Excitement Brews For Ireland Versus Croatia In Day 3 Of EURO2012

With only hours before kickoff in day three of the UEFA EURO2012 and fans gather in every pub in the Republic of Ireland to watch one of the country's biggest soccer event.  Yes fans are bleeding green, as it has been ten long years since the Republic of Ireland's last major tournament and 24 since their only previous appearance at a UEFA European Championship. So you will have to pardon the Irish team, if there is an obvious sense of excitement in their camp, that has brought into sharper relief by the demeanour of Croatia – their rivals in the teams' opening Group C game.

Since Croatian team has become seasoned veterans at the this level of competition, and the atmosphere at training and in their pre-match press conference was relaxed and jovial. They have been here before. "We have been ranked in the top ten teams in the world for the last five years," said their coach Slaven Bilić. "We have only missed two tournaments since independence – it is a phenomenal achievement for a country our size."

Ireland's, captain Robbie Keane admitted that if he had known the 2002 FIFA World Cup would be his last for ten years, "he wouldn't have taken it for granted". Now the players, and the nation, cannot wait to join the big stage again. Their coach, speaking alongside Keane at the Municipal Stadium Poznan, has seen it all before, though.

Talk about seasoned, Giovanni Trapattoni said he would approach the tournament with the same mindset that has served him so well over the years. "Every goal I face is a challenge. I still have the same determination, the same concentration and the same attention to detail," said Trapattoni, who led Ireland through a play-off with Estonia to be in Poland and Ukraine. "I'm really grateful to the Irish people because they believe in us – they believe in what we've done."

The 73-year-old Italian becomes the oldest coach at a European Championship when his side take on Croatia in Poznan. In Bilić, he comes up against a man 30 years his junior, but he refutes that either his experience, or the Croatian's exuberance, will be decisive. "No matter what your age is, it is important to learn and reach new goals. Bilić has just as hard a task as me."

Bilić is not wet behind the ears anymore, either, having started his coaching career over ten years ago. Nevertheless, he is fully aware what Trapattoni brings to the table. "He is Mr. Calcio, Juventus, Inter. He is still the man and is doing very well with the Irish team – I am fascinated and respect these coaches that have huge experience. Their training sessions are perfect. He's a huge figure."

The Croatia coach is in his last tournament leading the national team, and is looking forward to each game at UEFA EURO 2012. "Ireland did a great job in their group. They play very well, but their football is straightforward so we can't over-analyse them," he added, before letting his mind look forward at the future challenges. "We still have to play against Italy and Spain, so we are not just focused on Ireland."

With such giants of the international game looming large, some observers have suggested this is the most important match for both teams. But for a man who has been there before, it is not so much the teams to come as what the first result can give a side going into those tests. "If you win the first match you get enthusiasm and motivation," Trapattoni said. "That is why the first match is so important to get through the qualifying rounds."  

Cristiano Ronaldo Wants To Make It Right For Portugal

With the second day of matches at the highly anticipated EURO2012 championship in Warsaw, Poland.  One can not help but to weigh in on all the rumors, speculations and predictions - both from fans and players alike.  Yes and as anxiety lurks ahead of the Germany versus Portugal match, Cristiano Ronaldo is talking about his hopes to lead his team to victory over Germany. 

Despite scoring seven goals in qualifying, it’s time for the talented Mr. Ronaldo to show he can produce his club form for Portugal at big tournaments. After helping Real Madrid to break Barcelona’s stranglehold in Spain with 46 goals last season, it will be interesting to see how the former Manchester United man fares against a well-drilled German defense.  And as Ronaldo reflected on the season with Real Madrid, he said that a triumph here for Portugal would help to compensate for any disappointment for Real Madrid.  Portugal begin what looks certain to be a difficult campaign in Group B on Saturday with a game against Germany in Lviv.

Much will be asked of Ronaldo who admitted on Friday, that he still hasn't really got over Real Madrid's Champions League exit to Bayern Munich last month.  Ronaldo said: "I had a good season but I'm missing the Champions League, so maybe you can't say it was the very best year.  "But the Euros are still where I have hopes of doing something special with Portugal."  "Maybe people think we can't win; but for me, Portugal is one of the biggest teams in Europe and we have a great history."
"Portugal has a good team with players who play in the best clubs in the world. Now all we need is to play as a team and to hope this time we get some luck.  Can we fight for the title? I don't know, it depends on many factors."   "The problem has been that at the moment of truth, we have not taken our chances in the Euros or in World Cups in the past, although we came very close in 2004 when we were at home.

"But it's still my dream to win a trophy with my country, so let's see if this time we can do something good." Pitched in to a group with Germany, Holland and Denmark, Ronaldo and his team know they are perhaps third favorites to qualify. Victory on Saturday would help, though. 'We need to start well,' said Ronaldo. 'Everybody knows Germany is one of the big favorites. Starting against them is a huge risk, but we must accept this challenge face to face and without fear.  "Defeating them would be an amazing result and give us lots of encouragement for the quarter-finals."

Polish National Stadium Eyesore Or A Sense Of Pride

As the excitement brews surrounding Polish soccer team's entry into the 2012 European Championship (EURO2012), the focus now shifts to the the National Stadium which was built for the EURO2012.  The stadium to say the least is an interesting design, taking the shape of a wicker basket over Saska Kepa one of Warsaw's most popular neighborhoods, with an enclave of towering trees.

This colossal stadium has a retractable fiberglass roof and a shimmery red-and-white facade in the colors of the national flag which symbolizes Poland's source of pride.  To others, the 58,000-seat arena is an eyesore and the latest affront to a unique neighborhood already threatened by a rising class of entrepreneurs and developers. Proof, if any more was needed, of how breakneck economic growth can jeopardize a vulnerable architectural heritage.

"It's like a big giant UFO that landed nearby," complains Marcin Eckert, a 40-year-old tax lawyer whose view at breakfast is now dominated by the stadium. Says his wife, Dorota Jurkiewicz-Eckert: "We feel we have been squashed by an elephant."  Any change to historic areas in Warsaw provokes strong emotions because of how little survived World War II. Saska Kepa, an exclusive area before the war that was home to doctors and lawyers and other upper middle-class professionals, has the unique distinction of being the city's only prestigious neighborhood to survive in its entirety.

"This is not the Saska Kepa of my childhood," says Jurkiewicz-Eckert, a 40-year-old art historian. She and her husband are members of a group trying to preserve the neighborhood, Zielona Saska Kepa — mAdidas Euro2012 Glider Ball White/pink Size 3eaning Green Saska Kepa. "We are on the way to losing the old-fashioned atmosphere of the place. And it's because of the greed of the developers."

Saska Kepa — where maple, ash and linden trees give shade to prewar homes and trendy restaurants — has the unusual distinction of surviving the war in its entirety because of its location on the eastern bank of the Vistula River, where Soviet troops sat idly during the 1944 Warsaw Uprising against the occupying German forces. Polish insurgents hoped for the support of the Red Army, which by that time had made it to Warsaw in its westward push that defeated Hitler. But Soviet leader Joseph Stalin preferred to let the Germans destroy the city and its people, knowing they would have also become a democratic opposition to Moscow's postwar domination.

One can only hope that when the match actually starts, this eyesore will become a source of happiness especially if Poland advances.

"Euro 2012 Tee"