David Villa struck a hat-trick to guide Spain to a 4-1 drubbing of Russia in the opening game of Group D of the EURO 2008 tournament while Zlatan Ibrahimovic ended a 13 match goalless run with Sweden in the 2-0 win over reigning champions Greece. It was an action packed day in Group D as people waited to see whether the underachieving Spanish team will deliver and will holding champions Greece prove their 2004 title run was no fluke. Man of the Day: David Villa The Valencia ace who scored seven goals for Spain in the qualifiers proved that he is the number one striker for the Matadors while Fernando Torres was relegated to a supporting role. Villa pounced on a Torres pass in the area to score Spain's opener in the 20th minute and added a sublime second just before the interval when he got at the end of a deft Andres Iniesta through pass to slot home the second. He completed his hat-trick in the 75th minute to become only the eighth player in the history of the EURO to complete that feat. Villa also played a role in the build-up of the 4th goal that was scored by Francesc Fabregas. Play of the Day: Hansson's Second Goal for Sweden In an ironic twist of fate, Hansson scored a very theatrical goal, only seconds after coming close to scoring an own goal. Hansson's goal was like a game of dominos where Freddie Ljungberg's initial shot was denied by George Clooney's double- Antonis Nikopolidis- before bouncing of two Greek defenders and falling to Hansson who tucked it in from close range. Goal of the Day: Ibrahimovic's First Goal for Sweden In the 67th minute, Ibrahimovic made good on his promise to score for Sweden in EURO 2008. "Sooner or later I will score. I just keep trying to create as many chances for myself and my team mates," Ibrahimovic said before the tournament.
Sweden gave a brilliant performance "The only pressure I feel is from myself because I want to play the same way for Sweden as you have seen me at Inter." The Bosnian-born striker scored what proved to be one of the best goals of the tournament so far and he made sure his celebration translated his enthusiasm. "It was a fantastic feeling, I hadn't scored for a long time and you could see I reacted very strongly." Surprisingly, Ibra was also right about his partnership with veteran Henrik Larsson. "Henrik and I have a special relationship and we have played a lot together. He helps me a lot and he can help me during this championship if we are picked together," Ibrahimovic told reporters. "Of course it is up to the coach who plays and I respect all the strikers in our team but Henrik is who I play best with." The duo combined to give Sweden a hard-fought lead with a swift exchange that saw Ibrahimovic unleash a pile-driver from the edge of the area. "We've scored some good goals but this was a beauty," coach Lars Lagerback said. "There was a very good build up and the finish was world class, so it was wonderful to see." Quote of the Day: Guus Hiddink Guus Hiddink insisted that his players were their "own worst enemies" in the 4-1 defeat to Spain, noting that his squad is "inexperienced. "We only have three days to mature and that is a tough task," Hiddink told a press conference in reference to the time he has before the upcoming game against Greece.
