Founded: 1901 UEFA Affiliated: 1994 EURO Appearances: 7 EURO Titles: 1 (as Czechoslovakia) The likes of Pavel Nedved, Karel Poborsky, Tomas Rosicky, Patrik Berger and Vladimir Smicer were often considered as the heart and soul of the Czech team in recent years. However, retirement, injuries and lack of form are all factors forcing an imminent change in Karel Bruckner's team structure. Bruckner was left to bemoan the loss of influential playmaker Rosicky, who is ruled out of the finals with a knee injury. But the Czech tactician is hopeful to see emerging talents like Marek Matejovsky and Jaroslav Plasil providing cover for the absence of the Arsenal man. An impressive performance in last year's memorable 3-0 qualifying victory in Germany suggested that the Czechs are capable of causing damage without former midfield marvels Nedved and Poborsky. History Prior to the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in 1993, the Czechs were crowned European champions in 1976, in addition to winning second place in the 1934 and 1962 World Cup finals. The Czechs' presence in top events declined after their Euro 1976 triumph, as their best achievement was reaching the 1990 World Cup quarter-finals.
Koller is Czech's main striker Their main man in Italy 1990 was former striker Tomas Skuhravy, who was second top scorer of the tournament with five goals. After the independence of the Czech Republic, the team seemed to be much steadier. They qualified to every European championship final so far. Their best achievement in the past decade was arguably winning second place in England 1996, when they defied all odds, only to be beaten by Oliver Bierhoff's infamous Golden Goal at Wembley. Coach: Karel Bruckner (Czech) Even though Bruckner has no coaching experience beyond the Czech Republic and Slovakia, the 68-year-old is deemed a football master in his homeland. He might have never managed a top club, but Bruckner took unfashionable Sigma Olomouc to the UEFA Cup quarters in 1992. Three years later, he helped them finish second in the league, their best ever position. In 1997, he was hired U-21 Czech Republic coach, leading the team to the European championship title in Switzerland 2002. He was then promoted to coach the senior Czech team, guiding them to the EURO 2004 semi-finals, but his stylish side was unlucky to lose to eventual champions Greece in Portugal. Tactics Chelsea guardian Petr Cech is an unrivalled choice in goal, the same goes for regular center-half David Rozehnal. Radoslav Kovac can compete with Tomas Ujfalusi, who can also play on the right-flank. AC Milan's Marek Jankulovski is the strongest candidate to fill in the left-back position, as Zdenek Grygera is likely to be on the other side. The anchor man in midfield will be 35-year-old veteran Tomas Galasek, who will be joined by Plasil and Jan Polak. Matejovsky, Daniel Pudil and David Jarolim provide attacking options. In the attack line, Czech Republic's all-time leading goal-scorer Jan Koller is an automatic choice, with EURO 2004 top scorer Milan Baros and Frankfurt sensation Martin Fenin as possible back-ups since Bruckner prefers a 4-5-1 formation. Star Player - Petr Cech
