If the opening game is an indicator then Euro 2012 will be a
huge success. Coming out of the gates
full of enthusiasm and emotion, co-host Poland ran rings around the
Greeks.
They dominated the opening forty-five minutes. They dictated the tempo, keeping the Greeks on their heels. It seemed as if Greece was intimidated by the atmosphere or simply determined to play for a draw. The willingness to let the Poles dictate the game cost them in the 17th minute as Borussia Dortmund’s Robert Lewandowski put the home side in the lead with a splendid header off of a cross by Jakub Blaszcykowski. The home crowd erupted in rapture. When the referee gave two ridiculous yellow cards to defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos, the Greeks were forced to play the rest of the game with ten men. Heading into halftime with a 1-0 lead and a one-man advantage, the Poles looked primed to take three points.
They dominated the opening forty-five minutes. They dictated the tempo, keeping the Greeks on their heels. It seemed as if Greece was intimidated by the atmosphere or simply determined to play for a draw. The willingness to let the Poles dictate the game cost them in the 17th minute as Borussia Dortmund’s Robert Lewandowski put the home side in the lead with a splendid header off of a cross by Jakub Blaszcykowski. The home crowd erupted in rapture. When the referee gave two ridiculous yellow cards to defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos, the Greeks were forced to play the rest of the game with ten men. Heading into halftime with a 1-0 lead and a one-man advantage, the Poles looked primed to take three points.
Despite playing one-man down, the Greeks seized control of
play when the second half began. They
applied high defensive pressure, offering the Poles little time to act. In addition, they attacked for the equalizer
rather than defend to minimize the goal differential for tiebreaker
purposes. They were rewarded after a
major gaffe by Polish keeper Wojciech Szczesny allowed Dimitrios Salphingidis to
tie the game in the 51st minute.
The Polish defense broke down, as they allowed numerous scoring
opportunities despite the man advantage.
In the 71st min Szczesny received a red card after tripping
Saphingidis on a breakaway, which gave the Greeks a penalty kick. What appeared as the perfect opener for the
host nation quickly turned into a nightmare.
In dramatic fashion, Przemyslaw Tyton entered as the new Polish keeper
and saved the penalty kick to keep the game tied. Over the final twenty minutes both teams had
a few chances but were unable to break the deadlock.
The game was truly a tale of two halfs. The Poles dominated the first half but only
scored once. They should have built a
two or three goal lead. Their inability
to provide themselves with insurance cost them dearly. I do not know how the Poles would have
recovered if they walked away from this game without one point. Tyton’s save keeps them in the tournament
with hopes of advancing. Meanwhile, the
Greeks showed plenty of resolve with their second half response. They fought hard and earned the draw.
By Jeff Graceffo
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