Preview: In the first of a four-part series introducing the 16 national teams and coaches taking the spotlight at Euro 2008 come this June, the unofficial football focus series's Euro 2008 special starts with a focus on co-hosts Austria and Swtizerland, the most early bird of them all - Germany, and the Czech Republic. Recapping the teams' road to the tournament itself (or attempting to)...and stuff about each national coach, in brief. Does it matter if arriving first guarantee a shot at winning the most coveted price on the European level? Yours truly will try to investigate this...
Kiasu (afraid to lose in Hokkien, but then it's also part of the local slang here). In a very Singaporean sense of things, the 'Mannschaft' belongs to that. Germany. Read here for what I was trying to say (the examples in the link will give you some insights). While the two co-hosts (which both are neighbours to Germany too) can only be content with friendly matches until the tournament itself, their bigger neighbour had to play qualifying matches in order to get there. Being third place in the 2006 World Cup is history, in order to book the plane tickets to...just next door, work still needs to be done. And the Czechs...actually, they are in the same qualifying group as Germany. But how do all these four book their places? Okay, except for the two co-hosts which qualify automatically (pretending to be jealous)...I will look at the journey to the tournament itself for the other two.
It's just so clear. It's like as if the script has already been written. They are the team to beat. Just about everyone is saying they will be among the favourites for the title...except for the coach himself. While I have to learn to deal with everyone saying England is not going to be in Euro 2008 (it will be ringing even louder to the tournament itself, I can guarantee and now that England got Fabio Capello, aha!), Germany is in. After the 2006 World Cup was over, a new era has begun. And the first qualifying match is against Ireland at home. A 1-0 win, three points in the bag...but the German media are still kind of cautious (or so this is what I read then). Given again, it's the former assistant Joachim Loew's first competitive match in charge, after the friendly against Sweden. Then the other qualifying matches came about, and it seemed so easy (not forgetting to mention the 13-goal drubbing of San Marino away which up till now I still want to kick myself for not watching). That is except for the last qualifying match of 2006, against Cyprus away. I didn't get to see the entire match for that one (it's not on the cable) and so I can only depend on the highlights at that time. A 1-1 draw.
Ringing in 2007. The qualifying match for Germany does not start until March. Again for this one against the Czech Republic away, I have to watch the repeat telecast (and I even remembered I watched the repeat of it on the 25th, which is the following day...given on the day it's a Sunday and that evening, the family are about to head out for dinner to celebrate my father's birthday in advance) and somehow from then on, that became my most favourite match to watch from the Mannschaft. That match was also somehow significant for Germany, given this means comfortably taking the top spot (given ahead of it, both are level on points but only the goal difference separating). In June, it's San Marino coming to town. Another goal-scoring feast? Well, six goals only this time. While the two-goal victory over Wales away in September was considered not really an inspirational performance back home in the country itself, the qualifying group standings had seen action. Leaving until October that the equation is, minimum a point will do to qualify (and be the first one in the continent to do so). Ireland have to produce a shock win in order to keep the faint qualifying hopes alive. Well, it was a lacklustre goalless draw which saw the visitors (Germany) through. Good but when the Czechs came to Munich days later, it's like everything has been turned upside down. 4-0 to the Czech Republic. Thud.
Don't remind me of my father's reaction (he only knew of the scoreline then, and so I can't really blame him after all). But then, Germany had already qualified ahead of the match. Well, no more boo-boo when Cyprus visits in November. Shaking the legs time when the last qualifying match against Wales at home few days later came about? It was also around the same time, the so-called 'consipracy theories' came about. Germany had only lost once so far because if they did not lose any of their qualifying match, they may be finding themselves in a difficult situation when the draw comes around as it will not work in their favour thanks to the strange coefficients. Whatever it is, the eventual goalless draw came about (just like how Germany ended 2006 with a draw). Loew insisted it was not all planned. During the draw in Lucerne, it's made known that Austria, Croatia and Poland will be their Euro 2008 group opponents. Okay group or not...even I myself have no idea. The ball is round. Remembering what happened in the past two European Championship edition is enough for reminders that one cannot really take things for granted. Though I only started to support Germany since the World Cup (I went to do some background reading).
Usually assistants don't get all that spotlight for what they have done. It's always the national coach getting the stick. Unless you are talking the assistant coach who had did his job well. Until he became his own man, all I know of Loew is that he was the assistant to Juergen Klinsmann during the World Cup. Then slowly it was made known that he also had a hand in how the national team had transformed into potential world-beaters. Or actually he mostly had a hand in it even as an assistant (Klinsmann is the rookie one, while he is the experienced one). And even Klinsmann had once said that he was more than just his assistant. Despite the loss to the Czechs at home in Munich, days later his contract was extended to the end of the 2010 World Cup after much speculation. Going into this June...he has a 'master plan' and has been saying in interviews time and again that his side are not the favourites (but instead pointing to France and Italy and off-topic for a while...this should be a 'good excuse' for his counterparts, supposedly sworn enemies Raymond Domenech and Roberto Donadoni to try to be friends), despite about everyone pointing into his side's direction. I will rest my case against the Swabian (given I am wary of the curse of the favourites tag). If nothing happens out of the ordinary in June, who knows?
Always trying to chase their fellow qualifying group member Germany, the Czech Republic had shown that they need not be in the shadows all the time. Playing the bridesmaid until that match in Munich. But how do their journey to Euro 2008 came about?
It had started well, and they even beat their neighbour Slovakia away. While there was a 1-1 draw with the Irish which slightly improved their qualifying chances, the only chances of qualifying is to take that top two spot. While it seemed that it's all but done deal for Germany to take that top spot till the end of the qualifying matches, the two nations find themselves sharing the same points but Germany's superior goal difference (0-13 to Germany...remember that?) sets them apart ahead of the encounter in Prague in March 2007. There might had been a consolation goal from the Czech Republic, but it was the Germans who won 2-1 in the end.
Never mind, four days after the defeat to the Germans, a 1-0 over Cyprus at home. The qualifying route is on track. No goals against the Welsh in Cardiff in June (goalless draw in the end). While in between there are friendly matches to be played (especially Germany's friendly against England in August 2007 was one of the highlights, given of the history of rivalry between the two countries), it was business as usual in September. A slim 1-0 win over the Irish at home, they are almost there. San Marino poses no threat to them in October, and four days after that match, revenge time (coincidence or not, even Germany coach Joachim Loew had said ahead of the match that he is aware the Czechs are on a revenge mission after their win over them in March) in Munich. And it arrived, and they were through. It was quite amazing, given they achieved the win over the Germans despite key injuries in their squad. I swear, even as watching the repeats of the match, the Germans were outclassed by them (and this is from someone who supports Germany). A win in any of the Czech Republic's remaining qualifiers will be enough to see them through and they did it in Munich. Then everything else is business as usual and they end the qualifying group as winners (the turning point was the match in Munich), two points ahead of Germany.
In Lucerne, it was eventually made known that the Czechs will open their Euro 2008 campaign with co-host Switzerland. The others in their group (Group A) are Turkey and Portugal. For the coach who had seen so much in his coaching career, Karel Bruckner knows. I remembered about Bruckner was being hackled in his country after the 2-1 home loss to the Germans (but in contrast in Germany, about everyone is starting to recognise Loew is really the man after all and even the 'Kaiser', Franz Beckbenbauer almost praising him to the skies...or so I see it) but everything changed in the media reaction after the results from Munich. The cameras did aimed at him at times and I could see that he could not believed it at times what is happening to his boys on the pitch. The Czech Republic had always perform better on the European stage and not on the international stage. Ahead of the tournament in June, they are one of the dark horses. They almost reached the final in Portugal in 2004, only to be stopped by eventual champions Greece. I say, underestimate them at your peril.
While Austria will not meet Germany in Euro 2008 group stages till their last group match (and it will be the same for the Germans) in Vienna, I suppose given that Austria Vienna (or FK Austria Wien in German) shares the Ernst Happel Stadion with their cross-town rival Rapid Vienna (or SK Rapid Wien in German) when it comes to derby matches (it's said to be one of the highlights in Austrian footballing calendar)...will probably make someone in the German national team take notice. Hem hem, read - the national coach. Loew did had a coaching stint at Austria Vienna (and I thought I almost could not recognise him when I saw a photo from that time on the FIFA website once...over here). Already Euro 2008 is going to be held in the two countries where he had memories of a coach and a player (he ended it in Switzerland).
For his Austrian counterpart Josef Hickersberger, he will have his work cut out for him in June. So while the friendly against Germany will still go ahead as planned (it has already been decided even before they were being drawn into the same group), the road to the tournament hasn't been smooth with those friendly matches (they also lost to the English in a 1-0 loss). The report card don't really look good on the Austrian national team, but Hickersberger is not giving up. First-timers to the European Championships, the lack of experience will be the stumbling block but, it is determined to prove in front of its home fans. For the man who is part of the famous squad which beat the then-West Germany 3-2 in the 1978 World Cup in Argentina, if there is a repeat (which the Austrian media are calling for it after the draw in Lucerne) of such an event, I can just imagine how it will be.
While things are slightly looking better over in Switzerland with okay performances in some of the friendly matches, the 'Nati' (as that's the nickname for the Swiss national team) will know that they have to build on the performances of the 2006 World Cup where...they are the only team with the most stingiest defence - no goals being let in, until the round of 16 where they lost to Ukraine on penalties. Coach Kobi Kuhn had said that he will say good-bye to his post at the end of Euro 2008, and with Switzerland being one of the co-hosts...home support is definitely needed. While it was an Englishman by the name of Roy Hodgson (now manager at Fulham) who ended Switzerland's international exile by qualifying for the 1994 World Cup in the States (and even reaching to the last 16, Switzerland's best performance ever in 50 years) after 28 years of absence (!) and thus forever earning himself with a place with the Swiss football fans since, Kuhn knows what he has to do. Just like his Austrian counterpart.
There you go. The second part will continue tomorrow. If one had noticed, I go by the timing of qualification for the national teams and coaches taking the spotligt in June, except that I only talk about the co-hosts before ending my entry here. Getting there early = winning? We shall see in June for Germany. Yours truly can only say, goodbye (for now). Or as German is being spoken in both Austria and Switzerland, auf wiedersehen.
Wait. Danke to these links (which I never mentioned till now and I used them sparingly): Austria face steep learning curve, Profile of Austria coach Josef Hickersberger, Swiss eager to show their worth, Profile of Switzerland coach Jakob 'Kobi' Kuhn, UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying Group D, Germany keen to remain on top, Profile of Germany coach Joachim Loew, Czechs make it four in a row, Profile of Czech Republic coach Karel Brückner
