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The Euro 2012 provided yet another twist to the tale as Group A has been left wide open after the Czechs registered their first win of the tournament against Greece. Missing key defenders Sokratis and Avraam Papadopoulos through suspension and injury, Greece put up a makeshift defense which barely lasted for a few minutes as Jiracek latched on to a through ball from Hubschmann and opened the scoring for the Czech.
The 38 year old Greek custodian Chalkias had a nightmarish outing for the twenty minutes that he did stay on the pitch as he failed to make straight forward saves which resulted in two goals for the Czechs inside the opening six minutes. From there on, it was always an uphill task for the gritty Greek side who managed to pull one back courtesy another goalkeeping howler, this time from Petr Cech. This game can, in more ways than one, be remembered for the goalkeeping errors that came with it.
Czech coach Bilek had to take off Rosicky at half time and would be relieved to see that it did not affect the outcome of the match. The draw in the other game of the group between Poland and Russia means that it will be a virtual play off for a spot in the quarter final between the host nation and the Czechs when they face each other.
Greece
Kostas Chalkias- Rating 3
The 38 year old Greek goalkeeper had a forgettable twenty minutes that he was on the pitch as he was responsible for both the goals. A hamstring injury ended his nightmare.
Vasilis Torosidis- Rating 6.5
The Greek right back did well to keep Pilar in check for greater periods but his inability to clear the ball from Gebre Selassie’s cross cost his team a goal. Put in a few decent crosses into the box, but none of them bore fruit.
Kostas Katsouranis- Rating 5.5
The veteran filled in as a central defender in the absence of Sokratis and clearly looked uncomfortable there as he struggled against the movement of the Czech midfield ahead of him.
Kyriakos Papadopoulos- Rating 8
Top class performance from the young Greek defender. Barely let anything past him as he was unbeatable in the air today and almost single handedly put up against the Czech attacks.
Jose Cholevas- Rating 5
Struggled against the likes of Jiracek, who had a blinder, and Gebre Selassie, who made overlapping runs often. Did not get much help from Samaras in the defence either.
Giannis Maniatis- Rating 6
Worked selflessly in front of the Greek defence as he covered up for the full backs on many a occasion.
Giorgos Karagounis- Rating 5
Poor performance from the Greek captain as he had no impact in the game at all and failed to find his passing today.
Giorgos Fotakis- Rating 5
Another flop of the afternoon as he barely did anything noticeable during his stay and was removed in the beginning of the second session of play.
Konstantin Fortounis- Rating 5
The young Greek midfielder was a surprise inclusion in the side and struggled to get involved in the play.
Giorgos Samaras- Rating 6
A better performance from the no.7 as compared to his last outing against Poland. He did better today to keep the ball and take up positions in the middle pretty often. His harmless cross into the box in hopeful search of a Greek player resulted in the goal.
Dmitris Salpingidis- Rating 6
Had a difficult time to get past a resilient Kimbersly and failed to exert his presence in the box when the crosses came in.
Subs:
Michalis Sifakis (22′ on) – 7
The goalkeeper came on for Chalkias and certainly proved his worth as he pulled off a couple of good saves and organized the defense ahead of him neatly.
Theofanis Gekas (46′ on)- Rating 6.5
Was gifted a goal within minutes of coming on. The striker tried hard to win the balls in the opposition area but was often outnumbered by the Czech defense.
Kostas Mitroglou (71′ on)- NA
Czech Republic
Petr Cech – Rating 6
The Chelsea shot stopper was to be blamed for the needless goal that they conceded early in the second half and threw a lifeline for the hapless Greeks. An absolute howler from the goalkeeper as he clearly lost his concentration trying to avoid a possible collision with his own team mate.
Gebre Selassie- Rating 7.5
The full back had a very good game as he provided much needed width down the right. Always keen to make attacking runs into the Greek half and his cut back led to the second goal for the Czechs inside six minutes.
Tomas Sivok- Rating 7
The center half put in a very confident performance today as he dealt with most of the aerial threats pretty well.
Michal Kadlec- Rating 6.5
Felt comfortable today playing at the center of defense and put in a decent performance.
David Limbersky- Rating 7
Limbersky was one of the reasons for the Czechs’ improved performance as having a natural full back helped their cause. Defended well against Salpingidis and made some darting runs into the opposition half trying to link up with Pilar.
Jaroslav Plasil- Rating 7
Ran the midfield along with Rosicky and was instrumental in the Czechs’ performance in the first half. Faded a bit in the second half after Rosicky was taken off, but had a good game overall.
Tomas Rosicky- Rating 6
Bilek took a big risk when he brought off his star player in the half time himself as the Arsenal man was spectacular in the first forty five minutes. The Greek midfielders failed to keep him in check and Rosicky enjoyed a free roam in the midfield, trying to penetrate the Greek defense.
Vaclav Pilar- Rating 7.5
Worked tirelessly down the left and used his trickery to full effect when up against Torosidis. He showed great desire to score the second goal as he made a terrific run into the box and in between the two defenders to toe poke the ball into the net.
Tomas Hubschmann- Rating 7
Provided a top quality through pass for Jiracek to score the first goal and broke the down the Greek play very often in the middle of the park.
Petr Jiracek- Rating 8.5
A top notch performance from the Wolfsburg player as he made a terrific run to get behind the Greek defense to score one past Chalkias. Worked tirelessly in the second half, more often tracking back and doing his defensive duties. Did significantly well to hold onto the ball and initiate a counter attack every time he got the ball.
Milan Baros- Rating 6.5
Once again a tough day at the office for the former Liverpool striker as he struggled to cope with the physically superior Greek defenders. Had a glimpse of a chance in early minutes of the second half but couldn’t take it.
Subs:
Daniel Kolar(46’ on)- Rating 5
Came on for Rosicky in the beginning of the second half but struggled to adjust to the pace of the game. Conceded a few fouls and earned himself a booking before being subbed in the final minutes of the game.
Tomas Pekhart(64’ on)- Rating 5.5
Came on for Baros and did well to win a few headers against Torosidis. But Czechs were most of the time back in their own half defending.
Frantisek Rajtoral(89’ on)- NA.
