Tuesday, 10 June 2008
Day four of GroundReport’s on-the-ground coverage of Euro2008:
Euro 2004 champions Greece did not impress in their first outing against Sweden today, going down 2-0 in Salzburg during the second of the day’s fixtures.
After an uneventful first half, Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic struck a beauty from the top of the penalty box to put the Swedes up 1-0 in the 67th minute. The six-foot-four (192 cm) striker caught an impregnable Greek defense by surprise, collecting a quick throw in on a counter-attack from a Greek corner-kick and unleashing a powerful shot past helpless keeper Antonis Nikopolidis. Ibrahimovic until today had been unable to find the back of the net as a Swedish international for nearly three years, since October 2005.
The Greeks found themselves in an unfamiliar position, with the unfamiliar task of taking the game to their opponents and finding an equalizer. Greece, the winners of the tournament four years ago in Portugal, have been notorious for their defense-minded style of play, in which all but a lone striker would stay behind the ball and venture out only once or twice a game during counter-attacks.
The Swedes sealed the match in the 73rd minute, when defender Petter Hansson – an unlikely goal-scorer – somewhat awkwardly pushed the ball across the goal-line after an equally awkward scramble for the ball inside the Greek penalty box. The Greeks had not been able to clear a Swedish corner kick properly, and in the ensuing seconds, veteran mid-fielder Frederick Ljunberg found himself in acres of space one-on-one with the Greek keeper. Though Nikopolidis denied Ljunberg in his charge, the ball shot straight up toward goal, and four men – three Greek defenders and Hansson – chased desperately after it, only to see it crawl into the goal.
The Greeks face Russia next, who lost earlier today, while Sweden and Spain face off for first place of Group D, all on Saturday.
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