
Hoenderloo: Netherlands playmaker Wesley Sneijder believes Euro 2012 will be more difficult to win than the World Cup, where the Dutch finished as runners-up two years ago. Bert van Marwijk's side have tricky draw with Denmark, Germany and Portugal awaiting in Group B. "It will be very difficult, because for me, the Euros is more difficult than the World Cup because you don't have the teams from Africa or wherever...

11:20 PM, Jun 01, 2012

Madrid: A scan on Cesc Fabregas's hamstring injury has shown "very satisfactory results" although he will miss Spain's final Euro 2012 warm-up match against China on Sunday, the Spanish soccer federation (RFEF) said on Friday. Fabregas picked up the injury when he came on for the last 10 minutes of Barca's 3-0 King's Cup final win over Athletic Bilbao last week before he was named in Spain's final 23-man squad...

10:38 PM, Jun 01, 2012

London: Scott Parker is fit for England's final Euro 2012 warm-up against Belgium on Saturday, handing coach Roy Hodgson a much-needed boost after his midfield was ravaged by injury. Experienced duo Frank Lampard and Gareth Barry have both been ruled out of this month's tournament in Ukraine and Poland and British media reports had said Parker was a doubt with a nagging Achilles problem. "No not particularly," Hodgson told a...

07:54 PM, Jun 01, 2012

Poland have not played a competitive match since 2009 and a dismal World Cup qualifying campaign which saw them finish second from bottom in their group. They have been drawn up with the likes of Greece, Russia and Czech Republic. On paper it's one of the easier group but Poland still remain outsiders to reach the second round. Coach Franciszek Smuda has plenty of experience to call upon for the...

05:26 PM, Jun 01, 2012

Since Greece delivered the biggest shock they ever could to world football in 2004 - by winning the European Championships - the team's fortunes haven't witnessed the upswing that one would expect after such a big win out of the blue. But that it's the country's third consecutive appearance at the European Championships says a lot about a team that had qualified for the competition just once between 1960 and...

05:14 PM, Jun 01, 2012

After a disastrous World Cup campaign in 2010, the French scraped into Euro 2012 courtesy of topping one of the weaker qualifying groups, where they edged Bosnia and Herzegovina for the top spot. But as the Euro nears there is a feel-good factor around the squad once again, with players motivated to play as a unit than focusing on individuals. Laurent Blanc's team, which lost just once in 10 qualifying...

05:10 PM, Jun 01, 2012

Munich: Joachim Low has insisted that Germany still have to improve in the wake of their 2-0 friendly win over Israel on Thursday. The national team coach was generally pleased with his side's performance after they had lost their previous match 5-3 against Switzerland, but he was adamant that they need to be better if they are to have success this summer. "It was a pretty decent final test, this...

02:11 PM, Jun 01, 2012

Barcelona: Barcelona striker David Villa has played down his absence from the Spain national team at Euro 2012. The 30-year-old striker ruled himself out of selection for the finals in Poland and Ukraine as he is still nursing a fractured tibia sustained at the Club World Cup in December. His unavailability has been described by Spain coach Vicente del Bosque as a heavy blow, but Villa thinks that La Roja...

10:33 AM, Jun 01, 2012

Jamshedpur: Tata's JUSCO is a company that takes its Corporate Social Responsibility very seriously. It is the equivalent of a municipal corporation for Jamshedpur, providing 24-hour portable drinking water, uninterrupted power supply and infrastructure for the local population. For the not-so-privileged of Jamshepdur, a regular day begins stocking up drinking water from a tanker. A free service by the Jamshedpur Utilities and Services Company Limited, popularly called JUSCO, the TATA...

09:50 AM, Jun 01, 2012

Leipzig: Germany worked hard for a 2-0 win over Israel in a Euro 2012 warm-up match on Thursday with Mario Gomez and Andre Schuerrle on target in their final test before next month's tournament. The three-time European champions, among the title favourites, dominated with a performance that was a marked improvement on their 5-3 defeat by Switzerland on Saturday. However, they wasted close to a dozen clear chances on a...

09:16 AM, Jun 01, 2012

London: England suffered a major injury blow before the start of Euro 2012 next month after midfielder Frank Lampard was ruled out of the tournament with a thigh injury, the FA said in a statement on Thursday. Lampard pulled his thigh in training on Wednesday and was examined by the England medical staff following a scan. "It's a huge blow for the team, especially coming after the loss of another...

11:05 PM, May 31, 2012

London: Gary Cahill feels England need to be ready to win ugly at the European Championships this summer. The 26-year-old was at the focal point of Chelsea's defensive effort as they overcame first Barcelona and then Bayern Munich to clinch this season's Champions League, and believes England's style of play does not matter if they are to reach the latter stages of the tournament. He told Sky Sports: "In this...

12:37 PM, May 31, 2012

Rotterdam: The Netherlands got their European Championship preparations back on track Wednesday with a 2-0 win over Slovakia thanks to an own goal and a second-half strike from Rafael van der Vaart. The Dutch needed a spark to ignite their sputtering campaign after losing 3-2 to Bayern Munich last week followed by a lackluster 2-1 defeat to Bulgaria on Saturday. It came in the form of Ibrahim Afellay, who was...

09:04 AM, May 31, 2012

Berne: Striker Fernando Torres, who scraped into Spain's Euro 2012 squad by the skin of his teeth, celebrated by ending a year-long goal drought for his country in a 4-1 friendly win over South Korea on Wednesday. Torres, complimented by coach Vicente del Bosque afterwards, gave Spain a 11th minute lead although South Korea then gave them a fright when Kim Do-Heong - who plays for National Police Agency -...

08:55 AM, May 31, 2012

London: England midfielder Frank Lampard could be ruled out of Euro 2012 after pulling up with a thigh injury during a training session on Wednesday. The 33-year-old was handed the No.8 shirt for the tournament on Tuesday but is now a doubt as the Three Lions medical team assess the severity of the injury. The news comes just days after Manchester City man Gareth Barry was ruled out of the...

08:42 PM, May 30, 2012