Greece set for First Hurdle

Greece will kickoff its title defense with their opening Group D match against Sweden. Despite returning as defending champions, the Greeks are ranked heavy outsiders to repeat their feat from 2004. The odds go even further, as Sweden are the heavy favorites to open up their EURO 2008 campaign with a win over Greece.

Greece returns to Europe’s biggest stage with more than defense this time. Their defensive core boasts more of an attacking flare with the likes of Vassilis Torosidis and Giourkas Seitairidis pushing up the wings. On set pieces, Traianos Dellas will look to repeat his glorious moment from EURO 2004, but his new partner in crime could rival that feat. Eintracht Frankfurt defender Sotirios Kyrgiakos will most likely partner up with Dellas, who will be two towers in the defense, and targets on set pieces.

Ahead of the defense will be Kostas Katsouranis, who is a versatile defensive midfielder. Accompanied in the midfield by Giorgos Karagounis, and Aggelos Basinas, it will be crucial to Greek success that these three players compliment each other with their play.

Up front, will be a new and improved attack. Greece’s golden boy, Aggelos Charisteas, will most likely return to the lineup, while breaout stars Theofanis Gekas and Ioannis Amanatidis. Gekas has excelled since transferring into the Bundeliga two years ago. Amanatidis has grown his game since arriving at Frankfurt. On the bench could be Greece’s saviour (if necessary) in Nikolaos Lyberopoulos. Scoring many clutch goals in qualifying — including two late game winners vs. Moldova in qualifying –  ‘Lybe’ could be the clutch striker to solve a tight defense the Greeks face.

Unlike many squads in this year’s European Championships, Greece are fortunate to not be battling any nagging injuries in their starting lineup. Greek fans held their breath last week as inspirational midfielder Giorgos Karagounis was forced out of Greece’s first few training session in Austria. Now, the man who missed the EURO 2004 final through suspension, is back and ready for Greece’s opener in Salzburg.

This will be the first competitive meeting between Greece and Sweden in any type of international final. For Sweden, Zlatan Ibrahimovic is one of the tricky forwards to be aware of. While, veteran Henrik Larsson returns to add depth to the Swedish attack. The task of defending these two will be very difficult when factoring in Sweden’s supporting cast of Kim Kallstrom and Freddie Ljungberg. It is expected that Ibrahimovic will be marked by one of Greece’s defensive mid-fielders or fullbacks. The rest of the Swedish attack will be watched closely by the Greek back line.

Alongside Greece and Sweden, Group D features Spain and Russia — who meet in Innsbruck at 12pm EST. The task is a difficult one for Greece, but the Greek players insist they are taking each game in stride. “Who said anything about us being here to defend our title? The tournament hasn’t even started yet for us. First of all, it’s great to be here. We take one thing at a time. First match, then second match and so on,” said Greek striker Amanatidis.