to Moscow to play Russia in decisive Group E clash

The most renowned and crucial element in the England team is their defense but now with Terry’s absence, a large hole is clearly visible at the heart of the backline. Terry has been a reliable performer for England and also for Chelsea in the English Premiership the last few years and McClaren would have to give a deep look into his resources to unearth a player of such caliber and leadership skills.

Portsmouth’s often underestimated defender Sol Campbell could replace Terry in central defense and so could the young and quick Manchester City player Micah Richards. While McClaren would be considering of either options and knows that England should comprehensively get past Estonia in the first game, it is the trip to Moscow and running on an artificial pitch at the Luzhnik stadium that looks the most frightening task.

England are lying second in their group, 2 points behind leaders Croatia but Russia are on their back with just two points further lying in third place. Steve McClaren was over-whelmed by the news earlier this week that injury-prone Michael Owen was fit once again and would join fellow striker Wayne Rooney in the two critical Euro qualifiers. But the setback in the shape of a injury to captain John Terry would be a crucial factor that McClaren would be trying hard to overcome.

Sheva misses, Chelsea in jinx for the Cup finale

2007-10-16T05:01:00.000-07:00

Only a couple of days result in a dreadful nightmare for the Blues (versus Arsenal that ended in a draw) that witnessed the double Premiership Champions lose the title to Manchester United, failing to seize the title for the third time in a row – here comes another massive blow for Mourinho and his co mates.

Chelsea renowned striker Andriy Shevchenko will be subjected to a hernia operation today and is likely to miss the FA Cup final. The surgery was scheduled to take place at the end of the season but due to reoccurring pain – Chelsea’s medical department and staff has rescheduled it.

He may have certain advantage with the Portuguese boss at Stamford Bridge but when it comes to the skill on field and the talent to convert for the cause - the multi million-dollar – Ukrainian power packed house is a true phenomenon in soccer. However, Chelsea is sure to cry at its fate now.

Majority think that Sheva has had a disappointing debut campaign in English football – as the Ukrainian international has struggled to find the correct rhythm and passion that the striker had shown in Serie A. Certainly, it isn’t the new instance of the sort – English football league is the most challenging and demanding league in world football today and perhaps that’s what has kept it at the peak when it comes to the major European titles and this is the reason that majority struggle to find the effective pace early in England.

The injury had kept Andriy Shevchenko isolated from the squad for the last two matches that the Blues played – and unluckily, for them both coasting on important junctures (one the finals place in the Champions League and the other is the Premiership title).

His non-existence in the last decisive game of the season for Chelsea at the newly originated Wembley Stadium is surely a big blow for the chelsea club and the loss means Blues will rely a huge amount on its Sheva’s strike partner Didier Drogba in the FA Cup final.

UEFA to examine Dida catastrophe

2007-10-15T05:52:00.000-07:00

It’s not that unfamiller to recognize fans running onto the football pitch to get at opposition players. Indeed, incidents such as fans charging on to physically assault the payers have become quite common in Argentina and even Italy in current years. Horrifying as the entire phenomenon may seem, it’s an almost unnecessary part of the football culture.

But it’s strictly forbidden by FIFA rules, whether for bad or for good, that a player paybacks whenever such incidents occur. A footballer is said to maintain the decency, decorum and sportsmanship spirit during a football match.

In this context AC Milan goalkeeper Dida’s shameful and truly bizarre act to follow the Glasgow Celtic fan who hit him during the side’s UEFA Champions League clash last week is against the law. It was his flair towards the fan and then the dramatic collapse that has forced UEFA to initiate an investigation into the fiasco and even a charge has been leveled both at Dida and AC Milan.

What happened on Wednesday evening at Celtic Park would go down into the annals of football history as an occurrence worthy of being selected for an Oscar. Immediate to the eventual winning goal for Celtic scored by Scott McDonald deep into injury time, a Celtic fan rushed onto the pitch and hit Dida. The Milan goalkeeper then gave chase but after moments later fell onto the football feild like parchment. Then a sustitute was sent for him.

The Celtic fan has since been forbidden for life although the Scottish club’s website refused to recognize the culprit. Dida’s role in the incident has been higly ridiculed by the football fans and this time UEFA has decided to open disciplinary hearing against the 34-year old Brazilian international.

Milan manager Carlo Ancelotti has defended his player and has asked for mercy. He says that Dida’s past record is clean and the one-off reckless act on Wednesday should be forgiven. Dida was also at the receiving side of a firecracker during Milan’s Champions League, quarter-final match against Inter Milan at the San Siro stadium in 2005.

UEFA’s investigation is on the creteria of Article 5 of its disciplinary rules and regulations. The step interpreted by UEFA, probe into the whole incident, is admirable, but it is likely that both Milan and Dida would be pardoned off with a rebuke and a few thousand dollars fine.

Steven Gerrard To Sign Fresh Liverpool Contract

2007-10-15T04:09:00.000-07:00

Liverpool skipper Steven Gerrard said that he in short time of span is going to sign a new contract with the club, which would stretch out his current contract to another four years.

The 26-year-old England international has another two years to go on his contemporary contract but the club wanted to bind him in with an extension and Gerrard said he is ready. Gerrard’s keenness is quite understandable because the club is offering him a massive wage of £120,000!

Gerrard said

You know, I’m ready to sign anytime, as soon as the contract is put in front of me I’ll sign it.

The England midfielder had another astounding season for the club, leading Liverpool to their second Champions League final in three years.

Naturally, Liverpool’s fresh owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett are cheerful with Gerrard’s decision and they are hoping that Gerrard would help Liverpool initiate a strong campaign for the Premiership title.