Czech players are refusing to shave during Euro 2012 in the hope that it will bring them luck, a source close to the team told AFP on Friday, as Michal Bilek's men gear up for a must-win match against Poland.
The team of 11 increasingly hairy Czechs beat Greece 2-1 on Tuesday, keeping their hopes of advancing to the quarter-finals alive, despite a not-so-lucky 4-1 defeat to Russia in their opening match.
The Czechs play their final Group A clash on Saturday against co-hosts Poland in Wroclaw, southwest Poland.
Reserve goalkeepers Jaroslav Drobny and Jan Lastuvka came up with the idea of eschewing razors in the run-up to the competition.
"It's meant to cement morale on the team," the source said.
While players unanimously supported the idea to down razors, the idea has apparently met with stiff opposition -- from their wives and girlfriends
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Rank | Team | W/D/L | Pts |
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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 |