Euro 2008 Live Blog: Switzerland v Czech Republic

Switzerland 0-1 Czech Republic (Sverkos 70) - FT

Teams:

Switzerland: Benaglio, Lichtsteiner, Muller, Senderos, Magnin, Behrami, Inler, Gelson, Barnetta, Frei, Streller. Subs: Zuberbuhler, Jakupovic, Djourou, Huggel, Cabanas, Yakin, Derdiyok, Grichting, Gygax, Spycher, Vonlanthen, Degen.

Czech Republic: Cech, Jankulovski, Rozehnal, Ujfalusi, Grygera, Plasil, Polak, Galasek, Jarolim, Sionko, Koller. Subs: Blazek, Zitka, Kovac, Fenin, Sverkos, Vlcek, Pospech, Kadlec, Baros, Matejovsky, Sivok, Skacel.

18:53: Switzerland 0-1 Czech Republic FT

18:52: Another big handball shout in the Czech penalty area. Again it wasn't given.

18:48: Three added minutes.

18:46: Really don't see the Swiss getting one - they have not shown they have that extra bit of quality needed.

18:44: Jarolim off to be replaced by Kovac.

18:40: Subs: Sionko off for Vlcek on for the Czech's. Behrami off for Derdiyok for the Swiss.

18:38: The Swiss hit the bar and have a shot saved and they have a huge penalty appeal. A dramatic ten seconds bt it's still 1-0 to the Czech's.

18:33: Vonlanthen on for Lichtsteiner. I once signed Vonlanthen for Newport IoW in FM2005 and he was dire. He's already been booked before I've typed that he'd come on - good start for him...

18:28: GOAL: Sverkos 70 - The Sub scores for the Czech's after a half cleared corner. The ball was dinked back over the top and he broke the offside trap before stabbing home from the edge of the box.

18:25: The difference between a good team and a great team... - Neil H

18:24: Yakin has to score - end of - he doesn't.

18:18: From the free kick Sionko misses a guilt-edged opportunity. An absolute peach of a cross but the Czech striker seems to bottle the header. The cross was screaming to be nutted home but no-one obliged.

18:17: First yellow of Euro 2008 - Magnin the Swiss Left Back.

18:13: The Swiss have really started the second half positively. They've forced the Czech's into a substitution. Koller off and Sverkos is on.

18:09: Gelson is free but Yakin takes twenty minutes to feed him in and subsequently the midfielder is offside when the ball finally reaches him.

18:07: I know Cech doesn't like these new balls but really. Free kick to the Swiss in a good position. Yakin fires over.

18:03: Yakin on for Frei and we are underway.

17:48: 0-0 HT

17:47: Frei is done - the Swiss captain is probably out of the rest of the tournament. You gotta feel for him.

17:44: Frei looks injured, his knee is not in a pretty state.

17:41: First real chance for the Czech's - Sionko was played in, if he'd dummied the ball the runner was in with a free shot on goal from 12 yards - he was unable to do so though.

17:37: Yet again it is Switzerland who have the chance. A mistake by the Czech's and the Swiss were in. Frei again went head down and had a shot from 25 odd yards. Cech makes a good save but he has men free to his left. Should've done better.

17:34: Not much has happened recently but the game is still interesting enough.

17:22: The Swiss should be ahead. A punt downfield is allowed to bounce and Frei was in. Cech makes a good save but a player of Frei's ability should put the ball in the back of the net.

17:20: More good play by the Swiss, this time it was Inler, but his touch was heavy.

17:19: If Senderos can play for Switzerland so could I (well if I was Swiss obviously...)

17:17: Behrami has a dig. He looks like a player. The football is moving about like anything, Mark Bright says it looks one of those cheap footballs you buy at the petrol station - a fair assessment.

17:13: Free kick to the Czechs for a foot up. The referees have been told to be rather strict in this tournament, it'll be interesting to see how it shakes out.

17:11: Ten minutes gone and this game hasn't been too bad so far I must say. The Swiss look a lot better than advertised.

17:04: The first chance falls to the Swiss. Frei drags one wide when he had a man on the overlap. Was actually a better chance than it first seemed.

17:02: 2-0 Czechs - Neil H via the medium of Windows Live Messenger.

17:01: We are off.

17:01: Our referee is an Italian - just like in Euro 2004

16:59: Prediction: Switzerland 1-1 Czech Republic

16:58: We have national anthems!

16:54: 46 players on show played in the Premiership at some point last season. Not bad I say but one of them was Milan Baros...(should I just let my hatred go?)

16:47: The ad on the right hand side is for DatingDirect.com - are Google trying to tell me something? If anyone reading is single and want to meet up with a guy who'll watch every Euro 2008 game and doesn't have much of a life then please get in touch. I'm 24, based in Aldershot, love sport and am not enjoying the Opening Ceremony. You can use the 'contact us' section at the bottom of the page - I won't hold my breath though...

16:45: Motty is joined by Mark Bright for the opening game. Interesting. I wonder where Lawro is?

16:44: No-one.

16:41: The Opening Ceremony starts - who gives a damn?

16:39: If you want to take part in the live blog then leave comments for us on the forum. We'll use the best ones throughout the blog.

16:38: Gordon Strachan & Ray Stubbs on the touchline in Basel. Wonder who the wee man is looking at to sign for Celtic?

16:35: Alan Hansen, Alan Shearer and Martin O'Neill in the studio - clearly BBC's top line-up. Signing M'ON was a terrific move - he is quite a pundit.

16:33: Andy Gray says that if Fernando Torres turns up then it may well be Spain's year - will these people ever learn not to trust Spain?

16:32: I am informed that none other than Andy Gray is in the studio for ESPN in Bristol, CN. That is quite a move for him and exciting for our American readers who'll get to listen to the #2 pundit in the game (behind Alan Hansen).

16:30: So here we go - game one of 31 and it is the BBC who lead us into the tournament. Gary Lineker tells us the Beeb are going to be based in Vienna. The title sequence and music is vastly disappointing.