2004 UEFA European Football Championship - Summary

Summary

Group A opened with a shock as Greece, ranked outsiders from start, defeated the hosts 2–1. Giorgos Karagounis put the Greeks ahead after only seven minutes, and Angelos Basinas made it 2–0 from the penalty spot on 51 minutes. An injury time goal from Cristiano Ronaldo proved no more than a consolation. Greece then drew with Spain, before losing to Russia in their last group stage game. Portugal, meanwhile, recovered from their opening defeat by defeating Russia 2–0, who had their keeper Sergei Ovchinnikov sent off. Nuno Gomes scored the winning goal against Spain, which ensured Portugal finished first place in Group A. Greece advanced to the quarter-finals as runners-up, ahead Spain on goals scored.

France, the holders, and England ended their Group B encounter in furious fashion as the French scored twice in injury time to go from 1–0 down to 2–1 winners. Zinedine Zidane scored in the first minute of injury time and two minutes later, an error by the English defence gave a France penalty and Zidane fired in the winner. England's other two games were memorable for the performances of their young star Wayne Rooney. Only 18 at the time, Rooney's goal-scoring ability proved instrumental in victories over Switzerland (3–0) and Croatia (4–2). France and England qualified from the group as winners and runners-up, respectively.

Group C featured a three-way tie between Sweden, Denmark, and Italy for first spot. All matches between the three sides had ended in draws and all three had beaten Bulgaria. Italy were ultimately eliminated on the number of goals scored between the three sides, after Sweden and Denmark drew 2–2 and qualified to the quarter-finals as group winners and runners-up. The Italians went so far as to accuse Sweden and Denmark of fixing their match, as both sides knew that a 2–2 result would advance them both over Italy, but UEFA disregarded such an idea.

The Czech Republic took the first place in Group D after becoming the only team to win all three of their group matches. They defeated Latvia 2–1, the Netherlands 3–2, and Germany 2–1. It was another disappointing European campaign for Germany, which failed to advance from the group stage for the second consecutive time. The Netherlands claimed a quarter-final berth as runners-up.

In the first quarter-final match between England and Portugal, the English opened the score after only two minutes, through Michael Owen. Portugal's constant attacking pressure from then on resulted in Hélder Postiga's 83rd minute equaliser. A controversial incident came in the dying minutes when Owen hit the Portuguese crossbar, resulting in a Sol Campbell header that appeared to have given England the lead again, but was ruled out for what the referee Urs Meier deemed a foul on the Portuguese goalkeeper Ricardo. The sides exchanged goals in extra-time, sending the match to a penalty shoot-out. Portugal won 6–5, as goalkeeper Ricardo saved a penalty from Darius Vassell, and then scored himself the winning goal.

The Greeks, meanwhile, continued to stun everybody. Firm defensive play and an Angelos Charisteas goal on 65 minutes helped them defeat France 1–0 and send Greece through to the semi-finals. This victory made Greece the first team to defeat both the holders and the hosts in the same tournament. Sweden and the Netherlands played out an exciting encounter, but neither side could find a breakthrough and the match ended goalless after extra-time. The Dutch progressed after winning the penalty shoot-out 5–4, their first ever victory on penalties in a major tournament. The last quarter-final match saw the Czechs dispatch Denmark, as a two-goal effort from Milan Baroš helped seal a 3–0 win.

Portugal and the Netherlands faced each other in the first semi-final. Cristiano Ronaldo put the hosts in the lead from a corner kick midway through the first half, and just before the hour mark Maniche made it 2–0 for Portugal with a spectacular goal from the corner of the penalty area. An own goal from Jorge Andrade gave the Netherlands a glimmer of hope. Portugal came close to scoring a third goal that was only stopped by Wilfred Bouma's blocking attempt. The game ended 2–1 to Portugal and the hosts, after their opening day failure, were through to the final of their European Championship. The Czech Republic looked likely candidates to face the hosts in the final, but they would have to see off the upstart Greeks to do so. The Czechs had several chances, including a shot from Tomáš Rosický that struck the bar. The game remained goalless, until the dying moments of the first half of extra-time, when Traianos Dellas headed home the winner, the first and only silver goal in a European Championship.

The final was a repeat of the opening game of the tournament and Portugal were hoping to avenge their opening day loss. Portugal furiously attacked and dominated the possession but once again, sturdy defending and goalkeeping from Greece kept the Portuguese hosts off the scoreboard. Just before the hour mark, Greece earned a corner kick from which Angelos Charisteas scored. Portugal continued to press after the goal but even with five minutes of injury time they could not find an equaliser. Greece won the match 1–0 and were crowned European champions, a title that they were given a 150–1 chance of winning before the tournament. All of Greece's wins in the knockout stage came in an identical manner: a 1–0 win, with the goal being a header off a cross from the right wing.