After little over a fortnight of play in Poland and Ukraine, the semi-finalists have now been decided. First up sees Portugal handed the gruelling task of ending reigning champions Spains supremacy, while penalty kings Italy face perennial rivals Germany. Three of the four sides have won a European crown before, with the Portuguese the odd men out, though having been 90 minutes away from winning a championship in 2004. But...
11:22 AM, Jun 27, 2012
Their teams might be fighting it out to snatch the top spot at the ongoing Euro 2012 tournament, but while the big final is yet to take place, we get you the five hottest players from Euro 2012. ...
01:11 PM, Jun 26, 2012
Barcelona winger Pedro Rodrguez Ledesma is confident that Spain will have the measure of Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo when they meet in their Euro 2012 semi-final on Wednesday. The Real Madrid man has been in excellent form in his last two games, scoring three goals against Netherlands and Czech Republic and firing his side into the final four of the competition in the process. Despite his scintillating play in the...
10:50 AM, Jun 26, 2012
Vicente del Bosque insists that he is not paying the slightest bit of attention to the current criticism of Spain's style of play, arguing that no matter what anyone else says, he knows he is in possession of an "enviable team". La Roja drew widespread praise for the way in which they went about winning Euro 2008 but there were some murmurings of disapproval during their successful 2010 World Cup...
10:10 AM, Jun 26, 2012
Gniewino (Poland): Spanish players haven't altered their playing style to win recent titles, and they won't start now just because it's coming up against Cristiano Ronaldo. Portugal will be counting on Ronaldo in Wednesday's European Championship semifinal against the defending champions, a second Iberian derby in as many tournaments after Spain beat their neighbours on their way to a World Cup triumph in 2010. A total of eight Real Madrid...
11:16 PM, Jun 25, 2012
Spain manager Vicente del Bosque has stated that some of his players are drained following their run to the Euro 2012 semi-finals. The admission comes on the same day as one of La Roja physios lamenting the extra two days of rest afforded to, their opponents on Wednesday, Portugal. A schedule of four games in 13 days appears to have taken its toll on the Spain squad, and Del Bosque...
10:45 AM, Jun 25, 2012
Poland: Portugal cannot afford to make any errors against Spain's World Cup-winning midfield regardless of whether they play with an out-and-out striker in the form of Fernando Torres, defender Joao Pereira said on Sunday. Spain and Portugal meet in the first Euro 2012 semi-final in Donetsk on Wednesday. "We have a team with personality and we can't make any mistakes in the defence, because they (Spain) are very strong," Pereira...
09:28 PM, Jun 24, 2012
Donetsk: Portugal defender Miguel Lopes and attacker Ricardo Quaresma came to blows during a training session on Saturday. The incident happened towards the end of a team practice when the Braga man made a robust challenge on the Besiktas winger, who responded angrily to the tackle and aimed a kick at the right-back. The two players went on to hurl verbal abuse at each other amidst a lot of pushing,...
10:11 PM, Jun 23, 2012
Warsaw: France are unlikely to feel psychologically inferior to holders Spain when they meet in their Euro 2012 quarter-final on Saturday, having never lost to the world champions in a competitive game. The French have won five and drawn one of their six competitive meetings with their neighbours, meaning Spain will need a first in Donetsk if they are to stay on track to become the first team to win...
11:26 AM, Jun 23, 2012
Valencia, Spain: Venezuelan Pastor Maldonado, surprise winner in Spain last month, put his Williams team back on top of the timesheets in first free practice at the European Grand Prix on Friday. The 27-year-old lapped the Valencia street circuit with a best time of one minute 40.890 seconds on a gusty and overcast morning with temperatures cooler than they had been the previous day. Red Bull's double Formula One world...
03:49 PM, Jun 22, 2012
Luxembourg/Madrid: Independent auditors said Spanish banks may need up to 62 billion euros in extra capital, to be filled mostly by a euro zone bailout, after Spain's medium-term borrowing costs spiralled to a euro-era record on Thursday. Euro zone finance ministers met in Luxembourg to discuss how to channel up to 100 billion euros in aid to Spanish lenders weighed down by bad debts from a burst property bubble. Madrid's...
10:14 AM, Jun 22, 2012
Madrid: Olympic tennis champion Rafael Nadal said he was honoured on Wednesday to be asked to carry the Spanish flag at the London Olympics opening ceremony in what he believes will be one of the most emotional moments of his career. The world number two, who recently won a record seventh French open title, his 11th Grand Slam victory overall, was the unanimous choice of the Spanish Olympic Committee (COE)....
09:01 AM, Jun 21, 2012
Donetsk: From the moment Poland's Robert Lewandowski scored the opening goal of the tournament with a brilliant header against Greece, Euro 2012 has served up one great moment after another during a thrilling group stage. Superb goals have followed, including Mario Balotelli's volley against Ireland, German Mario Gomez's first strike against the Netherlands and Jakub Blaszczykowski's stunning equaliser for Poland against Russia. The quality remained until the end with Zlatan...
10:12 AM, Jun 20, 2012
CNN-IBN's football experts rank Spain far from their best despite having reached the quarter-finals. ...
10:59 AM, Jun 19, 2012
Gdansk: Once again, Spain's veteran goalkeeper showed why his nickname is "Saint Iker." Iker Casillas bailed out his disorganised defence over and over in the second half on Monday, making two clutch saves to preserve Spain's 1-0 victory over Croatia and send the defending champions to the European Championship quarter-finals. "He can really save well in the important moments and that's what we need to have between the goal posts,"...
10:40 AM, Jun 19, 2012
New Delhi: India is poised to occupy the sixth position in the top 10 wealth markets this year after edging out Spain for 10th slot in 2011, says a report. "Uncertainty about the future of the euro and the worsening of the sovereign crisis in Europe are predicted to cause continuing problems, but many emerging markets are expected to continue marching ahead," according to Datamonitor's 2012 global wealth market report....
02:34 PM, Jun 17, 2012
New York: Rating agency Moody's Investors Service cut its rating on Spanish government debt by three notches on Wednesday to Baa3 from A3, saying the newly approved euro zone plan to help the country's banks will increase the country's debt burden. Moody's, which said it could lower Spain's rating further, also cited the Spanish government's "very limited" access to international debt markets and the weakness of the country's economy. The...
03:12 AM, Jun 14, 2012
Gdansk (Poland): Spain was considering filing an official protest to UEFA over the state of the pitch at Gdansk's PGE Arena after Italy's refusal to consent to extra watering left it dry for their opening European Championship game. Spain coach Vicente del Bosque as well as players Andres Iniesta, Xavi Hernandez and Cesc Fabregas all complained about the turf following Sunday's 1-1 Group C draw, which affected the defending champions'...
08:23 PM, Jun 11, 2012
Europe still has plenty of troubles to address in Spain, Greece, Portugal and Ireland. ...
10:12 AM, Jun 11, 2012
Gdansk (Poland): Andres Iniesta doesn't want any of the limelight during Spain's campaign at the European Championship. He might not have a say in the matter, however. Iniesta will lead the defending champions into their Group C opener against Italy at the PGE Arena in Gdansk on Sunday in better playing shape than any of his previous major championship appearances. But the Barcelona visionary, whose extra-time goal earned Spain its...
01:02 PM, Jun 10, 2012
