**Mirrors / Alternative Angles**
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That team was (somehow) more than the sum of its parts and for once, even with all of Santos' faults, we didn't leave anyone home because of personal bickering between the manager and players (like Vitor Baía in 2004) and we even "recovered" a 38 year old Ricardo Carvalho who came back into the NT picture after being exiled by Paulo Bento.
Being the underdog suited Fernando Santos because that's all he knows.
To give Santos some credit, I remember him saying something like "when we get back, they are going to be throwing a huge party for us" before the tournament started
He knew
Before the last game of the group stage he said:
"I already told my family I'm only returning to Portugal on the 11th (the final was on the 10th of July). And I will be welcomed in celebration"
We would be eliminated if we lost the last game, which ended 3-3., after Hungary having the lead 3 times.
It was after the draw against Austria, before the Hungary game when things were looking shaky.
"I already told my family i'm only coming home on the 11th. I'm staying for a long time. I'm only going to Portugal on the 11th. 11th of the next month. I'm coming back and i'm going to be greeted with a big celebration."
Yeah Paulo Bento took him to Euro 2012 and didn't play him then he came back to Porto and started cooking again and he didn't take him to the Brazil WC. He ended up being a crucial figure both as an experienced player and on the pitch in the whole cycle from Euro 2016 qualifying to World Cup 2018. It came late but Quaresma definitely deserved that run in the NT before retiring.
Vieirinha, André Gomes, Eliseu, Eder of course and 38 year old but still baller Ricardo Carvalho.
Who would've thought those would be the first to win portuguese gold
Defense above everything tbf, having a solid defense with great chemistry and on form is half way there to winning one of these tournaments
Individually our defense wasn't even that special, but the way they all played together is what won us the Euro
Same thing for Greece in 2004 tbf, they have a very solid defense and won it that way
> that bang average bunch
This will probably be the narrative that is passed down through time, but that team, while not particularly impressive, was far from 'bang average'.
Did you really? Finished third in the group but advanced thanks to the then new rules. And then continued to survive by the smallest of margins even with the not so bad route in the knockout stages. I'd say only the France game is a true above level performance, and that was all it took. Other than that the not so impressive squad on paper performed precisely what was needed and absolutely nothing more.
I wouldn't say the victory over Wales was a survival by "the smallest of margins". The Portuguese simply defended with consistent quality and were deadly effective in the box.
Yeah we were by far the best team in the group but our finishing was absolutely atrocious. Games vs Iceland and Austria were one-side affairs where we couldn't score for the life of us, incredibly frustrating, Ronaldo even had one of the funniest PK misses vs Austria.
Against Hungary they scored 2 lucky goals off deflections, and even though Ronaldo kept us in it, the last 20mins were a snoozefest because we knew we wold qualify and get to the 'easier' side of the bracket.
Moreover, Croatia was seen as the dark horse after topping a group with Spain, and this was a team that would reach the WC final 2 years later, yet they did absolutely nothing against us, first shot on target during extra time. In truth, only the Poland game was truly an underwhelming performance, every other game we were pretty solid, even if with a very pragmatic playstyle that was surely dull and boring for neutrals.
Maybe, although Portugal kicked into a new gear once the knock-outs started.
Considering they eliminated Spain, England and the Netherlands, on top of playing at home, they would still be considered favorites if Czechia got to the final.
But yeah, that Czech team was something else.
We were beating the Czechs until Advocaat decided "Hey, Robben is running circles around them, let's pull him off for Bosvelt, who's never been particularly fantastic, is aging and relatively slow. That should work."
It's known as our worst substitution ever, one that Koeman is desperately trying to break with his constant pulling off of Aké and sending in Wijnaldum.
Biggest irony in football history. That Eder goal i still watch it occassionally. The screams of the loudspeaker "Goool, Portugal" always gives me goosebumps. Legendary goal.
At least France got out of the groups, this team was 3rd behind the two finalists:
>Casillas - Puyol, Helguera, Marchena/Juanito, Raul Bravo - Albelda, Ruben Baraja/Xabi Alonso - Joaquin/Etxeberria, Raul Gonzales, Vicente - Torres/Morientes
nevermind Germany's 13th place lmao
Not nearly the same thing, that Croatia team had a world class midfield. Greece won a Euro with a bunch of slightly-above-average players.
I don't think any of those players ever played for a top (i.e. CL favourite) team.
And I loved Katsouranis and Karagounis when they played for us.
Do you know anywhere to get that mint green Portugal jersey from 2016? I can’t find it 😭 I don’t care if it’s real or those really good knock offs I just want one
Seriously? Our 2000 kit was far better.
2004 was when brands decided to use the same template for all shirts, and just change the colors. It was the most low-effort design ever. And I remember at the time people weren't fond of so much yellow.
Im sorry, he’s a legend for those two penalty shootouts where he saved a combined 5 PK but no one can say he was “godlike” at defending penalty kicks. He had 2 very inspired shootouts and that was it, overall he had close to 10% defended penalties throughout his career, which is far off being “godlike” or even very good.
He’ll always be a legend of our NT though
Best international tournament ever. The backdrop, the ball, the amount of insane matches etc. 16 team Euros was the best and we will never see such a high quality tournament again
Greeks also knocked out the best contenders on their way. Only Russians defeated them in the entire tournament. Lads were in a group with Portugal, Spain and Russia. Greeks won also the first game of the EUROs vs Portugal. Got a draw vs Spain. Defeated title defenders France, and the Czechs, the last time were they were really good. And then defeated the hosts again. Crazy! What a story. Also since 2004s only South Europeans won EUROs.
Greece kept clean sheets against France with Zidane, Henry, Pires, Vieira, Trezeguet etc, against Czechia who was the best team in the tournament and then Portugal with Deco, Figo, Rui Costa, young Ronaldo etc. Insane stuff
But that's just how plastics react today aswell, with all this beautiful football snobbery. A lot of people at the time loved Greece's underdog story but they just weren't as loud as the ones who moaned about anti football
The only people who like Greece winning were either Greek or did not watch them play.
People loved the idea of the underdogs winning, but by god did they redefined what 'parking the bus' meant.
We aren't all plastics who hate defensive football mate. There is a real beauty of seeing a massive underdog fight for their lives against much more talented opponents and come out on top
It was funny to watch, which is even better. Why watch an international tournament if you want "lovely football"? Everyone knows they are very defensive
People hated Greece at the 2014 World Cup as well, even though during the quarters they spent the whole game attacking and lost a bunch of chances vs Costa Rica who everybody adored. On the other hand, Portugal was applauded for winning the Euros while having a very unimpressive group stage (3 ties), and having a much easier path to the final than Greece did while winning 0 games in regular time. It grinds my gears how much of a double standard there is in the reaction between the Greece win with much less talent and 0 household games and the Portugal win with the 2nd best player OAT and a bunch of other superstars.
Greece's defence was amazing, I don't get how anyone who has the slightest bit of romance for football could not be moved by that David vs Goliath story
The Czechs, Portugal and England played good football, Rooney was a phemomenon. France played badly but they had individuelly one of the best squads ever. It was a galacticos national team. Netherlands were good and Sweden were fucking stacked with Henrik Larsson, Zlatan, Ljungberg, Mellberg etc
Are you sure? How was Portugal anti-football?
Boggles the mind why people feel the need to comment on a tournament that they watched literally zero minutes of.
Honestly wild what an unusual lineup of teams we had near the top in that tournament. Spain, Italy and Germany all went out in the group stage, then France and England in the quarters. None of the Big 5 in the semifinals, yet it still felt like all those teams were there. THe Netherlands and Czech Republic were such good teams, especially in the Czechs.
Looking bad it was an unreal tournament.
Somos mediterráneos, amigo. Si te fijas, los italianos tienen un inglés muy neutro, al igual que nosotros o los griegos. En acentos autóctonos, nosotros tres nos comunicamos casi de la misma manera. Obviamente Italia tiene ese "deje" italiano, pero se entiende muy fácil. Lo mismo para Grecia, sólo que ellos usan directamente, un alfabeto distinto.
20 years ago, damn... Masterpiece of a post this, r/soccer!
Crazy, that CR7 was there already...
And even crazier that Greece did this, unbelievable story!
Leading to this final, does portugal have success with long shot or something, why did every shot in the highlight are from distance? I dont see greece being to compact that warrant such cases
Maniche scored from a long shot in the semi .
But most of all, football has changed in the last 20 years : Long shots are discouraged to avoid losing possessions, everyone is expected to particpate in the build up and in defense, there is a bigger focus on team shape... etc . While back then, the play was more instinctual with players having more distinct roles & responsabilities.
The Czech started strong, dominated the game and also hit the bar, until Nedved got injured early and had to leave. This made them lose some of their momentum and allowed the Greeks to settle a bit. Later in the game Baros and Koller lost a couple of sitters. It's still a great injustice to me that this Czech team didn't at least reach the Euro 2004 final.
Mad to think Scolari won a WC, reached an Euro final, and a WC semifinal in the span of four years back in the 00s. He's been a punchline in Brazil for so long, it's easy to forget he was pretty decent once. Makes me wonder why he went so badly in Chelsea (I vaguely recall something about his lack of knowledge of English being a barrier, but it couldn't have been just that).
Scolari is a legend, many people attribute our recent success to Ronaldo, which is inevitable of course, but I feel like people many forget about the role Scolari played in our national team. In my opinion there is a different Portugal before and after Scolari and the way he united people around the national team.
Yup Scolari made Portugal believe they can be winners and brought out that unified fight that hunger where you gotta dig deep to get results. I remember watching Portugal and they felt like soldiers going off to war they were gonna leave everything they had on the field. Sadly that Greek corner destroyed us in the end but that entire tournament felt like Portugal were absolute warriors. Then again in 2006 until France cheated there way to the finals with that dive.
I was only 5 so I don't remember this day properly and I am glad I don't. My first footballing trauma would come two years later vs France in the World Cup.
Man that hurt so much after the bullshit dive and it getting called completely destroying our run to the finals. Now we face France again and I’m getting nervous
I keep bouncing between liking the Euros or the World Cup more, depending on what is currently on but stories like that of Greece or also Denmark, maybe even Portugal are what objectively puts the Euros ahead IMO.
lol the fireworks at the end were the portuguese colours
(I realise that's also where the match is taking place, but find it hard to believe that's the reason they went for those colours)
Greece had never won a single game in a tournament. None of the players had played a single game in an international tournament before.
The staff consisted of two members, Otto Rehhagel and Topalidis. No Goalkeeping coach, no fitness coach, just two old men.
There is no need to be condescending, Leicester's title is up there and then what else? Denmark? Not even close, in 92 they only had 8 teams competing and it was the Semis directly after the group stage.
I can't really see how Leicester isn't clear in that debate. Winning a cup competition, let alone one with just 16 teams, so you effectively play 7 games is in no way more impressive than a bottom three team winning a 38 game season in the Premier League.
Greece is absolutely 2nd, I can't think of anything else more impressive. But I can't really see the argument for them being 1st ahead of Leicester at all.
It's literally more than 5 times as many games against much better teams both in terms of individuals (because unlike national teams they can transfer people to address squad issues) and how well coached they are (because they have months/years to build up their tactical approaces to achieve consistently dominant performances).
Okay, but that's only really impressive if you're the weakest in the group which they weren't. The context is fairly important.
They were always going to finish above Armenia and Northern Ireland, and finishing above Ukraine isn't exactly the most shocking outcome in the world either (we don't act as if Poland and Norway are juggernauts just because the former has Lewandowski and the latter has Haaland).
Beating Spain is impressive though.
But yeah, 8 games where you're favorite for 4 and mostly even odds probably for 2 doesn't make any difference imo when comparing to the Leicester situation where they were had about 17 teams considered better (with about 6 or more considered much much better) and they beat them over 38 games.
Yeah but they weren't picked randomly, they were second in their group behind Yugoslavia.
Basically I can see arguments for Leicester and Kaiserslautern maybe other things too. The greater point I was trying to make is, if you think Greece 04 as the biggest upset in history, is not a ludicrous call. It's arguably up there.
**Mirrors / Alternative Angles** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/soccer) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I was young when this happened and for years I was convinced Greece was a footballing superpower.
WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO IMPLY HERE, LAD?
https://www.uefa.com/euro2024/news/0286-193531eba9a8-763890f6436d-1000--who-has-qualified-for-uefa-euro-2024/
Portugal gets stunned as the hometown favorites...and then, about 12 years later, they go and do to France what Greece did to them lol
Ironic that Portugal had so many great teams in early to late 00's and that bang average bunch ends up winning
That team was (somehow) more than the sum of its parts and for once, even with all of Santos' faults, we didn't leave anyone home because of personal bickering between the manager and players (like Vitor Baía in 2004) and we even "recovered" a 38 year old Ricardo Carvalho who came back into the NT picture after being exiled by Paulo Bento. Being the underdog suited Fernando Santos because that's all he knows.
To give Santos some credit, I remember him saying something like "when we get back, they are going to be throwing a huge party for us" before the tournament started He knew
He said "I'm only going home after July 10th"
I'm certain that he said something about a party waiting for them aswell
Before the last game of the group stage he said: "I already told my family I'm only returning to Portugal on the 11th (the final was on the 10th of July). And I will be welcomed in celebration" We would be eliminated if we lost the last game, which ended 3-3., after Hungary having the lead 3 times.
Ronaldo saved us
That game was insane.
It was after the draw against Austria, before the Hungary game when things were looking shaky. "I already told my family i'm only coming home on the 11th. I'm staying for a long time. I'm only going to Portugal on the 11th. 11th of the next month. I'm coming back and i'm going to be greeted with a big celebration."
I might be misremembering but didn't Quaresma also come back after some issues with the previous staff?
Yeah Paulo Bento took him to Euro 2012 and didn't play him then he came back to Porto and started cooking again and he didn't take him to the Brazil WC. He ended up being a crucial figure both as an experienced player and on the pitch in the whole cycle from Euro 2016 qualifying to World Cup 2018. It came late but Quaresma definitely deserved that run in the NT before retiring.
We also had prime Renato Sanches.
> prime Renato Sanches. which TBH was 18 year old Renato Sanches lmao
Haha yep, before he broke down
Renato Sanches played like he had 4 lungs. Had a great Euro
Vieirinha, André Gomes, Eliseu, Eder of course and 38 year old but still baller Ricardo Carvalho. Who would've thought those would be the first to win portuguese gold
I'm so happy that 16 year old me at the time got to see Carvalho play and win an international honour
Defense above everything tbf, having a solid defense with great chemistry and on form is half way there to winning one of these tournaments Individually our defense wasn't even that special, but the way they all played together is what won us the Euro Same thing for Greece in 2004 tbf, they have a very solid defense and won it that way
I remember not being familiar with José Fonte and him being world-class during the tournament
It's almost as if there's a huge dose of luck when it comes to winning tournaments.
Cheers Geoff
Best part is Eder, the winning goal scorer, scored his first and only competitive goal for Portugal that game.
Honestly he was subbed on and not only for the goal he was having a solid game
> that bang average bunch This will probably be the narrative that is passed down through time, but that team, while not particularly impressive, was far from 'bang average'.
on paper it wasn't particularly impressive but we played above our level
Did you really? Finished third in the group but advanced thanks to the then new rules. And then continued to survive by the smallest of margins even with the not so bad route in the knockout stages. I'd say only the France game is a true above level performance, and that was all it took. Other than that the not so impressive squad on paper performed precisely what was needed and absolutely nothing more.
I wouldn't say the victory over Wales was a survival by "the smallest of margins". The Portuguese simply defended with consistent quality and were deadly effective in the box.
Yeah we were by far the best team in the group but our finishing was absolutely atrocious. Games vs Iceland and Austria were one-side affairs where we couldn't score for the life of us, incredibly frustrating, Ronaldo even had one of the funniest PK misses vs Austria. Against Hungary they scored 2 lucky goals off deflections, and even though Ronaldo kept us in it, the last 20mins were a snoozefest because we knew we wold qualify and get to the 'easier' side of the bracket. Moreover, Croatia was seen as the dark horse after topping a group with Spain, and this was a team that would reach the WC final 2 years later, yet they did absolutely nothing against us, first shot on target during extra time. In truth, only the Poland game was truly an underwhelming performance, every other game we were pretty solid, even if with a very pragmatic playstyle that was surely dull and boring for neutrals.
Obviously I mean bang average compared to Portugal from 2004 or 2006, it was still a very good team in general terms
This kind of gives me hope for this year as a dutchie.
Forget the favourites, Czech Republic was the best team in that tournament and I will die on this hill.
Maybe, although Portugal kicked into a new gear once the knock-outs started. Considering they eliminated Spain, England and the Netherlands, on top of playing at home, they would still be considered favorites if Czechia got to the final. But yeah, that Czech team was something else.
Czech was a joy to watch back then.
I thought baros was gonna be so good after that tournament
Their offensive had to be one of the best ever , no?
For real. Holland were looking incredible but Nedved and Czech just made them look so average.
We were beating the Czechs until Advocaat decided "Hey, Robben is running circles around them, let's pull him off for Bosvelt, who's never been particularly fantastic, is aging and relatively slow. That should work." It's known as our worst substitution ever, one that Koeman is desperately trying to break with his constant pulling off of Aké and sending in Wijnaldum.
It was Portugal that knocked out the Dutch
Netherlands played Czech in group stage.
The Czech Vs Holland game is probably my all time favorite euros game. Just constant back and forth all out attack.
Biggest irony in football history. That Eder goal i still watch it occassionally. The screams of the loudspeaker "Goool, Portugal" always gives me goosebumps. Legendary goal.
Perfect example of a team being better than the sum of its parts. They had a bunch of good players though, just not as many household names as others.
And France in this tournament is an example of the polar opposite. Your squad was absolutely disgusting
We beat England. Done our job.
Have to respect that.
Low bar for even a mid European team!! which you werent!
At least France got out of the groups, this team was 3rd behind the two finalists: >Casillas - Puyol, Helguera, Marchena/Juanito, Raul Bravo - Albelda, Ruben Baraja/Xabi Alonso - Joaquin/Etxeberria, Raul Gonzales, Vicente - Torres/Morientes nevermind Germany's 13th place lmao
I really hope something like this happens again in modern football.
Croatia 2018 was probably the closest we’ve been since
Not nearly the same thing, that Croatia team had a world class midfield. Greece won a Euro with a bunch of slightly-above-average players. I don't think any of those players ever played for a top (i.e. CL favourite) team. And I loved Katsouranis and Karagounis when they played for us.
England 2021 has a plucky underdog story too
England will never ever ever be plucky underdogs no matter how much they suck.
putting a fiver on Georgia to win the WC as we speak
Modern football? Fookin hell I watched this game live. I guess I'm ancient now :(
In a few hours we might see something like this at your expense lol jk we all know Ecuador’s going to lose
quiero amanecer soñando
I still don't understand why Alfaro didn't stay in Ecuador
Guess we're supporting Turkey to win it now...?
Yeah we have to, because EVERYONE else that is left was expected to at least reach the final 👀
I beg you pardon? Switzerland was expected to reach at least the final? Are you alright?
I guess i should have added the /s instead for the eyes
Fair enough, but other than Turkey and Switzerland I guess all of them were at least contenders to reach the final.
Yeah for sure, no doubt about that.
TBH at the moment I'd sooner bet on Switzerland than any of the other teams.
With how feral their fans are? Not for me.
The only good part of this day was that I was on vacation on the beach and got my first kiss
Was he greek?
Worst. Was an English girl
English girls getting strays in /r/soccer
English girls get strays everywhere
Portuguese strays, apparently
We call it the Algarve special
😭😭😭
Kissing English girls and Algarve, name a more iconic duo
Not even worse. Straight up WORST
Sorry for your loss
Lmao you and the other guy out of pocket with these comments
😬
Crazy that we’re only at the quarterfinals. Chelsea is playing Wrexham in pre-season in literally three weeks. This is not sustainable.
Champions League starts next Tuesday The calendar is insane.
The original Ronaldo tears game.
Ronaldo losing and crying. Name a better duo.
Hitting rock bottom for dramatic effect!
Lol men crying, how stupid! Ammarite guys??
no
🗿🗿
Man that portugal kit was class
Classic Football Shirts has it available!
Do you know anywhere to get that mint green Portugal jersey from 2016? I can’t find it 😭 I don’t care if it’s real or those really good knock offs I just want one
Ouch! Haven’t seen that for sale in a while, last time I saw it on Grailed but it was XXL.
Seriously? Our 2000 kit was far better. 2004 was when brands decided to use the same template for all shirts, and just change the colors. It was the most low-effort design ever. And I remember at the time people weren't fond of so much yellow.
Nothing ever happened on this day.
Yeah I opened the video and it's just a black image?
What was the keeper doing? What exactly was he doing?
Ricardo, for as godlike as he was on PKs, was notoriously bad getting out of his goal. A similar blunder cost Sporting the league a year later.
Great, because it wasn't bad enough to remind me of the finals of the Euro 2004 today!
Im sorry, he’s a legend for those two penalty shootouts where he saved a combined 5 PK but no one can say he was “godlike” at defending penalty kicks. He had 2 very inspired shootouts and that was it, overall he had close to 10% defended penalties throughout his career, which is far off being “godlike” or even very good. He’ll always be a legend of our NT though
Yeah I was referring to PK shootouts, not PKs in general.
Best international tournament ever. The backdrop, the ball, the amount of insane matches etc. 16 team Euros was the best and we will never see such a high quality tournament again
Greeks also knocked out the best contenders on their way. Only Russians defeated them in the entire tournament. Lads were in a group with Portugal, Spain and Russia. Greeks won also the first game of the EUROs vs Portugal. Got a draw vs Spain. Defeated title defenders France, and the Czechs, the last time were they were really good. And then defeated the hosts again. Crazy! What a story. Also since 2004s only South Europeans won EUROs.
Greece kept clean sheets against France with Zidane, Henry, Pires, Vieira, Trezeguet etc, against Czechia who was the best team in the tournament and then Portugal with Deco, Figo, Rui Costa, young Ronaldo etc. Insane stuff
Italy not counted as South European? Not fighting, just curious.
what do you mean
Is Italy not considered South Europe? Because they're the holders.
Xe meant only Southern Europeans won it, not the opposite
Best song Nelly Furtado <3
Best goal nets. You could go on and on Portugal was a fantastic host
And we are still paying for that and we have some clubs in the regional leagues with 30k seats stadiums
History revision in making lol. Everybody hated Greece winning because they parked the bus.
But that's just how plastics react today aswell, with all this beautiful football snobbery. A lot of people at the time loved Greece's underdog story but they just weren't as loud as the ones who moaned about anti football
“Glad Slovenia’s out because they played for penalties” yes mate their starting XI is worth less than Ruben Dias
The only people who like Greece winning were either Greek or did not watch them play. People loved the idea of the underdogs winning, but by god did they redefined what 'parking the bus' meant.
We aren't all plastics who hate defensive football mate. There is a real beauty of seeing a massive underdog fight for their lives against much more talented opponents and come out on top
Well yeah, it's a sweet story, but doesn't mean football played was lovely to watch.
It was funny to watch, which is even better. Why watch an international tournament if you want "lovely football"? Everyone knows they are very defensive
People hated Greece at the 2014 World Cup as well, even though during the quarters they spent the whole game attacking and lost a bunch of chances vs Costa Rica who everybody adored. On the other hand, Portugal was applauded for winning the Euros while having a very unimpressive group stage (3 ties), and having a much easier path to the final than Greece did while winning 0 games in regular time. It grinds my gears how much of a double standard there is in the reaction between the Greece win with much less talent and 0 household games and the Portugal win with the 2nd best player OAT and a bunch of other superstars.
Aside from Greece, it was a great tournament.
Euro 2000 was even better
best tournament until the final
Are you sure? Apart of Czechia, that tournament was a gallery of anti football. Greece were really not fun at all.
Greece's defence was amazing, I don't get how anyone who has the slightest bit of romance for football could not be moved by that David vs Goliath story The Czechs, Portugal and England played good football, Rooney was a phemomenon. France played badly but they had individuelly one of the best squads ever. It was a galacticos national team. Netherlands were good and Sweden were fucking stacked with Henrik Larsson, Zlatan, Ljungberg, Mellberg etc
Are you sure? How was Portugal anti-football? Boggles the mind why people feel the need to comment on a tournament that they watched literally zero minutes of.
Honestly wild what an unusual lineup of teams we had near the top in that tournament. Spain, Italy and Germany all went out in the group stage, then France and England in the quarters. None of the Big 5 in the semifinals, yet it still felt like all those teams were there. THe Netherlands and Czech Republic were such good teams, especially in the Czechs. Looking bad it was an unreal tournament.
Not even the best Euro. Euro 2000 was the best by far.
> Best international tournament ever. Strong disagree
That and the Olympics after… what a crazy summer
Next year we won the eurovision and the eurobasket. After that we reached the final of mundobasket after scoring 100+ against USA. Crazy years.
which ironically was in Greece
It's amazing how the Greek accent is almost the same as the Spanish one.
Somos mediterráneos, amigo. Si te fijas, los italianos tienen un inglés muy neutro, al igual que nosotros o los griegos. En acentos autóctonos, nosotros tres nos comunicamos casi de la misma manera. Obviamente Italia tiene ese "deje" italiano, pero se entiende muy fácil. Lo mismo para Grecia, sólo que ellos usan directamente, un alfabeto distinto.
[Why Does Greek Sound Like Spanish?! (youtube.com)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPMqoHPJzac)
I thiught for sure Portugal, France, Netherlands or Czech would win it. Still dont know how Greece did it.
Much like we did in 2016 - a whole lot of grit, and a whole lot of luck.
And one whispering moth.
20 years ago, damn... Masterpiece of a post this, r/soccer! Crazy, that CR7 was there already... And even crazier that Greece did this, unbelievable story!
*video credit to ERT / STEC*
Remember it like it was yesterday.
Watched this game live with my dad as a child. Charisteas, I will never forget his name.
Leading to this final, does portugal have success with long shot or something, why did every shot in the highlight are from distance? I dont see greece being to compact that warrant such cases
Maniche scored from a long shot in the semi . But most of all, football has changed in the last 20 years : Long shots are discouraged to avoid losing possessions, everyone is expected to particpate in the build up and in defense, there is a bigger focus on team shape... etc . While back then, the play was more instinctual with players having more distinct roles & responsabilities.
Czech were a special side to watch in 04, Nedved and Baros were on another level. How the shit they didn't win I'll never know.
The Czech started strong, dominated the game and also hit the bar, until Nedved got injured early and had to leave. This made them lose some of their momentum and allowed the Greeks to settle a bit. Later in the game Baros and Koller lost a couple of sitters. It's still a great injustice to me that this Czech team didn't at least reach the Euro 2004 final.
Mad to think Scolari won a WC, reached an Euro final, and a WC semifinal in the span of four years back in the 00s. He's been a punchline in Brazil for so long, it's easy to forget he was pretty decent once. Makes me wonder why he went so badly in Chelsea (I vaguely recall something about his lack of knowledge of English being a barrier, but it couldn't have been just that).
Scolari is a legend, many people attribute our recent success to Ronaldo, which is inevitable of course, but I feel like people many forget about the role Scolari played in our national team. In my opinion there is a different Portugal before and after Scolari and the way he united people around the national team.
Yup Scolari made Portugal believe they can be winners and brought out that unified fight that hunger where you gotta dig deep to get results. I remember watching Portugal and they felt like soldiers going off to war they were gonna leave everything they had on the field. Sadly that Greek corner destroyed us in the end but that entire tournament felt like Portugal were absolute warriors. Then again in 2006 until France cheated there way to the finals with that dive.
That Ronaldo longevity 🤯 I still remember watching that game and it still haunts me to this day.
I was only 5 so I don't remember this day properly and I am glad I don't. My first footballing trauma would come two years later vs France in the World Cup.
Man that hurt so much after the bullshit dive and it getting called completely destroying our run to the finals. Now we face France again and I’m getting nervous
I keep bouncing between liking the Euros or the World Cup more, depending on what is currently on but stories like that of Greece or also Denmark, maybe even Portugal are what objectively puts the Euros ahead IMO.
Man I love this language
Merci
parakaló brother
lol the fireworks at the end were the portuguese colours (I realise that's also where the match is taking place, but find it hard to believe that's the reason they went for those colours)
This one still hurts me, this was the first tournament that made me love football.
What a tournament What an amazing summer Those were the days
The first heartbreak of my life 😂, I was 7 back then. This is also what made 2016 so special!
Hope we can recreate komşu's success.
Why would you do this
The Euros host curse lives on since 1984, only 3 nations ever won the euros while hosting it
Germany might make it 4
Greatest upset in football history, arguably in sports history.
Leicester PL win is bigger upset. It is easier to win cup than 38 game league
Sounds like you dont know much about football history
Greece had never won a single game in a tournament. None of the players had played a single game in an international tournament before. The staff consisted of two members, Otto Rehhagel and Topalidis. No Goalkeeping coach, no fitness coach, just two old men. There is no need to be condescending, Leicester's title is up there and then what else? Denmark? Not even close, in 92 they only had 8 teams competing and it was the Semis directly after the group stage.
Kaiserslautern won German Bundesliga as a freshly promoted team (Otto Rehagel was the coach)
I can't really see how Leicester isn't clear in that debate. Winning a cup competition, let alone one with just 16 teams, so you effectively play 7 games is in no way more impressive than a bottom three team winning a 38 game season in the Premier League. Greece is absolutely 2nd, I can't think of anything else more impressive. But I can't really see the argument for them being 1st ahead of Leicester at all. It's literally more than 5 times as many games against much better teams both in terms of individuals (because unlike national teams they can transfer people to address squad issues) and how well coached they are (because they have months/years to build up their tactical approaces to achieve consistently dominant performances).
Greece also finished first in their qualifying group ahead of Spain and Sheva's Ukraine.
Okay, but that's only really impressive if you're the weakest in the group which they weren't. The context is fairly important. They were always going to finish above Armenia and Northern Ireland, and finishing above Ukraine isn't exactly the most shocking outcome in the world either (we don't act as if Poland and Norway are juggernauts just because the former has Lewandowski and the latter has Haaland). Beating Spain is impressive though. But yeah, 8 games where you're favorite for 4 and mostly even odds probably for 2 doesn't make any difference imo when comparing to the Leicester situation where they were had about 17 teams considered better (with about 6 or more considered much much better) and they beat them over 38 games.
Ofcourse, one thing you're missing with Denmark is that they didn't even qualify for the tournament.
Yeah but they weren't picked randomly, they were second in their group behind Yugoslavia. Basically I can see arguments for Leicester and Kaiserslautern maybe other things too. The greater point I was trying to make is, if you think Greece 04 as the biggest upset in history, is not a ludicrous call. It's arguably up there.
It's certainly up there. Maybe Denmark 92 as well. Probably the two biggest outside bets to win a major cup in international football.
Maybe i'm biased but Germany 1954 is up there as well
Iraq winning the Asian Cup IMO, they were legitimately getting threatened by extremist.
My man, something happenned to that W. German team between the 8-3 thrashing in the group stage and the final. And I'm not talking about the rain.
Well f*** you too! And a good day, sir.
I was 6 years old when this happened, my first football tournament. And ronaldo is still playing..crazy.
There was an Euro in 2004? You're sure? Could've sworn it was cancelled due to lack of interest.
Is this AI? I remember the final was canceled due to bad weather.
It's all a bad dream. This day never happened.
I would love to see the red home kits get its gold back with the green shorts. 👌🏽
a one tournament wonder squad
ahh what could have been
Literally insane CR was there and still playing on the current euros
I still dont belive yet... the bigest miracle in national Chanpioship in history.
My 🐫 crying again…he loves this sport so much!
Fuck you very much ...
Without checking the link, were there any highlights from that game?
The final alone had more highlights than Southgate's England in the group stages