| The Czech Republic and Latvia showed how to fight The main hero of the European Championship, according to many experts from different countries, should have been the Italian Francesco Totti. It was this football player who was talked about on the eve of the championship as Zinedine Zidane’s successor on the throne of the main star of the Old World. However, Totti closed the door to recognition for himself by spitting in the face of Christian Poulsen in the match with Denmark. The UEFA Disciplinary Committee decided to disqualify the Italian for three matches. Meanwhile, new contenders have already appeared for the vacant position of the main star of Euro 2004: Englishman Wayne Rooney, Swede Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Czech Milan Baros.
Group "B". The English team won a convincing victory over the Swiss with a score of 3:0, largely thanks to the mature play of Everton striker Wayne Rooney. The eighteen-year-old footballer twice forced Swiss goalkeeper Jörg Stihl to take the ball out of his net. “During my coaching career I have worked with such talents as Rui Costa, Roberto Baggio, Paulo Sergio. However, Rooney is a special case,” said England head coach Sven Goran Eriksson. - We believe that we will reach the quarterfinals, so we cannot help but think about the future. I would like to hope that Rooney, despite his hot temper, will not receive a second warning.”
In order to overcome the group stage barrier, the British need to at least not lose to Croatia, which can be considered the team that suffered the most from the judges in the tournament. In the game with the Swiss, she “fell victim” to the Portuguese Lucio Batista, and in the match with the French, she was deprived of victory by the Danish referee Kim Milton Nielsen, who did not notice that Trezeguet played along with his hand before sending the ball into Butina’s goal. This goal allowed the “tricolors” to achieve a draw - 2:2.
Group "C". The Danes won their first victory in the tournament largely thanks to the duo Jon Dahl Tomasson - Jesper Gronkjaer. It was they who scored a goal against the Bulgarians - 2:0, thereby sending Plamen Markov's team home ahead of schedule. “Our team showed once again that it was not in vain that they came to the championship,” said the head coach of the Lani team, Morten Olsen. - Everyone played great, but I want to mention Gronkjar. He has a terrible grief: his mother died. Jesper couldn't play the whole match and I left him on the bench. But when he needed to go on the field, he wiped away his tears and played perhaps better than anyone. I thank him for this match. Gronkjar is a true athlete."
Ten years have passed since the Swedish team took third place at the World Championships. Of the heroes of the championship in the USA, only Henrik Larsson remained in the ranks, who showed in the first match that he had not lost his skills over the years. But in the game with the Italian national team, which ended with a score of 1:1, the laurels of the savior of the Scandinavians went to Larsson’s young teammate Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
And in the ranks of the Italian national team they found their own young hero. Antonio Cassano, who replaced the disqualified Totti, put the Italians ahead at the end of the first half. The second half of the match took place with a noticeable advantage for the Swedes, and five minutes before the final whistle, Ibrahimovic scored a miracle goal. With his back to the goal, the tall forward kicked the ball into the top corner of the goal with his heel. “Ask me to repeat a similar trick in training, I’m afraid it won’t work,” Zlatan said modestly after the game. Now, in order to get out of the group, Trapattoni’s team needs to defeat the Bulgarians with a big score.
Group "D". There are many young and talented football players in the German national team: Lahm, Kuranyi, Schweinsteiger. But their efforts in the game with Latvia were defeated by the competent defense of the Baltic states. The Germans' advantage was unconditional, especially in the second half. But in the final protocol there were two zeros left. And if young Latvian striker Maris Verpakovskis had been accurate in finishing attacks, the sensation could have been louder.
And finally, the most beautiful match of the second round, Holland - Czech Republic. While losing during the match, the Czechs did not surrender to the mercy of the winner and won 3:2. Thus, the Czech team became the first participant in the quarterfinals. But the start turned out to be a nightmare for Karel Brückner’s team, but goals from Baume and van Nistelrooy did not break it. The role of leader in the Czech national team was taken on by 22-year-old Milan Baros. Even in the first half, he did everything to ensure that Koller hit Van der Sar's goal, and after the break, Baros himself struck a magnificent volley and forced the Dutch to start from the center for the second time. And when Dick Advocaat’s players were left in the minority, the Czechs put the squeeze on the enemy. Baros launched an attack that was completed by his Liverpool teammate Vladimir Smicer. “The second goal we conceded seriously undermined our self-confidence, but as soon as we were able to quickly get one goal back, the team realized that they could turn the tide of the match. And the end of the match turned out to be fantastic. I have never had the opportunity to participate in such a fight,” Milan Baros said after the meeting.
The Czechs have already left the group, and the Dutch and Germans will have to find out in an absentee dispute which of them is the odd one out. However, the Latvians did not lose their chance to continue the fight.
Match results. Group "B". England - Switzerland - 3:0. Goals: Rooney 23, 75, Gerrard 82. Croatia - France - 2:2. Goals: Rapaic 48 (pen), Pršo 52 -- Tudor 22 (own goal), Trezeguet 64. Group C. Bulgaria - Denmark - 0:2. Goals: Thomasson 44, Gronkjar 90. Italy - Sweden - 1:1. Goals: Cassano 37 -- Ibrahimovic 85. Group D. Latvia - Germany - 0:0. Holland - Czech Republic - 2:3. Goals: Bouma 4, van Nistelrooy 19 -- Koller 23, Baros 71, Schmicer 88.
Team position
Group "A" I V N P M O | 1. Greece | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3--2 | 4 | | 2. Spain | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2--1 | 4 | | 3. Portugal | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3--2 | 3 | | 4. Russia | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0--3 | 0 |
Late yesterday evening : Russia - Greece, Portugal - Spain
Group "B" I V N P M O | 1. France | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4--3 | 4 | | 2. England | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4--2 | 3 | | 3. Croatia | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2--2 | 2 | | 4. Switzerland | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0--3 | 1 |
June 21. Croatia - England, Switzerland - France
Group "C" I V N P M O | 1. Sweden | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6--1 | 4 | | 2. Denmark | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2--0 | 4 | | 3. Italy | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1--1 | 2 | | 4. Bulgaria | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0--7 | 0 |
June 22 . Italy - Bulgaria, Denmark - Sweden
Group "D" I V N P M O | 1. Czech Republic | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5--3 | 6 | | 2. Germany | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1--1 | 2 | | 3. Holland | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3--4 | 1 | | 4. Latvia | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1--2 | 1 |
June 23. Holland - Latvia, Czech Republic - Germany Andrey VDOVIN, Lisbon, Oleg TIMOFEEV
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