EURO 2004/ Czech Republic v Greece: Emmet Malone listens to Czech goalkeeper Petr Cech who has played a pivotal role in his side's progress to the semi-finals

For centuries the beautiful mountain village of Sintra provided a summer home for Portugal's royals who retreated to their hillside castles when Lisbon became too uncomfortable to bear through the hottest months of the year. These days the place is a popular tourist attraction although this week it is football's would-be kings of Europe who are relaxing at the retreat.

Barely noticed, it seems, by the local population, Karel Bruckner's unassuming Czech players neared the end of their preparations for tomorrow night's game against Greece at Sintra's tiny football stadium yesterday.

In such low-key surroundings only the huge turnout by the international media, who showed up to witness Pavel Nedved, Tomas Rosicky, Milan Baros and the rest of the squad go through their paces, served as a reminder that the Czechs are now widely regarded as favourites to lift this title come Sunday night at the Stadium of Light.

Ranked six places lower on the FIFA's world list than the Dutch, Bruckner's men appear to have the easier path to the final and the form to win once they get there. Predictably, though, neither the veteran coach nor his assistant, Miroslav Beranek, who took yesterday's main press conference, would be so reckless as to predict how the team might fare over the next four days.

Though Nedved has been the inspiration behind much of what the team has achieved so far there are plenty of others who deserve credit with Rene Bolf just one of the defenders to catch the eye, Karel Poborsky having produced a couple of outstanding performances in midfield and Baros, of course, having emerged from his Anfield shell to lead the goalscorers' chart.

"Milan is important to us," says the team's Chelsea bound goalkeeper, Petr Cech, "but then it stands to reason really that when a player scores five goals his contribution will be considered vital.

"In every position, though, we have been strong. Already we can consider this to have been a successful European championship for us. The Greeks will be a great challenge for us in this game but we have the opportunity now for this to be a truly great tournament for us and I know how determined all of the players are to take that opportunity."

Cech, at just 22, is one of the side's great success stories, springing from the relative obscurity of an average French first division team, Rennes, to establish himself as the competition's best goalkeeper so far.

The player's rise has been as swift as it has been relentless with Cech having only signed professional forms for the first time in 1999 since when he has risen from the rather anonymous ranks of FK Chmel Blsany to Sparta Prague, where he underlined his promise with a string of clean sheets in the Champions League, to France, where he was recently voted the league's best goalkeeper.

In a business where you are supposed to peak relatively late Cech's dramatic rise to prominence might be considered just a little premature but Beranek, who coached him as a teenager at club level and later during his time with the under-21 national side that won the European title (he saved two penalties in the shoot-out that decided the final against France), insists his promise was plain to see from the very first.

"I saw him in the 1999 under-16 championships," he says, "and Petr made a few poor goalkicks but his stopping abilities were undoubtedly great. I will never forget when he came into the dressing-room for the first time. He was so tall that he had to bend his head to get through the door. I said to myself, 'At last we have a goalkeeper who has the right dimensions'."

Sparta snapped up the youngster for what seemed a huge fee - €600,000 - then left him with Chmel for another season to develop his game. A year later they took him to the capital where he quickly fulfilled his star potential. "A lot of people thought Sparta were crazy to spend that money," recalls Beranek, "but I knew Petr's potential was higher than the Czech league and it was money well spent. Petr's greatest strength is his natural intelligence. He understands tactics better than other players when we explain them and he is able to pass advice onto his defenders. He takes up very good positions and has excellent reflexes."

It's a package Rennes were prepared to pay €5.3 million to bring him to France and within two years they doubled their money as Chelsea came calling with their hefty chequebook. In the meantime, Cech, having played in successful under-16, 18, 20 and 21 national teams had displaced Pavel Srnicek in the senior side. He hasn't looked back.

Cech is described by observers who have followed his career as "22 going on 40", not such a bad thing in a goalkeeper. At yesterday's press conference he calmly answered questions in three languages.

He pays tribute to Bruckner, who has worked with more than half of this squad as they came up through the association's youth development system. "He is probably the best coach in the world right now and though the Greeks are strong we know he will come up with something special for our game against them."

And he predicts, like his coach, this team can improve on its performances here, both tomorrow night, and into the coming years.

"We are a young side and we are satisfied with what he have done so far but we know we can still do better," he says. As for own performances, he adds modestly, "People ask if I am satisfied with what I have done and I say that I am but then I'm lucky to be playing in a great team. I think it's easier right now to be playing in the Czech team than any of the others."

With his own talents clearly a key factor, though, Bruckner's young side may just be strong enough to win the country's second European title, kicking off in the process what has the potential to be a golden age for Czech football.