Gdansk: The Boys in Green are well known as difficult to break down but the Spain coach had pointed out that Giovanni Trapattoni has plenty of attacking talent at his disposal. Spain coach Vicente del Bosque has dismissed the suggestion that the Republic of Ireland are incapable of hurting his side in an attacking capacity in Thursday's Group C clash in Gdansk. Many pundits believe that Giovanni Trapattoni will send...
01:28 PM, Jun 14, 2012
Poznan: Croatia's ability to vary their tactics, their intensity and their physical prowess make them a very different prospect to facing Spain, Italy coach Cesare Prandelli warned on Wednesday. Italy came into the tournament on the back of a match-fixing scandal back home and three consecutive friendly defeats in which they failed to score but surpassed expectations in their 1-1 draw with Spain on Sunday. However, after watching Croatia's performance...
11:54 PM, Jun 13, 2012
Gdansk: David Silva admits that he does not mind if he plays in midfield or up front for Spain at Euro 2012. Coach Vicente del Bosque received some criticism for starting the draw against Italy without a recognised striker, but the former Valencia man believes it was a solid start to the competition, and stated that he is happy to fulfill any role in the side. "It doesn't matter whether...
07:32 PM, Jun 13, 2012
Gdynia: Spain's sizeable Barcelona contingent may be forgiven for feeling a sense of deja vu when they face Ireland on Thursday in their second Group B match at Euro 2012. Just as Barca did in the Champions League semi-final against Chelsea, the European and world champions will likely spend huge chunks of the game with the ball at their feet, plotting and scheming a way through a forest of opposing...
07:08 PM, Jun 13, 2012
Krakow: Italy coach Cesare Prandelli has been warning for months that his team's toughest match of the European Championship is the one against Croatia. First, because Croatia is an unpredictable opponent that has always created trouble for Italy. And second, because the Azzurri always seems to struggle in the second match at major tournaments. Looking back in the record books, it's hard to argue with Prandelli entering Thursday's game in...
06:41 PM, Jun 13, 2012
Wroclaw: Italy coach Cesare Prandelli believes that his side are in a must-win situation going into Thursday's Euro 2012 contest against Croatia. The Azzurri kicked off their campaign with an impressive 1-1 draw against defending champions Spain, and will now lock horns with Slaven Bilic's men, who defeated Republic of Ireland 3-1 to jump to the top of Group C. "We have not solved our problems, we only fielded a...
08:51 PM, Jun 12, 2012
Warka (Poland): Even with Ivica Olic out injured, Croatia got off to a striking start at the European Championship. The Croats got two goals from Mario Mandzukic and one from Nikica Jelavic in their 3-1 win over Ireland in Group C. That's more than Spain and Italy combined after their 1-1 draw in the other group match. "If you don't have a striker who can score a goal, you have...
08:41 PM, Jun 11, 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
Gdansk (Poland): Mario Balotelli confirmed his reputation as an uncontrollable talent. Antonio Di Natale confirmed his as a late-blooming but utterly pure goalscorer. The study in contrasts could not have been greater between the two Italy forwards during Sunday's 1-1 draw with Spain at the European Championship. The 21-year-old Balotelli earned one yellow card and could have easily been handed another, then wasted his best scoring chance by inexplicably waiting...
12:53 PM, Jun 11, 2012
Poznan, (Poland): The Irish are going to have to throw caution to the wind against Spain and Italy after leaking three goals in their opening European Championship match against Croatia on Sunday. With reigning champion Spain next up on Thursday and Italy four days later, coach Giovanni Trapattoni said his team "lost all confidence" by conceding as many goals against Croatia as it had in 14 previous matches and letting...
11:25 AM, Jun 11, 2012
CNN-IBN's panel of football experts analyse Euro 2012 matches on Sunday in great detail. ...
09:28 AM, Jun 11, 2012
Gdansk: Vicente del Bosque insists his inclusion of Cesc Fabregas in attack was warranted, following Spain's 1-1 draw at Euro 2012 with Italy in Gdansk. The former Real Madrid coach surprised many by naming the Barcelona midfielder as a 'false No.9' ahead of other strikers in the squad, but he nonetheless went on to score a vital equaliser for his side. When quizzed on how he felt the experiment went...
02:30 AM, Jun 11, 2012
Croatia took charge of Group C with a comfortable 3-1 victory as Ireland's usually reliable defence crumbled in their first game of the tournament in Poznan. Mario Mandzukic got the Balkan side off to a great start with an early goal but Sean St Ledger restored parity midway through the first half. Ireland then began to take a back seat in the match and they were punished with two more...
02:06 AM, Jun 11, 2012
Gdansk: Andrea Pirlo has rated Italy's performance in the 1-1 draw with Spain at Euro 2012 as a "seven" out of 10. The Azzurri went ahead thanks to Antonio Di Natale's strike on the hour mark, fresh off the substitutes' bench, but shortly after, 'false No.9' Cesc Fabregas equalised to salvage La Roja a point in Gdansk. Speaking after the encounter, the Juventus playmaker did not expect Spain to take...
01:09 AM, Jun 11, 2012
Gdansk: Italy and Spain have begun their respective Euro 2012 campaigns with an absorbing 1-1 draw on Sunday to kick off the action in Group C. Antonio Di Natale drew first blood for the Azzurri on 60 minutes, coming straight off the substitutes' bench to put his side ahead, but only four minutes later, Cesc Fabregas ensured their opening day ended with a share of the spoils in Gdansk. The...
11:28 PM, Jun 10, 2012
CNN-IBN panel of experts discuss Spain's match against Italy. ...
08:40 PM, Jun 10, 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
