Otherwise, Sweden seemed content to keep close tabs on the tournament's joint-top scorer four-goal Ruud Van Nistelrooy.

The Dutch striker had his first clear chance immediately after the restart, when he put a header over the bar from Robben's cross.

That was the signal for a much livelier second half, with Sweden in particular pushing forward with more conviction.

With 56 minutes gone, striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic had a shot hacked off the line by Dutch midfielder Philip Cocu after a piece of sloppy defending by Jaap Stam had let him in.

Van Nistelrooy came close to the opener in the 62nd minute when he chested down a long ball from Clarence Seedorf and got in a shot that Isaksson managed to block with the rebound coming back off the Dutch striker and rolling just wide of the goal.

Four minutes later Stam then surged through the Swedish defence and planted a left-foot shot just wide of the post from 20 metres before Sweden midfielder Frederik Ljungberg turned on the edge of the box and fired just wide in the 74th minute.

The Netherlands then enjoyed a late spell of pressure with Van Nistelrooy's header and a shot from substitute Roy Makaay both just clearing the bar in stoppage time.

Three minutes into extra time Robben struck a dipping shot that deceived Isaksson, bounced off his body and hit the post before going off for a corner with Makaay lurking dangerously.

Seven minutes later Dutch midfielder Seedorf brought a fine save from Isaksson with a 20-metre drive and from the resulting cross Van Nistelrooy flashed a shot wide.

Sweden responded just before the end of the first period of extra-time when substitute Kim Kallstrom hit the side netting.

The Dutch began to pile on the pressure after the break and Seedorf forced Isaksson into a brilliant one-handed save with a curling right-foot free kick just outside the area.

In the 22nd minute of extra time Sweden striker Henrik Larsson turned inside the box only to see his rasping drive hit the top of the bar to the relief of the stranded Van der Sar.

Ljungberg also struck the woodwork when his right foot shot from just outside the area thumped against the base of the post. It was the last chance before the match went to penalties. —Reuters.

Beaten finalists at the 1996 European championships in England, the Czechs had to come from behind to win all three of their group D matches against Latvia, the Netherlands and Germany.

“We’ve always had to fight back, but now I hope we will be able to lead from the front,” said the dynamic Juventus midfielder, instantly recognisable by his bouncing blond locks and scuttling run.

Two goals in the last 17 minutes saw the Czechs edge Latvia 2-1 in their opening game before they stormed back from 0-2 down to snatch a thriller against the Dutch.

Six points from their first two matches ensured qualification and having clinched a last eight place coach Karel Bruckner made nine changes for the final match against Germany, Nedved one of those given a well-deserved rest.

Determined to maintain their flawless run, even a second-string Czech team proved too strong for the Germans and recovered from going a goal down to win 2-1, a result that sent Germany home after just three matches.

Nedved, a member of the team which lost to Germany at Wembley eight years ago, rejects suggestions that the Czechs should be seen as favourites having lost the last time they met the Danes in a 2001 World Cup qualifier.

“They like to attack like we do and will be a tough nut to crack,” added the Czech captain, known in Italy as `The Cannon’, because of his powerful shooting.

“We are a long way from thinking about the final. We’re only in the quarters. I would say it is about 50-50 as to who will go through.”

Nedved, the European Footballer of the Year and an inspirational figure for the Czechs, said he was glad to be facing the Danes rather than Italy, who finished on the same points as the Scandinavians in group C but were edged out on goals scored.

“It would not have been very nice for me to have to play against clubmates,” said the 31-year-old, who has three Serie A league winner’s medals. “I always said I didn’t want to have a quarterfinal match-up with Italy.”

Denmark coach Morten Olsen, a member of the Danish team that reached the semifinals of the 1984 European Championships, said his team were coming to the boil just at the right time.

“We seem to be reaching our peak and believe we can beat the Czech Republic, even though I consider them to be one of the favourites for the tournament now,” he said. The Danes were unbeaten in their group with draws against the Italians and Sweden and a 2-0 victory over Bulgaria.

Veteran Danish striker Ebbe Sand is recovering from a strained buttock muscle, but is expected to be available for selection. Peter Madsen is standing by should the Schalke 04 marksman fail to prove his fitness. — AFP

For many of the French squad the 0-1 loss, the biggest upset in the 44-year history of the competition, will mark the end of their international careers, with the average age of the team that faced Greece over 30.

Marcel Desailly, who has a French record of 116 caps, is retiring from internationals, while the likes of defenders Bixente Lizarazu and Lilian Thuram and goalkeeper Fabien Barthez are all the wrong side of 30 and are unlikely to play for their country again.

The 32-year-old Zidane, World Player of the Year, is also nearer the end of his career than the beginning, and while it is dangerous to write off one of the game’s greats, his poor showing against Greece was a surprise. Time catches up with even great players, and Zidane looked tired.

So did Henry, one of Europe’s most lethal marksmen. A long club season and an average tournament appeared to have sapped his energy.

Henry will certainly enjoy other good days and will soon be among the more senior players in a new French side which must emerge.

A new crop of players are ready and waiting, but it will take time for them to become the kind of outstanding team France have had for so long.

France are entering a period of transition which will start under a new coach, probably Jean Tigana, a member of the first great French side which won the 1984 European Champion-ship as the host nation. He has much work to do.

Jacques Santini, who announced before the tournament he was quitting to take over as manager of English Premier League Tottenham Hotspur, steadied the French ship after it hit the World Cup rocks under Roger Lemerre two years ago.

He steered them through their Euro 2004 qualifying group with an unblemished record of eight successive wins and a goal tally of 29-2.

They regained self-esteem after the World Cup by winning last year’s Confederations Cup and went for almost a year without conceding a goal in 10 matches. The defeat by Greece was their first in 21 games.

But while the statistics were impressive, some of the play was not.

The defence was creaking and Desailly, once such a cornerstone, shattered like a twig in the breeze against Croatia in the opening round at Euro 2004.

France were largely outplayed in their first match when they trailed England 0-1 going into stoppage time. Two goals from Zidane gave them a memorable victory but England had the better of the play for long periods.

Croatia nearly beat France in the second match before drawing 2-2, while Switzerland held France before Henry’s two late strikes sealed a 3-1 win.

They fully expected to beat Greece too, but never played well apart from a brief spell late in the match as they became the victims of the biggest-ever upset at the European Championship.

While Greece eye what would be remarkable place in the final, France are heading back to the land of the Eiffel Tower.

The French are no longer at the top looking down on the rest of the football world, however, the time for re-building has come. — Reuters 

The defeat signals the likely end of a generation for the French team, which has a slew of 30-something players, including defenders Marcel Desailly, Lilian Thuram and Bixente Lizarazu.

Slow and sullen throughout, captain Zidane failed to take charge of the defending champion and the Greeks made up for a lack of talent with something the silky smooth players from France sorely missed _ heart and commitment.

"We are all responsible for our elimination," said Zidane afterward.

"Too many technical mistakes and a lack of ideas in the last part of the game did not allow us to come back after a great goal," added France coach Jacques Santini, in what could be seen as criticism of his captain.

Greece made the difference in the 66th minute when striker Angelos Charisteas scored with a header from the center which gave goalie Fabien Barthez no chance.

Apart from Real Madrid's Zidane, Arsenal's Thierry Henry also had a lacklustre performance and France never came close to showing the form that allowed it to build a 22-game unbeaten streak, which was snapped Friday.

It was the second disastrous tournament in a row for France, which crashed out in the first round of the 2002 World Cup.

At world and European level, they could not defend their title. "Playing the defending champion always is an added boost for opponents," said Santini.

France came into Euro 2004 a troubled team. Santini had already said he would step down after the tournament to take on Tottenham Hotspur and it became increasingly clear that Desailly was only a shadow of his former imposing self.

Add the injury to midfield mainstay Patrick Vieira and it spelled big trouble for France.

After the demise of Desailly, Zidane, 32, was forced into the role of leader of Les Bleus and it never came easy. He saved France with two injury time goals against England for a 2-1 win, but failed badly on Friday.

During the first half, Zidane struggled along with his team against a Greece which had little more to offer than gritty determination.

In the stands, the adoration was immense. Cries of "Zizou, Zizou" went up and one woman had painted a prominent Zizou in the French colors on her uncovered waist.

During France's famous 1998 World Cup run, the captaincy was in the hands of Didier Deschamps, a dogged midfielder with few refined skills but a determination which fueled the whole team.

The bad times came in 1992, 1994 and 1998 when he lost three finals to Andre Agassi and twice to Pete Sampras.

The good times came in 2001 when he finally realised his lifelong dream of winning Wimbledon by defeating Australian Pat Rafter in an emotional five-setter.

He departed Wimbledon for the last time yesterday on a losing note, having little to offer against another Australian Lleyton Hewitt, other than the occasional trademark booming serve.

But the 32-year-old from the Adriatic coastal town of Split was in no mood for a funeral.

“Everything was perfect,” he told the last of his post-match press conferences, occasions that have become as exhuberant and unpredictable as his matches.

“The weather, the crowd, the court. I just enjoyed myself. I’m happy and I’m sad, I’m sad that I have to leave, but I’m happy that it’s no more practicing.

“I knew it was going to be the last one as soon as I came here, but I wanted to play on Centre Court and I wanted to show myself that I can still win matches.”

Showman to the last, Ivanisevic at the end of the Hewitt match donned a red-and-white chequered Croatian football strip with the No 10 on the back as he lapped up the adulation.

He was always a crowd-pleaser at the tradition-entrenched All England Club since he made his first appearance as a 16-year-old in 1988.

Ivanisevic wore his heart on his sleeve like few players before him, despairing and cursing the gods one moment, charming and wise-cracking the next.

He once made it to No 2 in the world rankings, and according to such a shrewd tennis commentator as Mats Wilander, he could have been even better had he not built his game solely around his extraordinary big, booming left-handed serve.

But for Ivanisevic it was less about bare results and more abut playing with panache and entertaining.

“I’m proud of everything I did in my career,” he said.

“I played with all the generations, you know, McEnroe, Connors, with these young guys, with Pete (Sampras), with Andre (Agassi). So it’s great.” What next then for the big man?

“I’m going home tomorrow and I don’t know what I will do next. Who knows?

“Maybe I become Davis Cup captain. I will play some exhibitions, senior tour, who knows. But right now I want to relax.

“When I wake up, no more therapy, no more exercises, no more painkillers, no more nothing. I just want to enjoy and be proud of myself, everything I did in the last 15 years.” It will be a well-merited retirement and tennis will be all the poorer for his departure. — AFP