Tuesday, May 20, 2014
Dubai: Euro 2004 champions Greece have successfully carved out a niche for themselves at major tournaments in recent years, playing the role of stubborn yet respected opponents.
The southern Europeans had only ever qualified for one World Cup (1994) and one continental showpiece (1980) before their sensational 2004 triumph in Portugal, but Brazil 2014 will be their fourth successive major event. While their rigid defensive system and lack of flair means they aren’t every neutral’s favourite, the Greeks play the plucky underdogs perfectly and will be confident of claiming a scalp or two this summer.
Portuguese coach Fernando Santos, who will step down after the World Cup, has continued the good work of predecessor Otto Rehhagel and Greece’s record in qualifying was very impressive.
Their dour tactical approach was borne out by a record of just 12 goals scored and only four conceded during their first 10 qualifying matches, but striker Kostas Mitroglou — a £12 million [Dh74.8m] signing for Fulham in January — scored three times in the 4-2 aggregate play-off triumph over Romania.
Greece will look to Mitroglou, nicknamed ‘Mitrogoal’, for goals in Brazil, but the 26-year-old has failed to make in impact in the English Premier League so far, making just three appearances without finding the net. He will feature as an unknown quantity, but the qualities of hard-working teammates like wide men Giorgios Samaras of Celtic and Dimitris Salpangidis of PAOK, fellow Fulham player Giorgios Karagounis in central midfield and defenders Sokratis Papastathopoulos (Borussia Dortmund) and Vassilis Torosidis (Roma) have been honed over many years in the national team.
Greece were also boosted by the draw, which has placed them alongside Colombia, Ivory Coast and Japan. With no standout team in Group C, all four will fancy their chances of a last-16 spot but, by the same token, the two that get left behind will be stuck cursing their missed opportunity.
The Greeks’ campaign could go one of two ways — either they’ll spring a surprise or two in the group before making a brave exit in the last-16, or their limitations will be exposed early and they will fall at the first hurdle.
By Martin Downer Deputy Sports Editor
Gulf News 2014. All rights reserved.
