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The eternal enigma -- which Yugoslavia will we see, the one that can almost contemptuously brush adversaries aside or a temperamentally suspect team that capitulates at the first sign of danger? That they have some of the most gifted players in Europe cannot be doubted, but whether they blend as a team is open to question. Certainly players like Predrag Mijatovic, Dejan Stankovic and Savo Milosevic, now with Real Zaragoza after a controversial stint at Aston Villa, have the skills to win any game on their own, yet nobody expects Yugoslavia to become champions of Europe. Since reaching the final of the first European Championship in 1960, the Yugoslavs have largely flattered to deceive, having missed four of the last five finals, albeit for differing reasons. Banned from the 1992 finals and the 1996 qualifying competition because of political upheavals, they returned at France 98 and reached the second round before bowing out to Holland. This time they will be keen not simply to make up the numbers, especially after qualifying from the toughest group at the expense of both Ireland and bitter rivals Croatia, whom they eliminated in a stormy final qualifier. Certainly they will be pleasing to the eye, but whether they can translate that into results is questionable. In their favor is that their opening game is against Slovenia. Win that and they will go into the Norway game full of confidence. CNNSI.com's Gabriele Marcotti: Yugoslavia is the usual mix of delightful talent and demented minds. It can beat just about anybody on the day, and players like Sinisa Mihailovic, Mijatovic and Stankovic can win games single-handedly. The problem is that this is a weary, aging team that is still forced to rely on a weary, aging (albeit legendary) playmaker such as 35 year old Dragan Stojkovic. It will be enough to go through to the quarterfinals, but after that, things will get real difficult. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Yugoslavia
