
Portugal coach Paulo Bento insists his side will not fall into the same trap as France by retreating into their shells when they face reigning champions Spain in their Euro 2012 semi-final on Wednesday.Les Bleus boss Laurent Blanc made radical changes to his starting line-up ahead of last week’s quarter-final in an attempt to upset Spain’s rhythm and knock them out of thei... Full Story »
Phil Brown has been the subject of online ridicule after he mistakenly called Italy midfielder Andrea Pirlo ‘homophobic’.The former Hull City manager made the erroneous comment during an interview with BBC Radio 5 live when discussing the Juventus star’s reasons for never leaving his homeland to play for a foreign club. It is widely believed that Brown had intended to sa... Full Story »
Former England manager Glenn Hoddle has insisted that if the Three Lions are to find any kind of success, they need to come up with a more modern shape than the 4-4-2 formation.England looked defensively solid in Euro 2012, but their midfield appeared uncomfortable in possession and the strikers generally fed off scraps as build-up play lacked cutting edge.Despite thes... Full Story »
Andrea Pirlo cut a cool figure during Tuesday's conferenceAndrea Pirlo is anticipating a "beautiful", open semi-final on Thursday and believes that, with recent history on their side, Italy have nothing to fear from Joachim Löw's men. Indeed, if anything it is the other way around. "Germany are afraid of Italy," he told today's press conference.Pirlo has epitomised Italy'... Full Story »
Get to a certain age in this game and you write the same story, just with different names. England go to a tournament, England get outplayed by every good team they meet, England dig in and lose on penalties, and now it’s all about youth.I can’t wait for Friends tonight. I wonder if Ross and Rachel get back together. And what about that new rapper Eminem? Sounds really... Full Story »
Mario Balotelli has found himself at the centre of a new race row, this time sparked by a deeply offensive cartoon depicting him as King Kong in a leading Italian newspaper.On the morning of Italy’s European Championship encounter with England, Gazzetta dello Sport published a drawing of a giant Balotelli atop Big Ben swatting away footballs in the same way King Kong di... Full Story »
The first semi-final of Euro 2012 is being billed as the best team in the world versus the best player in the tournament. But can Cristiano Ronaldo really beat Vicente del Bosque’s gifted Spain team all on his own? Del Bosque did little to play down the threat.‘We need to deactivate Ronaldo,’ said the coach. ‘This is going to be one of the most important matches of our lives... Full Story »
Fabio Capello has delivered a withering assessment of Wayne Rooney’s England career, claiming 'he only plays well in Manchester'.Last week the former England manager publicly clashed with his one-time star player, responding angrily to Rooney’s claim that life is better under Roy Hodgson because he can at least speak English. Capello said Rooney did not understan... Full Story »
France star Samir Nasri could be banned from international football for two years following his attack on a journalist at Euro 2012.Midfielder Nasri was involved in a row with a French reporter after his team were knocked out in the quarter-finals 2-0 by Spain.Nasri, who came in as a second-half substitute, went through the mixed zone without a word for text reporters afte... Full Story »
A Ukraine supporter takes on a new lookAway from the on-field action at UEFA EURO 2012 there is another competition taking place – among supporters.It is impossible to convey in words the incredible variety of costumes and accessories fans wear in order to stand out from their contemporaries at a celebration of football such as this. While some play safe and don the shirt o... Full Story »Hot News
| Rank | Team | W/D/L | Pts |
|---|
Cities & Stadiums
The Top 3 Teams of Previous Tournaments
| Year | Winners | Runner-up | Third place |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Spain | Germany | Russia / Turkey |
| 2004 | Greece | Portugal | Netherlands / Czech Republic |
| 2000 | France | Italy | Netherlands / Portugal |
| 1996 | Germany | Czech Republic | France / England |
| 1992 | Denmark | Germany | Netherlands / Sweden |
| 1988 | Netherlands | Soviet Union | Italy / West Germany |
| 1984 | France | Spain | Denmark / Portugal |
| 1980 | West Germany | Belgium | Czechoslovakia |
| 1976 | Czechoslovakia | West Germany | Netherlands |
| 1972 | West Germany | Soviet Union | Belgium |
| 1968 | Italy | Yugoslavia | England |
| 1964 | Spain | Soviet Union | Hungary |
| 1960 | Soviet Union | Yugoslavia | Czechoslovakia |