Euro Cup 2008 : Greece 0-2 Sweden

By Phil McNulty

Zlatan Ibrahimovic produced a moment of magic to put Sweden on the path to a crucial Euro 2008 victory against holders Greece in Group D.

Ibrahimovic scored his first goal for Sweden since 2005 with a stunning 25-yard strike after 67 minutes.

Petter Hansson scrambled home Sweden’s second six minutes later to end Greece’s dogged defensive resistance.

Hansson had almost given Greece the lead earlier, heading just wide of his own goal, but Sweden deserved the win.

Greece looked a shadow of the side that shocked Europe in Portugal four years ago and once Sweden took the lead, Otto Rehhagel’s team never looked likely to salvage anything from a dour encounter.

Sweden are now in pole position to qualify along with Spain, while Greece face the prospect of having to beat Russia on Saturday to keep the crown they won in Lisbon’s Stadium of Light in 2004.

Greece were the surprise winners in that tournament, with a style based on a fierce discipline and a strong rearguard, and they appeared intent on defending their title in similar fashion.

Angelos Charisteas, whose goal beat Portugal in the last final, was the main Greek danger in the first half and he tested Sweden keeper Andreas Isaksson with a powerful shot after a driving run in the sixth minute.

Inter Milan striker Ibrahimovic almost got the opener the game so desperately needed after 32 minutes.

He stole in on the end of Freddie Ljungberg’s cross but could only direct his header on to the roof of the net, with Greece keeper Antonis Nikopolidis stranded.

Charisteas was in the action again three minutes before the interval but once more he shot straight at Isaksson, who then saved well from an awkward, dipping Angelos Basinas effort.

Greece introduced striker Georgios Samaras for Fanis Gekas after the break but the stalemate continued in a game crying out for a goal.

And it almost came in bizarre fashion after 65 minutes when Hansson glanced Traianos Dellas’ cross only inches wide of his own goal.

The deadlock was broken two minutes later – courtesy of a goal that was totally out of keeping with what had gone before.

Ibrahimovic played in Henrik Larsson before taking the return pass in his stride and sending a magnificent rising drive past Nikopolidis from 25 yards.

It was his last action of the game but soon after Sweden increased their lead with a scrambled second after 73 minutes.

Nikopolidis saved well from Ljungberg as he raced in on goal but the loose ball sparked an outbreak of mass confusion in the Greek penalty area and Hansson bundled home to effectively seal the win.

Greece had been desperately short of attacking invention but Vassilis Torosidis almost threw them a lifeline with three minutes left, forcing Isaksson into a fine block at his near post.

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/

Euro Cup 2008 : Spain 4-1 Russia

By David Ornstein

David Villa scored the first hat-trick of Euro 2008 as Spain lived up to their pre-tournament billing with a fine victory over Russia in Group D.

Russia started positively but were hit on the counter-attack, with Fernando Torres squaring for Villa to roll home.

Konstantin Zyryanov saw a shot hit the post but then Villa prodded past Igor Akinfeyev to double the lead and after 74 minutes he drilled in a third.

Roman Pavlyuchenko nodded a consolation before Cesc Fabregas headed a fourth.

Spain wasted a number of openings to win by an even bigger margin and the standard of their performance would suggest a place in the quarter-finals is well within reach.

In Villa and Torres they appear to possess a forward partnership to match any at the tournament and the array of creative midfielders at Luis Aragones’s disposal should ensure a regular supply line.

Russia’s Guus Hiddink has advanced to the knockout rounds at every major international competition he has coached at but the Dutchman has a task on his hands just to patch up a porous defence, let alone progress to the last eight.

Amid unrelenting rainfall in the mountainous city of Innsbruck, both sides struggled to keep hold of the ball early on.

But that failed to dim the attacking ambitions of either set of players and a free-flowing first half ensued.

Torres and Villa looked in menacing form from the outset and inside 10 minutes the strikers each had a decent sight of goal but produced weak finishes.

At the other end, Russia were working the channels well and Dmitry Sychev squared from the right for Igor Semshov to fire wide under a timely challenge from Villarreal’s Joan Capdevila.

Although Russia were without the suspended Andrei Arshavin and injured Pavel Pogrebniak, Pavlyuchenko looked dangerous as the lone striker and he was ably supported by Sychev and Diniyar Bilyaletdinov.

But, uncharacteristically of a team sent out by Hiddink, it was in defence that Russia were exposed.

Aragones opted against including Arsenal’s central midfielder Fabregas in his starting line-up, instead pairing the forward-thinking Xavi with the more defensively minded Marcos Senna.

Senna, a target of Manchester United after the 2006 World Cup, was in sensational form, turning defence into attack at every opportunity and allowing Xavi to pick out Torres and Villa whenever possible.

It was, however, a clearance from Capdevila that resulted in Torres outmuscling the hapless Denis Kolodin on 18 minutes and then squaring for Villa to roll into an unguarded net.

Far from deflating Russia, who qualified for the tournament at England’s expense, the goal merely encouraged them to throw more men forward and they were unfortunate not to equalise.

Alexander Anyukov overlapped Sychev and his low cross was missed by four Spanish defenders before Zyryanov saw his curled effort rebound off Iker Casillas’s right-hand post.

Despite arriving off the back of a 16-game unbeaten run stretching to November 2006, Spain had scored more than once in only one of their previous five outings.

But Torres almost doubled Spain’s lead only to flick wide under pressure from the Russia goalkeeper Akinfeyev when slipped through by Villa.

The warning signs were plentiful – Torres saw a shot parried and then Villa was denied by Akinfeyev at the near post – but still the Russian back four failed to get tight to their men.

And they were punished on the stroke of half-time when, after inexplicably losing possession at a corner, Andres Iniesta moved into space and played a sumptuous through-ball to Villa, which the Valencia man needed little invitation to slot through Akinfeyev’s legs.

The second half was even more open than the first.

Villa, now stripped of Torres, who was replaced by Fabregas for tactical reasons, shot straight at Akinfeyev as the Russians backed off.

Two minutes later Bilyaletdinov came in from the left and fizzed a left-footed effort narrowly wide.

It took a last-ditch Anyukov clearance to deny Villa his hat-trick from Sergio Ramos’s centre but, after Senna saw a header well saved, the 26-year-old scored his third.

He collected Fabregas’s perfectly weighted pass, turned Roman Shirokov and wrong-footed Akinfeyev.

Pavlyuchenko had shot just wide before he turned in a corner on 86 minutes.

But, with Russia running on empty, Xavi’s shot was parried and Fabregas headed in his first international goal to leave Spain well worth their victory.

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/

India defeat Pakistan by a record margin of 140 runs

G.Krishnan, Hindustan Times
Dhaka, June 10, 2008

Praveen Kumar continues to impress with the new ball in one-dayers.

Man of the Match in the last ODI India played — against Australia — Kumar produced another outstanding performance to bowl India to a 140-run rout over Pakistan in the Kitply Cup here on Tuesday. This was India’s biggest margin of victory by runs against Pakistan.

Pakistan, chasing 331, were undone by Praveen’s opening spell of four for 42, slipping to 81 for four by the 13th over. They were bowled out for 190 in only 35.4 overs, with leg-spinner Piyush Chawla (4 for 40) running through the tail.

The Indian bowlers were ably supported by their fielders. The first wicket, of Salman Butt, fell after Rohit Sharma pulled off a brilliant catch at short point.

Rohit’s effort was yet another example of the importance of having fresh legs in the outfield.

Earlier, Delhi mates Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir put on a century partnership of 155 in 21.3 overs to lay the foundation of a massive total.

Sehwag (89, 76b, 13×4, 1×6) was cautious to begin with, allowing the in-form Gambhir (62, 62b, 6×4) to dictate.

Gambhir was dropped twice by Younis Khan at slip, on 4 and 29. At the other end, boundaries poured at Sehwag’s will.

Pakistan’s choice of four medium-pacers, adding Rao Iftikhar to their attack at left-arm spinner Fawad Alam’s expense, bore no fruit.

Sehwag, too, was lucky when Kamran Akmal floored an outside edge off Iftikhar when he was on 43.

Unperturbed, Sehwag carried on with the carnage. Left-arm medium-pacer Wahab Riaz, who impressed against Bangladesh two nights ago, could do precious little after breaking the opening partnership, removing Gambhir and Sehwag off successive overs, bounce doing the trick.

It was Riaz again who was the centre of attention at the death when he was removed from the attack for bowling his second full toss above the waist.

It was not understandable why Yusuf Pathan was sent at number four when more reputed batsmen were waiting in the dressing room. The momentum was lost for a brief period as the debutant half-brother of Irfan Pathan, making it a rare case of brothers playing in the same ODI for India, looked lost in his maiden visit at this level. He did not last long either as did Rohit Sharma before Yuvraj Singh’s swashbuckling 54-ball 55 (3×4, 3×6) and Dhoni’s cameo brought India back on track.

Source : http://www.hindustantimes.com