By Karolos Grohmann
SALZBURG, June 19 - Defending champions Greece
will return home to face stinging criticism after they failed to
win a single point and scored only a solitary goal at Euro 2008.
Greece, who stunned the soccer world with their surprise
victory four years ago, will see their presence at this event as
a mere footnote, disappointing their fans in all three Group D
matches, crashing out without as much as a fight.
Having arrived in Austria, fresh from a qualification
campaign that saw them earn more points than any other team, the
Greeks eyed a spot in the quarter-finals.
Instead they were dragged back to reality from match one
when Sweden outplayed them, scoring twice in five minutes.
A five-man defence failed to stop the gutsy Swedes, who
first scored with a stunning Zlatan Ibrahimovic strike before
Petter Hansson added a second.
"Wonders don't happen every time. Otherwise they wouldn't be
wonders," coach Otto Rehhagel said. "We never believed we would
come here and reshuffle the deck of European football again."
Their next encounter against Russia, who had been thrashed
4-1 by Spain, was an even more one-sided affair with the
Russians carving out chance after chance in a 30-minute second
half spell, eventually winning 1-0.
TOUGH QUESTIONS
Greece's defence was in tatters yet again while their
three-pronged attack was left languishing in midfield.
Rehhagel brushed aside renewed criticism, saying his team
had improved but the Greek media were already sharpening their
knives.
The coach who helped lift Greece from 93rd in the FIFA
rankings to close to the top ten, was angrily declining to
answer questions about his team's dismal performance and his own
future, despite a contract extension signed recently until 2010.
It took a fire-fighting effort from Greek FA president
Vassilis Gagatsis, who backed Rehhagel, in charge since 2001, to
restore order ahead of their final, meaningless, encounter
against Spain.
Freed from the pressures of qualification, Greece did put in
a better performance, albeit against a second string Spanish
side, managing to score their first and only goal of the
tournament.
MANY MISTAKES
It was fittingly a 42nd minute header by Angelos Haristeas,
the striker who scored Greece's golden goal in the final four
years ago in similar fashion, that put the Greeks in the lead.
Spain quickly recovered, equalising with a Ruben de la Red
strike and clinching a well deserved win with Daniel Guiza two
minutes from time.
"Our team did not present itself well," defender Traianos
Dellas finally admitted. "We will learn from our mistakes and
not repeat them in our World Cup qualifiers. You can only gain
by your presence at such major tournaments."
With several players retiring from the squad, including
keeper Antonis Nikopolidis, and more to follow suit, Rehhagel
will not be able to avoid tough questions regarding the Austrian
debacle once he returns to Greece.
Only a good start of their World Cup campaign in the autumn
could put a damper on the increasing volume of criticism.