EURO 2008 Day 1 Round-up: Injury and Defeat Tarnish Swiss Start
الأحد، 08 يونيو 2008 - 15:45
كتب : Mohamed Sabe
Two games kicked-off the tournament on Saturday. The Czech Republic beat co-hosts Switzerland 1-0 in the first game while Portugal cruised past Turkey with a 2-0 win.
Incident of the Day: Frei's Tears
Swiss fans had to endure the sight of their beloved captain and all time scorer Alexander Frei limp off the pitch, only to limp off the pitch just before half-time.
Frei left the pitch in tears with his left knee heavily bandaged after colliding with Czech defender Zdenek Grygera. The injury has ruled him out of the tournament.
Quote of the Day: Youssef Saif
Al-Jazeera Sports commentator Youssef Saif had the honor of broadcasting the opening game of EURO 2008. But the Qatari broadcaster made a strange comment to describe the game between Switzerland and Czech Republic, saying: "The game is being played in a European atmosphere." Duh?!
Man of the Day: Pepe
Real Madrid defender Pepe was making his debut in a major tournament with Portugal in the game against Turkey on Saturday.
The Brazilian-born defender, who was capped by Portugal for the first time seven months ago, had a goal disallowed for an offside in the first-half.
However, the former Porto player showed mettle and continued his solid performance to score a crucial opener for Portugal.
Pepe collected a pass from Cristiano Ronaldo and charged towards goal and exchanged passes with striker Nuno Gomes before racing into the area to score in the 61st minute.