Better late than never

Van Nistelrooy spoils German celebration with late equalizer

Ruud van Nistelrooy (center) found the going tough against a German defense that often surrounded the Dutch threat with five defenders during Tuesday's 1-1 draw. Jamie McDonald/Getty Images Match stats GERMANY NETHERLANDS 1 Goals 1 1 Halftime score 0 5 Corners 7 0 Offsides 0 16 Fouls 18 2 Yellow cards 2 0 Red cards 0 18 Free kicks 16 9 Shots off target 8 0 Shot hit post/bar 0 5 Saves by goalkeeper 4 0 Goalline clearances 0 Referee: Anders Frisk (Sweden) Venue: Porto, Dragao Stadium Attendance: 46,636

PORTO, Portugal (AP) -- Ruud van Nistelrooy rescued the Netherlands with an acrobatic goal nine minutes from the end on Tuesday to give his team a 1-1 draw with archrival Germany in their opening Euro 2004 Group D match.

Andy van der Meyde won the ball near the right corner and sent a perfect cross into the box, where Van Nistelrooy, with his back to goal, connected with his right foot to put the ball behind German 'keeper Oliver Kahn.

Germany took a 1-0 lead in the 30th on Torsten Frings' angled free kick, which flew through the six-meter box and went in off the post.

"When you are up for so long, the draw is frustrating, especially since we played very well in the first half and had the Dutch under control," said Germany coach Rudi Voeller, whose team kept its record perfect of never losing an opening match in the European championship.

"We retreated a little bit too far back in the second half. But I must compliment my team, this is the stuff a tournament team is made of. We came out with a lot of confidence and in the end all that was missing was another goal."

The Czech Republic rallied to defeat Latvia 2-1 in Tuesday's other Group D match to go top of the group.

Frings' goal -- an angled 30-meter (yard) free kick -- bounced off the ground in front of Dutch 'keeper Edwin van der Sar and went into the net off the far post. Van der Sar seemed to lose sight of the curling shot as Dutch and German players rushed into the area.

The free kick was set up when Dutch captain Phillip Cocu was shown a yellow card for needlessly upending Germany's Philipp Lahm.

The Netherlands had a chance to win the game in the 86th through Cocu's powerful header from a corner but Kahn punched it away.

The Dutch comeback in the final 10 minutes went contrary to the other 80 in which Germany -- a three-time European champion -- was almost always in control following a spotty series of results leading up to the championship.

Substitute Fabian Ernst, shortly after coming on, carelessly allowed himself to be robbed of the ball, leading to the Dutch goal.

"It was an unlucky loss of possession in the corner. Van Nistelrooy made a super shot," said Kahn, who turned 35 on Tuesday.

"In the first half, it was our best game in a long time. We can be happy with our performance as team. Only a second goal was missing."

The Germans came out aggressively, using a crowded midfield to stifle the Dutch game, and produced the kind of performance that allowed them to reach the final of the 2002 World Cup.

The teams shared possession in the first 20 minutes, an open spell in which neither side threatened the other's goal.

Germany looked most threatening in the 23rd when Kuranyi drove a shot from 25 meters (yards) that van der Sar leaped high to tip over the crossbar. Seconds later, defender Christian Woerns bounced a close-in header off the turf and over the bar.

Germany was taking the play from the Dutch midway through the half, and the goal seemed to give it even more confidence. Kahn had little to do in the first half.

The best chance for the Netherlands came in the 42nd minute when Rafael van der Vaart turned and sent a low, left-footed shot just inches wide of the far post after collecting a through ball from Edgar Davids.

The Dutch opened with two changes in the second half -- Wesley Sneijder for Edgar Davids and Marc Overmars for Boudewijn Zenden.

They tried to spread play out, particularly from the left side with Overmars. He got off a blistering shot from 20 meters (yards) in the 74th that Kahn punched away. The shot came as the Dutch sent on striker Pierre van Hooijdonk for extra punch and his size and power in the air shook the German defense late in the game. It was Hooijdonk who forced Ernst into the error before the Dutch scored.

"The mistake ruined our game," said German striker Kevin Kuranyi.

Late Dutch goal was annoying, says Voeller

PORTO (Reuters) -- Germany players and coach Rudi Voeller felt they had let slip a deserved victory after Dutch striker Ruud van Nistelrooy scored a late equaliser to grab a 1-1 Euro 2004 draw on Tuesday.

Voeller said: "It's a bit annoying. We should have added another one after leading 1-0 but nevertheless compliments to my team.

"We can live with it even if it was a little bit bitter at the end. We didn't lose anything but we didn't win anything either.

"The last game against the Czechs will the knockout game for us. We had to go out bravely today -- we are Germany, we are World Cup finalists -- and we succeeded over long stretches of the game."

"We had the Dutch where we wanted them and then out of the blue the equaliser -- it was a great finish," defender Dietmar Hamann said."If you give Van Nistelrooy half a yard in the box he's going to score.

"We would have taken 1-1 before the kickoff but the way it turned out I think we can call ourselves a little unlucky. It was probably a fair result but I think we should have won."

Van Nistelrooy scored in the 81st minute after the Germans deservedly led through Torsten Frings's 30th-minute free kick.

Germany captain and goalkeeper Oliver Kahn said his side had played their best match for a long time.

"But you must maintain such a level for the full 90 minutes and the Dutch built up real pressure and they got their goal.

"This group will remain open until the last minute." Earlier the Czech Republic beat debutants Latvia 2-1 in Group D.

Michael Ballack said Germany had started the tournament well despite doubts at home about their ability.

"We led for a long time and therefore we are a bit disappointed at the end. But it's probably a fair result. But we have build up a lot of self-belief with our display." Germany play Latvia next.

Van Nistelrooy rescues the Netherlands

PORTO, Portugal (AP) -- Dutch coach Dick Advocaat's bet on Ruud van Nistelrooy paid off.

The Manchester United's goal against Germany with nine minutes left to play gave the Netherlands a 1-1 draw in its opening Group D match at Euro 2004.

"A defeat would have been disastrous for us," Van Nistelrooy said afterward. Now, "We're still alive."

Last week, Advocaat named the Manchester United star as his sole starting striker for the tournament, inviting criticism for benching other big names like Patrick Kluivert and Roy Makaay.

"We can debate the merits of which striker we should play until we're blue in the face, but in the end you have to make a choice," Advocaat said then.

The goal left little doubt that Advocaat made the right choice, even if other parts of the Dutch game looked out of kilter.

Winger Andy Van der Meyde won the ball near the right corner and sent it into the box, where Van Nistelrooy, falling, connected with his right foot and put the ball behind German 'keeper Oliver Kahn.

"It was an unlucky loss of possession in the corner. Van Nistelrooy made a super shot," Kahn said.

But Advocaat said the goal was deserved after he juiced up the Dutch attack.

"You have to take more risks once you're behind, and that's why I put two players up front to give us more attacking impulse.

"It was a good ball by Van Nistelrooy, and the goal was deserved," said a satisfied Advocaat.

The Dutch play the Czech Republic next in Group D. The Czechs rallied to defeat Latvia 2-1 in Tuesday's other group game to go top. In qualifying for the tournament, the Czechs defeated the Dutch 3-1.

"We watched them (the Czechs) today," the Manchester United striker said.

"They are also a tough opponent, but I think the equalizer means we finished on a high and we can look on the next match with a good feeling."

Voeller looks on bright side of Dutch draw

PORTO (Reuters) -- Coach Rudi Voeller was the happiest man in the German dressing room after his side's 1-1 draw with the Netherlands in their opening Euro 2004 Group D game on Tuesday.

"There was tremendous disappointment in the locker room but I think the feeling will prevail that a draw was fair," Voeller said after Ruud van Nistelrooy struck nine minutes from time to cancel out Torsten Frings's 30th-minute free kick.

"In a way a draw is a good thing because it prevents the kind of complacency that settles in when you win clearly."

Germany went into the tournament in desperate form following a 5-1 defeat by Romania and a 2-0 home loss to Hungary.

Their performance in their Group D opener, particularly in the opening 45 minutes, was more reminiscent of their confident run to the 2002 World Cup final.

"We played very well in the first half and deserved to go into the lead," Voeller said.

"I think a draw is a fair result, though, because the Dutch did step up a gear in the second half."

Germany next face Latvia, who lost 2-1 to the Czech Republic on Tuesday, and the team will go into that game with renewed confidence.

"It was tough for both sides because we had both struggled in the warm-up to the tournament," said Michael Ballack, named man of the match after a typically bustling performance in midfield.

"I think in a way both teams rehabilitated themselves tonight," said Ballack. "We didn't know exactly where we stood but now we can be positive going into the next game.

"This is a cause for confidence. In the last month we kept losing against great teams but we proved tonight we can hold our own against a top team."

Dutch, German fans take heart from draw

PORTO (Reuters) -- Dutch and German fans filed out of the Dragao stadium more restrained than they went in but thankful for a 1-1 draw in their teams' opening Euro 2004 clash.

"It's a fair enough result. I guess both sides can live with it," Ralf Huep, a Frankfurt financier, said after watching goals from compatriot Torsten Frings and Dutchman Ruud van Nistelrooy.

For Hessel Roorda from Utrecht Tuesday's draw was a blessing in more ways than one. His girlfriend Nicola Otto is German. "At least we can still sleep in the same bed tonight," he joked.

The Dutch were favourites going into the match but a solid first-half German performance saw them ahead at the break.

"I'm relieved. We were expecting to win before the game so I do feel a little bit let down. But actually I'm just happy they made it 1-1 in the second half," said relieved Dutchwoman Lisbeth Janssens, an administrator from Roermond.

The rivalry is as much about history as soccer and Dutch fans have never quite forgiven their neighbours for inflicting a 2-1 defeat on their team in the 1974 World Cup final.

BETTER THAN SEX

One Dutch fan said before the game that beating the Germans was "better than sex." With that sort of fervour, many Germans followers were grateful for the point.

"I think it was a deserved tie. Germany played a bit better and Holland capitalised on their only chance of the game. But we were the underdogs going into the game so we're fairly pleased with the result," said Matthias Pilz, a Hamburg businessman.

The atmosphere in Porto and inside the stadium was electric, with the Germans heavily outnumbered but managing to match the mob of orange-clad Dutch fans in the volume stakes.

"They had three times as many fans as us but we made more noise," said Jo Kahn, a 22-year-old Berlin student.

Visiting fans from elsewhere were certainly impressed.

"This is my first time at a European soccer game and the atmosphere was just great," said Todd Katzenstein, a businessman from Los Angeles.

"We took a whole lot of pictures of the dressed-up Dutch fans. We only see sights like this at Halloween," he added.

Earlier, the centre of Porto and the road to the stadium had been turned into an 'Oranjefest'. Locals stared in amazement at the Netherlands's band of merry men sporting orange beards and wearing Dutch milkmaid hats with orange pigtails.

Germany cheers best performance for some time

BERLIN (Reuters) -- Germans cheered their team's best performance for years while authorities were hopeful there would be no trouble after the 1-1 Euro 2004 draw with arch-rivals the Netherlands in Portugal on Tuesday.

"I hope the German and Dutch fans will be able to celebrate this together," Interior Minister Otto Schily told German television.

There had been bad blood between the two neighbours before the Group D match. Tensions were exacerbated after Dutch striker Ruud van Nistelrooy, who scored a late equaliser for his side, was attacked in the German media for stirring up the ghosts of World War Two.

But in Berlin, small groups of dozens of Dutch fans clad in bright orange shirts watched the match with some 5,000 German supporters in the centre of Berlin and received nothing more than amused smiles when they cheered the late Dutch equaliser.

"There weren't any problems at all," a young Dutch fan told German television. "It was a good feeling to watch the match here with so many Germans. It was cool. They were nice to us."

Heineken hats confiscated, Dutch fans unhappy

PORTO (Reuters) -- Dutch fans returned bare-headed to their hotels after their Heineken horn hats were confiscated during the Euro 2004 game with Germany on Tuesday.

"They confiscated our 'roeptoeters'," said one Oranje fan as he left the Dragao stadium following the 1-1 draw.

The orange, red, white and blue triangular hats, with Heineken printed down the side and a handle, double as loud-hailers as demonstrated by fans who sneaked theirs under their seats.

"Our Heineken hats were taken away. I think it was something to do with Carlsberg," said Hessel Roorda, an IT consultant from Leusden.

Carlsberg is one of the official sponsors of Euro 2004.

"I think it would be because of the sponsorship. If the staff bring a bottle of water in, they have to take the label off if it's not one of the sponsors'," said one match assistant.

Summary

Germany 1 Netherlands 1 -- result

European Championship, Group D

Scorers:

Germany -- Torsten Frings 30

Netherlands -- Ruud van Nistelrooy 81

Halftime: 1-0; Attendance: 46,636

Teams:

Germany: (4-5-1): 1-Oliver Kahn (captain); 3-Arne Friedrich, 4-Christian Woerns, 5-Jens Nowotny, 21-Philipp Lahm; 19-Bernd Schneider (7-Bastian Schweinsteiger 68), 6-Frank Baumann, 8-Dietmar Hamann, 13-Michael Ballack, 22-Torsten Frings (18-Fabian Ernst 79); 10-Kevin Kuranyi (9-Fredi Bobic 85).

Netherlands (4-3-3): 1-Edwin van der Sar; 18-Johnny Heitinga (17-Pierre van Hooijdonk 74), 4-Wilfred Bouma, 3-Jaap Stam, 5-Giovanni van Bronckhorst; 8-Edgar Davids (14-Wesley Sneijder 46), 6-Philip Cocu (captain), 11-Rafael van der Vaart, 22-Boudewijn Zenden (16-Marc Overmars 46); 7-Andy van der Meyde, 10-Ruud van Nistelrooy.

Referee: Anders Frisk (Sweden)

Linesmen: Kenneth Petersson (Sweden), Peter Ekstrom (Sweden)

Match Highlights

PORTO, Portugal (Reuters) -- Highlights of the Euro 2004 Group D match between Germany and Netherlands on Tuesday:

2 -- Netherlands midfielder Phillip Cocu plays a delightful ball over the German defence for Ruud van Nistelrooy but the striker fails to convert the chance from six metres.

12 -- YELLOW CARD. Germany's lone striker Kevin Kuranyi is booked for deliberate handball after raising his arm inside the Dutch penalty area as he challenged keeper Edwin van der Sar.

21 -- Germany defender Christian Woerns hits a weak low shot that is easily saved by Van der Sar after a free kick from Bernd Schneider by the corner flag on the left.

23 -- Kuranyi tests Van der Sar with a fierce right-foot angled shot from outside the penalty area on the right which the Dutch keeper acrobatically turns over the crossbar.

24 -- Woerns connects with a corner but his downward header bounces off the ground and over the bar.

29 -- YELLOW CARD. Cocu booked for a foul on Germany's left back Philipp Lahm.

30 -- GOAL. GERMANY 1 NETHERLANDS 0. Torsten Frings's angled right-foot free kick from the left clears everyone and finds its way into the net by the far post past the diving Van der Sar.

42 -- Dutch midfielder Rafael van der Vaart strikes a left-foot cross shot just wide of the far post with Germany keeper Oliver Kahn stranded.

HALFTIME. GERMANY 1 NETHERLANDS 0.

46 -- SUBSTITUTIONS. Netherlands left winger Marc Overmars replaces Boudewijn Zenden and Wesley Sneijeder comes on for Edgar Davids in the centre of the Dutch midfield.

53 -- Germany playmaker Michael Ballack fires a left-foot shot wide from the edge of the penalty area.

53 -- Kuranyi just fails to connect with a looping right-wing cross from Bernd Schneider inside the six metre box.

68 -- SUBSTITUTION. Germany's Bastian Schweinsteiger replaces Schneider on the right side of midfield.

70 -- Schweinsteiger breaks down the right and fires in a shot from outside the penalty area that is blocked by Giovanni van Bronckhorst.

73 -- YELLOW CARD. Netherlands's central defender Jaap Stam brings down Ballack from behind as the Dutchman scrambles back after giving away possession near the halfway line.

74 -- SUBSTITUTION. Dutch striker Pierre van Hooijdonk replaces right back Johnny Heitinga.

74 -- Kahn, celebrating his 35th birthday, makes a brilliant full-length save to turn aside a powerful right-foot shot struck by Overmars from just outside the area.

79 -- SUBSTITUTION. Goalscorer Frings replaced by Fabian Ernst on the left side of midfield.

81 -- GOAL. GERMANY 1 NETHERLANDS 1. Van Nistelrooy equalises after acrobatically turning the ball into the net with his right foot at the near post from an Andy van der Meyde cross.

85 -- SUBSTITUTION. Kuranyi replaced by Fredi Bobic up front.

86 -- Close-range header from Cocu well saved by Kahn.

89 -- Schweinsteiger drives a fierce shot just wide of the post after being fed by fellow substitute Bobic.

90 + 1 -- YELLOW CARD. Ballack is booked for arguing with the referee as Germany try to set up a wall to defend a free kick.

90 + 2 Ballack responds by firing in a shot from the edge of the area that is deflected over the bar by a Dutch defender.

FULLTIME. GERMANY 1 NETHERLANDS 1.

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