MATCH 16 REVIEW : NEDVED LEADS CZECH CHARGE

Top of the group
But the Czechs are through as group winners to face the runners-up in Group C at the Estádio do Dragão in Porto a week tomorrow. On this form it will take a fine team to stop them emulating the success of the former Czechoslovakia in 1976, and going one step further than they went eight years ago.

Nedved promptings
Pavel Nedved, the European Footballer of the Year, was inspirational, while all around him was accurate short passing and incisive running from the likes of Tomáš Rosický, Baroš and the veteran Karel Poborskyý like Nedved a survivor of the 1996 team that reached the final.

'Fantastic match'
Nedved, elected Carlsberg Man of the Match, said: "It was a fantastic game, a fantastic evening and a fantastic match. We deserved to win. We slept again at the beginning, as against Latvia, and coming from behind took a lot of energy. The difference was that the Netherlands played offensively so the fans saw a great game. But it's only the first step.

'Amazing fans'
"And don’t forget our amazing fans. They were in the minority but they were great. I am sure that our coach will field an effective lineup so now we have to fully concentrate on the forthcoming match against Germany."

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