© EuroFootball.com
Coaches of the national teams competing in Group A of the European Championship - Poland, Greece, Russia, and the Czech Republic - did not hide their joy - they managed to avoid the favorites in the first stage.
Franciszek Smuda, leading the host Poland team, said: "Of course, you can't call it a 'group of death', but let's not rush to celebrate. Sometimes advancing to the next stage from such a group can be even more difficult. I think that Greece and Russia will be considered favorites, but to me, all teams seem very equal."
Euphoria was not lacking for Greece coach Fernando Santos either: "Each team has a 25% chance of advancing to the next stage. Theoretically, the draw is favorable to us, but we will have to prove it on the pitch. Many will probably remember 2004, when Greece played the opening match and the final match was against Russia. It brings back great victories and seems like a sign. However, now we need to believe in these players and prepare properly."
More openly, Russia's coach Dick Advocaat said: "I think all coaches are satisfied with the group because everyone can beat anyone in it. Bearing that in mind, we are really looking forward to the first match. This is already the third time in the European Championship that we will have to play in a group with Greece, so they are familiar opponents to us. Besides, we recently had a friendly match against them."
Czech coach Michal Bilek also rejoiced: "I wanted to be in a group with Poland and Greece, so I am satisfied. However, draws don't decide anything - we will have to do the work ourselves. It's great that we will play all matches in the same city of Wroclaw, which, among other things, is the closest to the Czech Republic. So we will be waiting for our fans eagerly."
