European heavyweights France, England and Italy get the chance to put their disappointing World Cups behind them on Friday as they kick off their Euro 2012 qualifying campaigns on a night for fresh starts.
|Last Updated: Sep 03, 2010, 09:58 AM IST|Source: Bureau
London: European heavyweights France, England and Italy get the chance to put their disappointing World Cups behind them on Friday as they kick off their Euro 2012 qualifying campaigns on a night for fresh starts.
The qualifying competition affords all three the opportunity to restore their battered confidence and rebuild tarnished reputations after they limped to humiliating early exits in South Africa.
France, who face Belarus in Paris, and Italy, who travel to Tallinn to play Estonia, have drawn a line in the sand under their World Cup failures by appointing new managers.
England, however, who host Bulgaria, have kept faith with Italian Fabio Capello, who could do no wrong before their first World Cup game against United States but is now under huge pressure and the subject of intense media scrutiny.“We have to play without fear,” said Capello, who will be without several first-choice players like injured John Terry and Frank Lampard. “I saw the players trained well today and with confidence and I hope they play like that against Bulgaria.”
The job facing new France coach Laurent Blanc is also tough, with the 1998 World Cup winner tasked with bringing unity and harmony to a side torn apart by internal strife in South Africa.
“When you’re a coach, you can try to ask your players to behave on the pitch in a way which can inspire them for their day-to-day living,” he said.
Blanc’s Italian counterpart, Cesare Prandelli, must re-instil a winning mentality in a team that has not tasted success in seven internationals and finished bottom of their World Cup group.
World champions Spain, bidding to become the first team to retain the European Championship, play Liechtenstein while Germany kick off their Euro 2012 qualifiers against Belgium.
Bureau Report
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies Setting
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device and the processing of information obtained via those cookies (including about your preferences, device and online activity) by us and our commercial partners to enhance site navigation, personalise ads, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. More information can be found in our Cookies and Privacy Policy. You can amend your cookie settings to reject non-essential cookies by clicking Cookie Settings below.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work or you may not be able to login.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advert as well as help measure the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we may not know when you have visited our site, and may not be able to monitor its performance.