Good News for Attacking Football: Greece are out of Euro 2008

June 15th, 2008 | by: Daryl |

I remember thinking in 2004 how great it was that Greece won the Euros. No one expected it, victory for the underdog, put the big boys in their place etcetera etcetera. It quite rightly gave hope to the less traditionally powerful football nations. If Greece can with this thing, then maybe we can too.

But Greece’s first two games of Euro 2008 were a reminder of how they won the trophy in Portugal. Boringly. Defensively. Unattractively.

Greece started their first game with five at the back. Five. Far too many. The result was a mostly dull game, until Zlatan Ibrahimovic pulled that rocket from his pocket. Greece lost 2-0.

Now after losing their second game (1-0 to Russia last night) Greece are out and lightning – boring five at the back lightning – won’t be striking twice. And that’s good news for football.

I’ve got no problem with Greece playing the way they do. It’s clearly the best way for them to get results, and they have a big shiny Euro 2004 trophy to prove it.

And the message that any team can win the Euros is obviously encouraging.

But the message that any team can win this thing by playing soul-crushing defensive football is not so good. So Greece’s failure to repeat the triumph of 2004 (or even get out of Group D) has to be welcomed with open arms by fans of attractive football (pretty much everyone.)

The extra good news is that Greece’s failure is possibly a reflection of the tournament. Euro 2004 was a bit defensive and dull if memory serves, so they were fitting winners. But so far Euro 2008 has been pretty open and exciting. Greece’s game simply didn’t fit in.

Here’s to the entertaining football continuing, and a fiiting winner lifting the trophy on June 29.

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Comments

By Nolan | June 15th, 2008 at 9:33 am

Just like Rangers losing the UEFA Cup final, this is good news for football.

Posted from Argentina

By Elisa | June 15th, 2008 at 11:28 am

Here Here to Holland, Portugal, Spain and Croatia. This is good for the game.

By Soccer Delirium | June 15th, 2008 at 1:21 pm

Good news for football is when England doesn’t make the the European and (hopefully next two years) the World Cup finals. This has been the best tournament in memory because the English are not in it and not because you don’t like the style of soccer the defending champions play. Greece did not become Brazil overnight and they do what they can with the units they have (you said so yourself.) I don’t know how many of their games you have watched (I assume that you have only watched their last two games) but Greece have played some good (and a couple of time some really bad) football during the qualifying round. Unfortunately for them, they are a team that can have some really bad games some times and there is not enough games in the finals to correct such low points; in the qualifying round for example, there are enough games to make up for one or two bad results.

Anyways, Greece will be back with an appearance in the 2010 World Cup; they are in a very weak group and they should be able to qualify with ease. Let’s wait and see how they handle this one.

Cheers!

Posted from Australia

By Robert | June 15th, 2008 at 4:45 pm

Delirium; You have a point regarding their qualifying campaign and regarding Greece having to work with the tools it has. But did they?? I think they made a huge tactical blunder trying to play defenese only in their game against the Swedes and as a soccer fan I was glad to see them punished for that. I thought another team that played far more negative soccer than they are capable of were the Czechs and it was good to see them get spanked as well. Greece scored a lot during qualifying; it was a huge error in judgement from their manager IMO that cost them any hope of doeing anything at this tournament.

By Mic | June 15th, 2008 at 8:14 pm

To this category let’s add Romania (’my’ team at the tournament until I saw them play), who are currently still praised for playing ’strategically’ as their jig is not up yet. Good indeed when this type of play is punished and adepts of anti-football end up shooting themselves in the foot.

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