Soccer: No easy matches on road to final

"The World Cup" is the most evocative phrase in football. It provokes a vast mental library of images.

The phrase "European Championship," however, provokes a brief pause.

Part of this is because the competition's history is shorter and, until recently, the final tournament brief.

The lack of countries such as Brazil and Cameroon rob the contest of much quality and romanticism.

Yet as Euro 96 showed, it can still provide exhilarating fare.

The absence of the leading South American nations means the European Championship can never match the World Cup for quality, but devoid of teams from Asia, North and Central America, the tournament is stronger in depth.

Slovenia apart - and they may provide the romanticism - there are no easy games and England's group is typical, containing four teams of equal stature.

The Romanians are aging, but technically gifted, the Germans faltering but indomitable, while the Portuguese, if they ever found a goalscorer, would be a real danger.

England are quite capable of beating, or losing to, all these teams.

A good start against Portugal is essential: defeat would leave them needing to beat both Germany and Romania to be certain of progressing.

History is not with England, whose record in the European Championship and its predecessor, the European Nations' Cup, is appalling.

They have only reached the final stages four times in 10 tournaments.

Their only successes outside England came in the third-place playoff in Rome in 1968 (when only the last four were in the finals) and in Naples 12 years later, when their group match with Spain was meaningless as neither could qualify.

The nadir was 1988, when they lost all three matches.

This time England have a chance, not least because they are in the weaker half of the draw.

Belgium, Sweden, Turkey or Italy await in the next round.

Italy have the reputation but are in dire form; Turkey have good strikers but travel badly; Belgium are improving but limited; Sweden, as England found in qualifying, are organised and hard to beat, but lack creativity.

The favourites, France, Spain and the Netherlands, are all in the other half of the draw, with the dark horses, the Czech Republic.

All but Spain are in the daunting Group D, along with Denmark, which could mean a busy 10 days for Peter Schmeichel.

France will field much the same team who won the World Cup, with the useful addition of two goalscorers in Nicolas Anelka and Thierry Henry - perhaps Arsene Wenger will be given the Legion d'Honneur if their goals enable Roger Lemerre's team to win.

The Spanish have been in fine form, sweeping all aside.

Their tournament record is poor but their confidence has been further buoyed by the national domination of the European Cup, and they have enough attacking options to leave Fernando Morientes behind.

The Dutch, similarly, have omitted Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, despite losing Ruud van Nistelrooy to injury.

Their preparation has been mixed with too many draws, but they probably have the strongest squad of the tournament.

The question is whether Frank Rijkaard can pick the correct XI.

The co-hosts open against the Czech Republic, runners-up four years ago and another side in formidable form.

Jan Koller, a 2.03m striker with an excellent scoring record, could become the tournament's cult hit.

If he does, the Czechs might squeeze France or the Netherlands out of the quarterfinals.

Some fine players, such as Stefan Effenberg, Ryan Giggs, Andriy Shevchenko, Luis Enrique, Roy Keane and Sami Hyypia, are missing but the cream of Europe's footballers are present.

The English game provides 61 of them, eclipsing Spain's 50 and Italy's 48. Ten are from Liverpool, and nine from Arsenal.

Galatasaray provide a whole team, although their best player, Gheorghe Hagi, is Romanian not Turkish.

The usual suspects - Hagi, David Beckham, Alessandro Del Piero, Luis Figo, Zinedine Zidane, Raul and Patrick Kluivert - will catch the eye but watch, also, for Josep Guardiola, Boudewijn Zenden, Zlatko Zahovic, Sinisa Mihajovic (especially from free-kicks) and Francesco Totti. Good players all and capable of leaving memories to cherish.

There is, however, a shadow over the tournament.

Hooliganism involving English supporters is as inevitable as daylight.

Some of it will be provoked and some genuinely innocent supporters will be caught up in it, but there will be a significant number of hardcore hooligans travelling to the Low Countries intent on violent disorder.

They will draw into the conflict the many young Englishmen who, when fuelled by alcohol and nationalism, need little incitement to riot.

The initial headlines will probably come from drink-related incidents on the ferries, but the first obvious flashpoint is Eindhoven.

There, England followers hanging around after the match with Portugal are likely to come into contact with Turks arriving for the game against Sweden.

The action will then move to Charleroi, especially when England play Germany.

Brussels, where many English fans will be based, may also resound to broken glass and sirens, while any subsequent meeting between England and Turkey or the Netherlands will be a high-risk situation.

A complete alcohol ban on match-days, akin to that adopted in Lens for England's World Cup match with Colombia, would reduce trouble but this has so far been resisted.

Saturation policing is another containment tool but the easiest way to reduce problems would have been for the British Government to prevent the known hooligans - and the prime offenders are known - from travelling.

This has not happened and the British Government, usually so eager to be linked with football, must expect to be tarnished, like the many innocent supporters, the World Cup bid, and the game itself, by association.

- INDEPENDENT