Crisis-hit Greece looks for Euro relief

Since winning the European Championship in 2004, Greek football has tried and failed to satisfy unrealistic expectations

It limped out of Euro 2008 with three straight losses, followed by a disappointing World Cup campaign in South Africa two years later.
But this summer, Greece heads to Poland with a measure of optimism before the tournament's opening match against the co-hosts on June 8 — having lost just one of its last 19 games played under coach Fernando Santos.
The country is in sore need of some respite, suffering through a financial crisis that has thrown many Greeks into poverty and another bad year for professional football, marred by fan violence and bribery scandals.
Santos says he is mindful that Greeks are eager to hear some good news.
"The fans should know that their national team will go to Euro 2012 for the best possible result," the Portuguese coach said while watching the Greek Cup final last month. "Greeks have a passion for football and I know my players will be determined. We have some problems but that's no excuse. We are not going for a holiday."
Shortly after Greece qualified for Euro 2012, national team players handed out meals at a central Athens soup kitchen to give a pre-Christmas boost to a charity drive by the Orthodox Church.
"We see people next to us struggling to make it," Greece goalkeeper Costas Halkias said. "We know they need our help."
The 57-year-old Santos took over as national coach two years ago, maintaining the team's strength as hardworking defenders, while gambling on talented young players, some who even had difficulty getting match time at their clubs.
A veteran Greek league coach, Santos came up with a blend of risk and caution that proved successful: Greece topped its qualifying group unbeaten, bumping Croatia to the playoffs after winning seven of its 10 matches.
Greece, however, remains a low-scoring team with few standouts. Eleven players provided its 14 qualifying goals, fewer than half of them coming from strikers.
Santos has moved away from the principles followed by German predecessor Otto Rehhagel, who used experienced players to stunning effect in 2004 and kept Greece present at major tournaments, but ultimately saw his side become too predictable.
In Euro 2012 qualifying, Santos' gambles were rewarded. Schalke defender Kyriakos Papadopoulos scored on his debut against Malta last June at 19 and added another in Latvia three months later.
And talented winger Yiannis Fetfatzidis, 21, also repaid the coach with two goals, picked for his country despite spending long spells on the bench at Olympiakos.
Through qualification, Greece never forgot its winning formula: make it hard for opponents to score. They conceded five goals en route to Poland and Ukraine, finding safety in Olympiakos captain Vassilis Torosidis and the quietly effective Sokratis Papastathopoulos of Werder Bremen.
"It's very important to keep the team solid — not to have leaks," Santos said before a friendly against Belgium in February that ended 1-1.
"An understanding of team tactics is also a factor (in selection). If we had a player like (Lionel) Messi, it wouldn't matter if he knew anything about tactics, because he's so talented. But we don't ... so I'm looking for players who make the team stronger as a whole."
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