Two weeks to Euro kick-off, battle lines drawn

While for beaten Champions League finalist Chelsea’s Claude Makelele, Ricardo Carvalho, Michael Ballack, Florent Malouda, Nicolas Anelka and Petr Cech the tournament represents a chance of wiping away the tears of that drama-laden penalty shoot-out defeat.

France manager Raymond Domenech will be relieved to hear that full-back Evra resisted the temptation to join the rest of his celebrating United colleagues in painting Moscow’s Red Square even redder after Wednesday night’s heroics.

“I didn’t really party a lot because I need to go with the national team. I don’t drink alcohol anyway,” said the French defender whose job it will be to stop the attacks of France’s Group C rivals’ Italy, The Netherlands and Romania in what has been classed the mother of all groups of death.

Germany manager Joachim Loew has granted Ballack some time out with the Chelsea midfielder joining up with the rest of the Mannschaft on Monday.

Germany have a friendly against Belarus on Tuesday. It may be 14 days until the first football is kicked in anger but the cold war has well and truly started with Dutch coach Marco van Basten trying to put the heat on two of the pre-tournament favourites – Italy and France.

Van Basten, whose side have an opening match baptism of fire against World Cup winners Italy in Berne on June 9, said: “France (beaten World Cup finalists) and Italy are undoubtedly even stronger than in 2006.

“These two sides feature two groups of players which haven’t changed much and so are therefore even more experienced. France have really impressed me in terms of the level of their physical potential. They’re really really powerful.”

Turning to the Azzurri the man who will forever be associated with the wonder goal that helped Holland to the 1988 title said: “Italy are no more the team to play with their backs to the wall before scoring on the counter attack. Nowadays they’ve got the conquering spirit.” Van Basten has his fair share of injury worries with Arsenal striker Robin van Persie training apart from the rest of the squad after knee and thigh injuries.

“Robin is a very special player,” said the coach. We will be taking him with us even if he is a doubt for the Italy game. We do not want to take risks with van Persie.” Van Basten is not the only Euro manager paying visits to the sick bay.

Switzerland’s preparations for instance have been hit by the news that defender Steve von Bergen will miss the entire competition after breaking a bone in his right hand.

The 24-year-old is the third member of Jakob ‘Kobi’ Kuhn’s side to limp out after goalkeeper Fabio Coltorti was sent home suffering from post-viral fatigue and striker Blaise Kufo was diagnosed with a torn groin muscle.

Over with Italy AC Milan’s World Cup winning right-back Massimo Oddo expressed “bitterness and disappointment” after being left out of Roberto Donadoni’s provisional squad.

Donadoni blamed knee surgery the player underwent three weeks ago but Oddo claimed that was just an excuse. “After putting my own interests aside, and putting in so much effort during two years of hard work together with my team-mates, which led to our qualification, it ends with this exclusion.

“It burns me up inside because I honestly did not expect it.” Oddo is not the only Italian player to have taken exception to Donadoni’s selection policy as his veteran AC Milan team-mate Filippo Inzaghi has called on the manager to give him an explanation for his absence from the provisional 24-man squad.

Turkey and 2004 runners-up Portugal will be the first teams to arrive for the championships on June 1. Shock 2004 winners Greece have issued a bullish statement of intent insisting their win four years ago was no fluke.

“Our philosophy is the same as in 2004. We are a team that has gained the respect of Europe,” said striker Angelos Charisteas, who scored the winning goal in the final against Portugal.

“Europe has a big question as to if we will have the same luck as in 2004 in Portugal. We will show Europe with our progress. I hope to be able to score many goals, but without the help of my team-mates this is not possible.”