Greece are gearing up for a last hurrah against Spain in Wednesday’s Group D finale, with Fanis Gekas saying: “We want to go home with our heads held high.”

‘Celebration of football’
A 2-0 defeat against Sweden and a 1-0 loss against Russia ended the reigning champions title defence, but they are determined to finish with a flourish against section leaders Spain at the Stadion Salzburg Wals-Siezenheim. “We haven’t performed well but we want to go home with our heads held high,” said Gekas who will miss the match because of a fractured cheekbone sustained in the defeat against Russia. “UEFA EURO 2008™ is over for us after the match against Spain, but I assure you we were glad to be participating in this celebration of football. I wish we had something more to show for it.” Nikos Liberopoulos agreed. “I hope we can perform well and finish on a high note,” he said.

‘We weren’t lucky’
Giannis Amatanidis expects a much-changed Spain from the side that trounced Russia 4-1 and then scraped a 2-1 win against Sweden. “Spain will field a different line-up, with many fringe players starting,” he said. “However they are a high quality team and we will need to be at our best to defeat them.” Reflecting on the tournament, he added: “In the match against Russia, we weren’t lucky. We played better than in our opening game and we deserved more. We were not satisfied with our performance. After the match against Sweden we had a conversation in the dressing room and changed our outlook in the next game. This is a top tournament and every team can beat you on any given day.”

Next generation
Some senior players are looking no further ahead than Wednesday’s game, but 26-year-old Liberopoulos was taking a long view. “The national team doesn’t belong just to the 23 people who are here, but to everybody and especially to the younger guys, our successors in the future. The main goal of this team should be to qualify for the finals of every major tournament.” Midfielder Alexandros Tziolis, 23, added: “Joy and sadness should be overcome quickly so we can move on. What we need now is to show our worth on the pitch, even if we are out. I am really glad to be part of this team. It was a great experience for me.”

It is Friday 13th and Greece are preparing for tomorrow’s crucial encounter with Russia knowing their backs are against the wall. A second defeat, after the 2-0 loss to Sweden, would have the European champions packing their bags prematurely. A horror scenario that, despite the date, the Greek players would desperately like to avoid.

Another day
However, as Vivien Leigh’s character Scarlett O’Hara put it in Gone With The Wind: “Tomorrow is another day.” The date of their match with Russia, 14 June, evokes fine memories for Greece fans. On that day, back in 1987, the country were crowned European champions in basketball for the first time in their history, defeating the Soviet Union.

Psychological boost
One thing is for sure: ahead of the meeting with Russia, the work to be done in the Greece camp is more psychological than anything else. Although the players are trying to remain as cool as possible, the light mood witnessed before the tournament started is notably absent. What do you say to lift morale prior to what is essentially a knockout match against Russia?

“There’s no use crying over spilt milk”, said striker Georgios Samaras after the deflating start to Greece’s UEFA EURO 2008™ campaign on Tuesday. The European champions were not up to the task against Sweden in Salzburg. Now they need to record a victory against the Russians in order to keep their hopes of claiming a place in the quarter-finals alive. After Russia’s defeat to Spain though, it’s also win-or-bust for them.

Fresh touch
Otto Rehhagel’s defensive tactics against the Swedes could prove even more disastrous if implemented against the Russians. Despite their comprehensive defeat to Spain, Guus Hiddink’s men are young, quick and eager, and they also possess and excellent passing game. The Greek team looks in need of a fresh touch and a new game plan in what is essentially “knock-out” encounter on Saturday. Given the rest of the players at Rehhagel’s disposal and his teams’ performance in the opening match, what tactics would you use against Russia? Let us know your thoughts.