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Poland opened Euro 2012 with a 1-1 draw against Greece in a match they probably felt they could have one but in the end were lucky not to lose.  Poland dominated Greece in the first half but only managed one goal, which came from a 17th minute Robert Lewandowski header.

Towards the end of the first half Sokratis Papastathopoulos was sent off for a dubious second yellow card.

The tactical changes Fernando Santos made at half time closed the gaps in defense and made them look much more dangerous going forward, even with only 10 men on the field.  Poland could not adapt and Dimitris Salpingidis tied the game in the 51st minute.

Things went from bad to worse for Poland as in the 69th minute Salpingidis was brought down by Wojciech Szczesny in the box.  It was a straight red for the Polish keeper and a penalty for Greece.  Thankfully Szcz?sny's replacement Przemyslaw Tyton saved the spot kick from Giorgos Karagounis.

Although Poland avoided defeat in the opening match it is rather worrying that what looked like a very potent attack in the first half was so easily shut down even with a man advantage.  The meeting on Tuesday against powerful Russia is looking rather ominous.


For more tactical analysis on the match check out Zonal Marking.