Greece, who lined up with a strictly domestic lineup, looked to trouble the Italian offense with tight defense in the midfield. The Greeks grabbed most of the early chances; Giannis Papadopoulos tested the Italian keeper, but the shot was pushed aside for a corner. A dozen minutes later and Greece broke the deadlock. AEK player Michalis Pavlis played a give and go with Sotiris Ninis, and the AEK striker broke free of the tight Italian defense. Holding off one of the Italian defenders — being pulled on at the same time — Pavlis played the ball beautifully and with his left foot curled the ball around the Italian keeper. It stayed 1-0 for Greece for quite sometime. Giannis Papadopoulos continued to pressure the keeper into tough saves, as he fired from all around the box. The game proved to be a tight defensive affair with the midfield being very congested. The Italians had attacks of their own, but the majority were sent wide. Italy had another chance late in the match but the shot was sent wide of the Greek goal. The match was reaching its end when Italy was awarded penalty after Kyriakos Papadopoulos brought down Andrea Poli. Alberto Paloschi fired the ball down the middle of the goal. It was definitely a devastating blow for a Greek team that deserved the win. In the group’s other match, the Czech Republic over came England on home soil.

Greece’s next match is against the hosts, Czech Republic, while England look to improve against a ‘lucky’ Italian side. For now the Czech Republic top the group with 3 points, Greece and Italy follow with 1 point each, and England sit in the basement with no points to their name.

Greece reached the finals last year, only to fall to La Furia Roja Jr. (aka Spain U-19) 1-0 — it was Spain’s second consecutive U-19 triumph. With that being said, Spain is definitely the team to beat; but for Greece, they’ll have to wait until the knockout stages to have a crack at the defending champions. For now the Greek focus will be on Group B, consisting of the hosts Czech Republic, England, and Italy. First up Italy, on Monday night. The Greeks are once again led by Panathinaikos starlet, Sotiris Ninis; the 18-year old was inspirational in the 2007 run to the finals , and look for him to be in the core for this tournament. Sokratis Papastathopoulos just missed out on making the senior squad for EURO 2008, but with his experience gained from his time at AEK he will definitely be a key figure in Greece’s defense for this tournament. Fellow AEK teammate, Michalis Pavlis, will partner up with Olympiacos’ Lefteris Matsoukas to form a tricky Greek attack. New Olympiacos signing, Giannis Papadopoulos will support Ninis in the midfield, while Kyriakos Papadopoulos will man the center of defense alongside. In goal, Dean Bouzanis of Liverpool FC, will need to give a solid performance. After injury problems plagued the starting goalie last year, Greek manager Alexi Alexiou will hope he can avoid injury problems this year.

Many of the players in this year’s lineup are a new wave of talent, but many faces from the 2007 campaign remain in the fold. The task will be tough, as the opponents will be new to the team. The Italians are expected to go far in this tournaments, while England prove to be a tough squad to play against. The Czech Republic are hosts, and we’ve all seen what home advantage can make teams do.

Greece’s first game is against Italy, followed by a tilt with the Czech Republic three days later. The last encounter comes against England, where it could potentially be a ‘win or go home’ kind of game. Last year’s tournament saw Greece involved in many intriguing encounters, here’s to hoping it’s more of the same this year.