Euro 2004 digest

All today's news from Portugal.

BULGARIA: Bulgaria boss Plamen Markov has received a treble fitness boost on the eve of his team’s Euro 2004 opener against Sweden at Estadio Jose Alvalade tomorrow.

Striker Velizar Dimitrov has overcome the thigh injury which had bugged him in training ahead of the Group C encounter.

And goalkeeper Zdravko Zdravkov and midfielder Daniel Borimirov have overcome their minor muscle niggles to complete a fully-fit squad.

CZECH REPUBLIC: Striker Milan Baros is well aware of the pressure on the Czech Republic to do well in Portugal but insists he is not looking any further than the group stages just yet.

Karel Bruckner’s team open their Group D campaign against Latvia on Tuesday in Aveiro before further games against Holland and Germany.

“Of course it’s difficult if somebody expects you’ll be the champions of Europe,” Baros told Radio Prague.

“But I think we’ve got a tough group, and our first target is to get out of the group. And then anything can happen. So that’s our first target, to go through from the group.”

DENMARK: Defender Martin Laursen will be the man charged with keeping striker Christian Vieri under control when they take on Italy.

But having faced the Inter star on a number of occasions, Laursen insists he has nothing to fear.

“I’m not afraid of Vieri,” he said.

“If you are afraid you have already lost. I believe in myself and I have done well against Vieri before.

“I see it as a huge challenge. He fits me well even though he’s big and strong and has a strong shot and can score after being invisible for 88 minutes.

“But he doesn’t feel like running and is not a team player.

“And the Italians have just accepted that as long as he scores, and he has done so far.”

GERMANY: Germany striker Fredi Bobic believes his experience and physical approach could provide the perfect weapon to overcome bitter rivals Holland.

The pair meet in a mouth-watering encounter on Tuesday, with the match sure to provide a stern test of Germany’s ability to progress through the so-called ‘Group of Death’, with Holland and the Czech Republic clear favourites to go through.

Kuranyi said: “I am in very good shape physically and have the experience to handle a match like this.

“(Jaap) Stam is a great defender but I think my style of play would put him under a lot of pressure.

“Experience will be a very important factor in this game and I’m hoping Rudi will give me the nod.”

GREECE: Greece’s players believe their German coach Otto Rehhagel has given them the fighting spirit they need to become a respected side on the international scene.

The 2-1 victory over host nation Portugal at the Estadio do Dragao was a landmark achievement for the Greeks.

It was their first win at this level and helped banish memories of their last disastrous outing in a major tournament in the 1994 World Cup in which they failed to either register a point or score.

Striker Zisis Vryzas hailed the way the Greeks had stuck together to defy the hosts and claimed it was down to the war-like mentality instilled by Rehhagel, who is a national hero in his adopted country.

“We are all very emotional after this result which is a great day for us,” said Vryzas.

“But there is a long way to go and now we must start thinking about our next game. We are the outsiders, we have won and we are proud of our football – we showed what we are capable of.

“Our coach prepared us for this.”

ITALY: Defender Alessandro Nesta is confident, but realistic enough to know that several teams can put together a good run and win the crown.

“Italy are favourites to win the title, but there are other top squads like France, England, Holland, Spain and Portugal,” said Nesta, speaking before the hosts’ 2-1 upset by Greece.

With teams such as Greece capable of springing upsets Nesta insists only total effort is acceptable.

“In today’s football, you need 11 players to give 100% physically and mentally.

“In tournaments as important as this one, if you only give 80% of your potential, you end up looking bad.”

LATVIA: Latvia defender Igors Stepanovs believes he will recover from injury in time for the Baltic minnows’ Euro 2004 opener against the Czech Republic on Tuesday.

Stepanovs picked up a thigh injury shortly after the Latvians arrived in Portugal but remains confident he can shake it off before the Group D clash in Aveiro.

“I hope to be fully fit by the beginning of the week,” he said.

PORTUGAL: Portugal’s footballers were struggling to come to terms with the 2-1 defeat by Greece which has left the host nation struggling to reach the knockout phase of Euro 2004.

Some – notably Cristiano Ronaldo – were in no mood to talk to the press but those who did were candid enough to admit that the unexpected setback at the hands of the team considered the weakest in the pool has left them staring at a possible first-round exit in the biggest sports event ever staged by the country.

Defender Jorge Andrade admitted the defeat had been a severe jolt to their confidence, saying: “We are shocked at what has happened.

“There was a lot of pressure on us because this was the opening game but we still felt we were capable of winning it and putting on a show.

“Now we must reflect and decide how we will do better next time.

RUSSIA: Managers and coaches usually protect their out-of-touch players in public, regardless of what goes on back on the training pitch.

Russia’s Georgi Yartsev does not fit into that list. After his sides’ 1-0 defeat by Spain in Faro, Yartsev rounded on midfielder Rolan Gusev after a frankly disappointing display.

He said: “Gusev was poor. You find before games that people can say they are okay but in the match it does not happen. That is the case here. He made mistakes and others were booked trying to rectify the situation.”

And he was no less damning of others, defending his decision to play Dmitri Bulykin as a lone striker, saying: “I was happy with the way Bulykin played, I was just surprised that my midfield players did not get forward to support him.

“I don’t know why that was but I intend to ask them.”

SPAIN: Most exciting player by some distance on the opening day must surely be Valencia’s brilliant left-sided midfielder Vicente who produced a level of wing play and crossing under pressure rarely seen.

Three Russians were booked for kicking him in 16 first-half minutes but he still kept coming back for more.

And he is promising even better displays. He won the man of the match award and said: “This will only inspire me to do even better.

“My performance will give me real confidence going into the next few games, and I thought it was crucial that we got a win in first game.”

SWEDEN: Fredrik Ljungberg has warned Sweden have learned from their previous mistakes and are ready to make an impact on the European stage.

The Swedes did not make it past the group stage in the Low Countries four years ago, and although they performed creditably at the last World Cup before being eliminated by Senegal, believe they have a score to settle as they prepare to launch their new campaign.

“I think we’ve learned from 2000,” said Ljungberg. “I think then we trained too hard and were a bit nervous. It was a huge disappointment.

“We don’t want to be big-headed or anything – we’re just going to say we want to qualify from the group. I think we can upset some of the big teams.”