Greece Battles Out a Tie Against Spain

Greek striker Angelos Charisteas saved an otherwise weak offensive effort for his side with the tying goal, as Spain failed to make the most of their offensive chances.

As the final whistle blew, Greek national team coach, the German Otto Rehhagel lept up and down the sidelines. The 1-1 tie against European powerhouse Spain left Greece in the driver's seat ahead of the final Group A game. Spain, which couldn't make the best of its overwhelming ball possession face a tough final game against Portugal early next week.

"We proved that the win against Portugal wasn't a
fluke," said Charisteas. "We showed that we have a strong
and serious team."

The game got off to a sluggish start in the 84 degree heat. Spain started strong in the first half, owning the middlefield and stifling the Greeks down the middle, where they are typically strongest.

But the Spanish side was missing the final pass to a goal, as the Greeks tackled and charged to make up for defensive lapses. Spain kept at it, feeding crosses to stiker Fernando Morientes up front.

Morientes puts the Spanish ahead

In the 28th minute Mihalis Kapsis made a bad mistake, playing a pass back to goalie Antonius Nikopolidis that Raul intercepted. A short pass to Morientes did the trick and the Spanish striker hammered the ball into the right corner of the net, past a diving Nikopolidis.

The goal woke Greece up, but their inability to put together a string of good passes limited their offense. The Slovakian referees awarded four yellow cards in the first half, two to each side.

In the second half, Rehhagel expanded his offensive opportunities. He substituted in playmaker Tsiartas and striker Nikolaidis, who plays for the Spanish club team Atletico Madrid.

Rehegal shakes up Greek offense

But the changes didn't produce much at first, with bad passes and miscommunication dominating the Greek offensive effort. It was Spain who looked ready to score their second goal, when Joaquin, on the right side, played a cross to Raul. The Real Madrid striker, though wide open in front of the goal, sailed his header across the bar.

"The Spanish team had better circulation of the ball and
pressed more," said Rehhegal. "We showed lots of passion. We took many risks but it went well. The result was good, he added."

The Spanish pushed again and again, but were unable to add to their lead.

Instead, it was Greece who surprised the stadium with a long cross from Tsiartas. Charisteas, who plays for German Bundesliga champion Werder Bremen, popped up unchecked on the left side of the Spanish goal and hammered the ball through keeper Iker Cassillas legs in the 66th minute.

Nikopolidis saves big

Spain threatened again after the equalizer, running their offense through Joaquin, a second half subsitute, on the right side. The Spanish missed a huge opporuntiy in the 75th minute as Helguera's strong header off a corner kick was blocked by a diving Nikopolidis.

Greece managed to hold Spain as the minutes ticked down, escaping with a hard-fought tie.

Lineups:

Greece: Nikopolidis; Seitaridis, Kapsis,
Dellas, Fyssas (Venitidis 86.); Giannakopoulos (Nikolaidis 49.) Katsouranis, Zagorakis,
Karagounis (Tsiartas 53.); Charisteas, Vryzas

Spain: Casillas; Puyol, Marchena, Helguera, Raul Bravo; Albelda, Baraja, Etxeberria (46. Joaquin) , Vicente; Raul (80. Torres) - Morientes (65. Valeron)