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Greece Team Profile – 2010 FIFA World Cup

Isaac Asante, June 17 2010,
We go down in Group B of the 2010 FIFA World Cup to meet Greece, the country capable of producing strange shocks.

Greece – The country, the football

The popular temple in Greece - Athens

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Greece, also referred to as the Hellenic Republic, is a country situated in the southeastern part of Europe. It is bordered by Albania, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, and Turkey. Its population is said to be around 11,260,400 people, and its size has an estimation of 131,990 km2.

The Greek national football team – known by the nickname “The Pirate Ship”, or “The Galanoleyki” – has been eclipsed by several other big teams in Europe over the years, having qualified only twice in the finals of the FIFA World Cup. Among their greatest moments in the sport, however, was when they emerged as European champions in 2004, after defeating favorites France in the semis, and hosts Portugal in the final of the  tournament.

 

From that instant, the Greeks reached a higher level in football, increasing the estimation they previously had from other countries. The Pirate Ship can now dream of achieving something bigger, having succeeded in the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers (UEFA zone) to grab important tickets for the tournament’s finals in South Africa.

Greece – The road to the 2010 FIFA World Cup finalsGreece's national football team players celebrate their qualification to South Africa 2010

Based on their position in the FIFA World Rankings at that time, Greece were put in Pot A ahead of the draw for the qualifiers’ First Round, in November 2007.

First Round:

Group 2 was then theirs, finding themselves with Switzerland, Latvia, Israel, Luxembourg, and Moldova. There, the Greeks started off their run positively with a convincing 3-0 victory over Luxembourg. The Pirate Ship went on to obtain a second win, but this time, against a determined Latvia side; the score line of that match was 2-0 after 90 minutes of proceedings.

On October 11th 2008, Moldova were destroyed 3-0 by the Greeks, who then had high hopes of obtaining a seat in South Africa 2010; but unfortunately, Switzerland ended Greece’s unbeaten run 4 days later, humbling the Hellenic side 2-1. Israel then somehow managed to hold the Greeks to a 1-1 draw at home on March 28th 2009, despite losing 2-1 away from home on April 1st.

A single win in the next 3 encounters for Greece (which consisted of an amazing 5-2 victory over Latvia) significantly prevented the Galanoleyki from stealing precious points in their table. As a result, a last redemption against struggling side Luxembourg could only place the Greeks in second position of their table. They consequently had to participate in the Second Round of the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers in Europe.

Second Round:

Having finished as runners-up of their group with 20 points – either 1 point behind leaders Switzerland – Greece had to enter the play-off, which eventually decided which of the best 8 second-placed teams would stand the chance of reserving a place in the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals in South Africa.

Joining them in the Second Round were France, Portugal, Russia, Ukraine, Republic of Ireland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Slovenia. In the long run, Greece were destined to face Ukraine in the play-off.

Both sides drew goalless on November 14 2009 in Greece in front of 68,500 people, but in the second leg 4 days later, the Pirate Ship sank the Ukrainians by a goal to nil, only to go away with the enormous prize of finally reaching the promise land in the south of the African continent.

Greece players walking on the pitch during a 2010 World Cup qualifierGreece – The 2010 FIFA World Cup group stage

The draw for the finals finally occurred on December 4 2009, with Greece being located in Pot 4. This was definitely not a sweet condition for the Greeks, as they had to look forward to getting 3 other tough sides in their group.

Indeed, Greece landed in Group B, meeting South American giants Argentina, African professionals Nigeria, and Asian challengers Korea Republic. The waves were against the Pirate Ship…

Match-day 1: Korea Republic vs Greece

This will be the first fixture for the Greeks in the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals in South Africa, and this match is scheduled to start on June 12, at 13:30 South African local time, at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth.

Korea Republic certainly know how it feels to participate in this interesting tournament, having taking part in it back in 2006, and in six previoius editions of the World Cup. The last time Greece played in this competition was in 1994, and considering the major changes which have affected football since then, there is no doubt that they will need to be alert and play as experts so as to avoid needless stuns.

Match-day 2: Greece vs Nigeria

June 17 will see a very appealing encounter between Greece and Nigeria, at the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein, at 14:00 GMT.

The Greeks will be playing as the home side, and bearing in mind that Nigeria would have already played against Argentina by then, the Pirate Ship could take advantage of the Super Eagles’ fatigue to thrive in their invasion. In the same way, Greece will also be looking ahead to a hard encounter later on, and therefore, they wouldn’t want to wear themselves out too much, in order to remain fit for their next match.

Match-day 3: Greece vs Argentina

Greece's final game in the 2010 FIFA World Cup group stage will be against top seeds Argentina, at the Peter Mokaba Stadium, in Polokwane on June 22 at 18:30 GMT.

Greece will again be fighting as the home side, and taking into consideration the lack of strength of the Galanoleyki, the Greeks will probably be looking to cause the Albicelestes an upset, just as they did to France and Portugal back in 2004, during the UEFA Euro 2004.

There is a lot to say on this game, but long analysis could ideally be shortened in a single sentence:
“A win for the Pirate Ship will elevate the standard of the Greeks even more in the world of football, whereas a loss will perhaps reveal all the rearrangement which needs to be done; and moreover, it can even penalize them, depending on their previous results in the group stage.”

Greece – Quick Analysis: Expectations from the country and its top starsSotirios Kyrgiakos, Greece defender

Greece might not have opportunity to boast of possessing great stars like Argentina; yet, they do have a few men whose impact in the Greek national football team could affect all their 3 contenders in Group B.

Sotirios Kyrgiakos:

The 30-year old defender is currently a centre back Barclays Premier League giants Liverpool. The Greek previously featured in other clubs, among which were Panathinaikos, Agios Nikolaos, Rangers, Eintracht Frankfurt, and AEK Athens.

Kyrgiakos did not play in the Euro 2004 tournament subsequent to an injury. However, his contribution during his national team’s EURO 2008 qualifiers helped him make his inclusion in the squad for the competition’s finals.

Sotirios is now regarded as an expert player, but followers of the Galanoleyki will be expecting him to use his influence to direct the Pirate Ship in the right way.

Georgios Samaras, Greece attackerGeorgios Samaras:

The inspirational Greek forward has really been getting a lot of attention from his fans back home recently. The striker started his career at Heerenveen in 2003, before being transferred to Manchester City 3 years later. Samaras now plays for Celtic, and so far, his performance is yet to annoy his supporters.

The Greek front-player has appeared over 30 times for the Pirate Ship, but has only managed to get the ball at the back of the net on 5 occasions. Scoring goals infrequently is not really a big deal in football, but the most important thing is to score the goals when chances are open and when they are really needed.

Obviously, the Greek national football team’s desire to get at the 2010 FIFA World Cup couldn’t be bigger, and it will therefore be up to Georgios Samaras to live up to expectations.

Greece – Current 2010 FIFA World Cup squad

Goalkeepers:

Kostas Chalkias; Alexandros Tzorvas; Michalis Sifakis

Defenders:

Stelios Malezas; Nikos Spiropoulos; Vasilis Torosidis; Avraam Papadopoulos; Sotiris Kyrgiakos; Socrates Papastathopoulos; Evangelos Moras; Loukas Vintra; Giorgos Seitaridis

Midfielders:

Sakis Prittas; Christos Patsatzoglou; Sotiris Ninis; Giorgos Karagounis; Alexandros Tziolis; Kostas Katsouranis

Forwards:

Giorgos Samaras; Theofanis Gekas; Pantelis Kapetanos; Dimitris Salpigidis; Angelos Charisteas

Greece – Relevant Quote

Otto Rehhagel: “Argentina will top Group B, but Greece needs to be second”

The Greece coach Otto Rehhagel clearly has no beliefs that his country will finish above favorites Argentina in Group B. Hence, he admits that a second place as runners-up will be totally acceptable to him.

“Argentina will be the clear favorites in our group, because they are number one. They are a very good and troublesome side. I think all the teams in the group will struggle against them, and I think it is only fair to say that the three other challengers will be aiming for second.

“So it is up to all of us to fight for the second spot, and I think we all have an equal chance of entering the second round. We’ll have to start well and work hard to stay in South Africa for the knockout stages... that will be our main target. “

Greece's Georgios Samaras points out at the crowd to show the team's desire to win

Greece – 2010 FIFA World Cup record

2010: Qualified as participants

1994: Round 1

Greece - 2010 FIFA World Cup Coverage

Don’t hesitate to visit LiveSoccerTV.com for the latest information around Greece throughout the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals in South Africa, as the site brings you all the news including fixtures, results, profiles, previews, and videos on the Pirate Ship.

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