Euro 2004 team news, featuring Holland, Italy, France and host nation Portugal.
HOLLAND: Midfielder Clarence Seedorf will miss the Netherlands' opening Group D game against Germany on June 15th because of a hamstring injury.
Seedorf was injured during the 1-0 defeat by the Republic of Ireland at the weekend and a second MRI scan has shown his hamstring has suffered worse damage than originally thought.
The 28-year-old will be out of action for a week and there is no plan to call up a replacement for the AC Milan player. "At this stage you are allowed to replace a player only if he is seriously injured and out for the rest of the tournament," said Dick Advocaat. Seedorf travelled with the rest of the squad to Portugal yesterday.
ITALY: Midfielder Stefano Fiore, Italy's only fitness doubt, has declared himself fit for Monday's Group C opener against Denmark. "I feel fine, great," said the Lazio midfielder. "There has been a lot of talk about my muscular problems but in the end I didn't miss more than three days of full training.
"The specialised work I have done allowed me to recover without having to push myself, given that there was plenty of time."
Fiore is competing with Juventus winger Mauro Camoranesi for the spot on the right flank. "I'm coming into this after a fantastic season, I'm in great shape and missing three days isn't enough to lose all that," he said.
Argentine-born Camoranesi is seen by many as a safer choice than Fiore due to his ability to track back and defend.
Fiore, who enjoyed a great tournament at Euro 2000, rejected that theory. "No, I don't think that he is better suited to defensive work than me. We have similar characteristics and I have just had a great season," he said.
Italy, European champions in 1968 and runners-up four years ago, also face Sweden and Bulgaria in Group C.
PORTUGAL: Forward Luis Figo returned to training yesterday after a slight injury, team doctor Henrique Jones said yesterday. Figo will be available to play in the opening match against Greece on Saturday after recovering from a minor leg muscle strain. "Figo returned to practice without any limitations," Jones said.
The only injured player in the hosts' squad is defender Beto, who also pulled a leg muscle. "I am optimistic and I hope that Beto will be fit to play by Saturday but we have to wait at least 24 hours," Jones said.
The Portuguese players had a 90-minute practice session behind closed doors yesterday morning.
FRANCE: The 2000 champions are still fretting over the fitness of their captain Marcel Desailly just five days before starting the defence of their European title against England.
The experienced defender sustained a knee injury two weeks ago and missed the last two warm-up games against Andorra and Ukraine, with coach Jacques Santini opting for a central pairing of Lilian Thuram and Mikael Silvestre.
"Nobody can take anything for granted," Santini said. "There is not a player who can say for sure today that he is going to play against England. We will pick the players in the best shape on the day of the match. But Marcel is still our captain and Zinedine (Zidane) will wear the armband if Desailly is not playing." Desailly will end his international career after the European Championship. He has won a French record 115 caps since his debut in 1993, captaining the team over the last four years.
He turns 36 in September but the cornerstone of the victorious French campaigns at the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000 is no longer indispensable.
He still has a big influence on the squad, however, with his experience of big tournaments and Santini understands the importance of that. "Marcel took some time to talk to (striker) Louis Saha before the match," Santini said. "It's important the players get along fine. You need some mutual understanding off the field to play together."
