Greece had already shown how strong its defensive game was in the qualifiers leading up to the final tournament, including a key victory away from home versus Spain in the summer of 2003. Anyone who thought Greece would be a pushover was simply not paying attention to what national team coach, Otto Rehhagel, was building (yes, Otto Rehhagel is the same manager who led Kaiserslautern to the German national championship on the same year they got promoted to the top division). Sure, the draw to Spain and defeat by the Russians proved that this team was not going to be a continental powerhouse, but we all knew the game is played one match at a time and that a one goal difference is enough to seal victory.