Portuguese stars come to terms with loss
Sunday, 13 June 2004 17:36Portugal's footballers were today coming to terms with the 2-1 defeat by Greece yesterday which has left the host nation struggling to reach the knockout phase of Euro 2004. Some were in no mood to talk to the press. Those who did were candid enough to admit that the unexpected setback at the hands of the team considered the weakest in the pool has left them staring at a possible first-round exit in the biggest sports event ever staged by the country.
Defender Jorge Andrade admitted the defeat had been a severe jolt to their confidence. He said: "We are shocked at what has happened. There was a lot of pressure on us because this was the opening game but we still felt we were capable of winning it and putting on a show. Now we must reflect and decide how we will do better next time."
Striker Nuno Gomes added: "We did not need this defeat and now we must think again before we play our next match. It's a difficult moment for us because there is a lot of expectation but we are determined not to let our supporters down. They scored two goals which we could have prevented and we should have been more aware of this and that made everything more difficult for us."
Greece skipper Theo Zagorakis, named man-of-the-match by UEFA, said: "I always want to win in every game I play in but it's true that a victory like this is something special. This is a different game and playing at this level is something new for most of us so we are really very pleased with this outcome.
His team-mate striker Zisis Vryzas added: "We are proud of our football and we tried to show we are capable of today. But this is only the beginning of the competition and there is a long way to go so we must not think too long about this. We knew Portugal had a lot of pressure on their shoulders and we made it as difficult for them as we could and now we are celebrating a very important win."
Filed by Mark O'Neill-Cummins
