World Cup champion Italy was drawn Sunday with France, the Netherlands and Romania in what appears to be the most difficult group for the 2008 European Championship, according to AP. Italy defeated France on penalty kicks in last year's World Cup final, then played the French twice in European Championship qualifying, losing 3-1 at Saint-Denis and drawing 0-0 in Milan. Group C will be based in Switzerland, and Italy and France will meet in their final first-round match, on June 17 in Zurich. «We didn't have an easy qualification and now we have a very difficult group,» Italy coach Roberto Donadoni said. «We were unfortunate in the draw, but I had a gut feeling this morning that it would turn out like this.» Italy and the Netherlands met in the Euro 2000 semifinals, with the Italians winning a penalty shootout after a 0-0 draw. Italy went on to lose to France in the final. France, which beat the Dutch team in a shootout after a 0-0 draw in the 1996 quarterfinals, must also meet Romania in qualifying for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. «I think there are coaches who are happier today than the four here (in Group C),» France coach Raymond Domenech said. «I would have preferred to avoid all of the other three teams in the group, but that's what we got and we have to live with it.» Netherlands coach Marco van Basten, whose team is struggling for form, also said it was not the draw he wanted. «A very tough group. Two World Cup finalists,» he said. «These are great teams, great players, teams with a lot of experience. It's going to be very difficult for us, we have to play Italy first, then France.» Defending champion Greece was drawn into Group D with Russia, Spain and Sweden, a group based in Austria. At Euro 2004 in Portugal, the Greeks drew 1-1 with Spain and lost 2-1 to Russia in group play, but beat all its other opponents on the way to a surprise title triumph. «It is certainly not an easy group,» Greece coach Otto Rehhagel said. «We must be careful against Sweden, which has one of the world's best forwards in Zlatan Ibrahimovic. «There's always lots of talk before games. I am a man of action. The most important thing is to have all players in good condition. As defending champions, we have an obligation to do well in the tournament.» Spain, which has only ever won the 1964 European Championship when it hosted the event, is also in a difficult group, according to its veteran coach Luis Aragones. «But there's nothing left to do but play,» he said. Co-host Switzerland, which plays all its group games in Basel, is in Group A with Turkey, Portugal and the Czech Republic. The Czechs, who open the tournament against the Swiss on June 7, will be favored to advance to the quarterfinals with Portugal. «It's a pretty unpredictable group,» Czech captain Tomas Rosicky said. «It's fine to open the tournament, but we're in a tough group.
