Let them off the leash

Jun 22 2008 Arthur Numan

SOME Euro 2008 stars have now been on the road together for four weeks and will be sick of the sight of each other.

Getting to the later stages of a tournament is brilliant and the ambition for every team - but also has a downside.

Players can be restless creatures and boredom soon sets in, often leading to silly pranks and fall-outs.

For example, during the France 98 World Cup some of the Holland squad went for an afternoon on the jet-skis.

I got a little carried away and was going at a fair speed when I pretended to head straight for Marc Overmars who had fallen into the water.

He was far from amused and I can understand why. It wasn't the cleverest thing to do but that's what can happen when you've been cooped up so long. To help avoid such incidents it is good for a coach to give players some free time and encourage them to do their own thing.

After we qualified for the quarter-finals in '98 Guus Hiddink gave all the lads the night off.

He knew a few would go for a drink and, not wanting us to go overboard, said there would be a double training session the next day. Some guys stayed together and others met up with friends and family from outside football.

I ended up in a disco in Monaco, had a couple of glasses of wine and the next thing I knew Whitney Houston walked in.

She had bodyguards with her but was in the mood to dance and we were all chuffed to meet her.

Patrick Kluivert tried to throw his best dance moves but wasn't a patch on Whitney!

We all had a good night and felt ready to focus on the rest of the tournament.

It was vital Hiddink trusted us. We're all professional and no-one was going to get drunk but the few hours to be your own boss was what we needed at that stage.

I don't know if the coaches will allow the same thing this time but I wouldn't be surprised if they did.

Gaffers still in the tournament must be pleased with their players because most sides have set out to attack and entertain.

Even the turgid Turkey v Croatia quarter-final exploded into life during a sensational last few minutes that saw the Turks again come back from the dead to go through.

The feedback I've had has been positive and every fan feels they have had value for money. There have been lots of goals and excitement plus a wee bit of controversy.

The football has been good and there haven't really been any one-sided games like we often see at the World Cup where it is open to more teams and a lot of them aren't fit to grace such a stage.

However, despite all the positives one or two countries did disappoint.

I said before a ball was kicked France lacked a leader. They need a new Zidane.

And it showed as they bowed out with a whimper. The French look a tired team devoid of inspiration and ideas. Thierry Henry didn't seem to be in the right frame of mind and that applies to many of his team-mates.

Midfield is where you can control the tempo of games yet France failed to assert their authority in all three group matches, amassing just one point.

In contrast Michael Ballack has looked the part for Germany.

The midfielder pulled the strings in the last-eight clash against Portugal on Thursday, dictating the pace of the game.

He also had Bastian Schweinsteiger in fine form. The Bayern Munich ace was criticised by German coach Joachim Low for his red card against Croatia but responded superbly by scoring the opener and creating the other two in the 3-2 win over Portugal.

I now fancy Germany to reach the final and it will take a special team to beat them.

They have the mentality and quality to win it. Low is an excellent coach who has kept things moving nicely after taking over from Jurgen Klinsmann.

I'm sure Germany will play a part in keeping us all entertained and if the final week is as good as the first two we're in for a treat.