By Myles Palmer
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Portugal 1 Greece 2
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Karagounis 7, Basinas pen 53, Cristiano Ronaldo 93
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GREECE are a solid Bundesliga side who play an efficent 4-4-2 with passion.
They are like Rehhagel’s Kaiserslautern and his Werder Bremen, I’m sure.
They work hard and give you nothing and score on the break.
Greece were worthy winners and might beat Spain in their next game.
Every tournament proves that every preview is rubbish.
IT NEVER WORKS OUT THE WAY WE THINK.
That’s what makes it interesting.
LUIS FIGO has done some dumb things in his career, like signing simultaneously for two clubs when he was leaving Portugal, or trying to.
He is 31 but an old 31.
He was in his prime four or five years ago at Barcelona, when he swerved inside Roberto Carlos and hit a left foot shot that bent just inside the far post.
Nobody has done that to Carlos since.
Watching Figo today was painful.
He chugged down the field and was tackled and sat on the ground looking pained and waving his arms.
I could have more fun watching the QE2 docking at Southampton harbour.
PORTUGAL are not like Porto.
Porto are a defensive side who play a game of attrition.
Portugal is a nation of midfield players.
The strikers and fullbacks all play in midfield.
They are all ball-centric.
They all want it to feet.
None of them makes a run off the ball.
They dribble and stop and pass it to somebody standing still, and then he dribbles and stops.
RUI COSTA made his name hitting 40-yard passes for a power centre forward, Batistuta.
Pauleta cannot thrive on 40-yard passes because he lacks pace.
He should only run wide IN THE BOX, not run wide to the touchline.
The team was unbalanced, so he had no player in the 4-5-1 was joining him.
Even when Ronaldo came on, he was on the left, when Figo should have been on the left.
I EXPECTED A VIBRANT TEMPO from the kick-off, lots of aggression and pace down the flanks.
Instead, Portugal started nervously, conceded an early goal from a Ferreira mistake, had a lot of possession, made two changes at half-time, bringing on Deco and Ronaldo, but Ronaldo made a silly challenge to concede a penalty, so they were 2-0 down and five years of anticipation and hope went down the toilet in 52 minutes.Almost.
PAULETA needs a half-striker.
Pauleta/Deco would be like Lineker/Beardsley.
Nuno Gomes/Deco would be like Shearer/Sheringham.
BIG PHIL’S body language was terrible.
It was really terrible.
He was so fed up.
His face looked as if he was thinking : What can I do with these tossers?
FIGO must have insisted that his mate Rui Costa started, not Deco, a naturalized Brazilian.
To keep Figo happy, Big Phil gave in – a major error.
Portugal 1 Greece 2 proved that managers should manage and stars should do what they are told.
Rehhagel said : I’m in charge, follow me- and they did
IF RAUL is as good against Russia as Figo was against Greece, God help Spain.
BUT IT IS A TOURNAMENT, so it takes 3 or 4 games for a pattern to emerge.
Verdict?
Stick with 4-4-2.
12th June 2004