Euro 2008: France 0-0 Romania, Holland 3-0 Italy.
Jun 10
A lackluster Group C opening match of France vs Romania yields no result.
France lacked the guile to break down an obdurate Romania side as a turgid Group C opener in Zurich finished 0-0.
The so-called ‘Group of Death’ got off to a timid start at the Letzigrund, with the French unable to find a way past an opposition who picked up a point they clearly came for.
Clear-cut chances were at a premium, Les Bleus pair Nicolas Anelka and Florent Malouda having the best of them, as defences came out on top in a match to forget for the strikers.
On the evidence of this match, fellow group opponents Holland and Italy have little to worry about, although France can certainly improve. Romania coach Victor Piturca claimed on the eve of the game that it would be “unbelievable” if his team were to beat the French, one of the favourites for the title.
France better improve or it is definitely getting kicked out. Romania of course no one expects anything of, so they have nothing to worry about…
Stunning gameplay by the Dutch defeat the world champions Italy 3-0
The second match however was a much more interesting one. World champions Italy suffered a calamitous start to their Euro 2008 campaign as they were beaten 3-0 by an impressive Holland in their Group C opener in Bern.
The Dutch were lucky to take a 26th-minute lead after Ruud van Nistelrooy turned in Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s effort from an offside position. Wesley Sneijder then celebrated his 24th birthday in style by adding his team’s second on the half-hour mark following a superb counter-attack.
Italy had numerous chances to reduce the deficit after the re-start but Edwin van der Sar came to the rescue making stunning saves from Andrea Pirlo’s free-kick and then Fabio Grosso’s close-range effort.
Van Bronckhorst completed a wonderful evening for the Oranje by heading past goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon in the 79th minute as Holland celebrated their first victory against the Italians since the 1978 World Cup.
Was this win largely due to the stadium being packed with fans wearing Orange? We’ll never know. It might have helped by some measure as it looked like a home game for the dutch.
Will Netherlands keep up their strong attack throughout the games to make it to the Finals? Or will Italy show why they are World Champions? If you have something to say, let us know.
So tomorrow we have Sweden vs Span at 9:30 followed by Greece vs Russia at at 12:15 a.m. Be sure to bookmark our Euro 2008 schedule for future reference.
You could also download a 700MB torrent which includes highlights of both the matches.
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