The Netherlands' Edgar Davids challenge for the ball in between two Czech players during a controversial Group D match. AP 
 
12일새벽(이하 한국시간) 네덜란드 암스테르담 아레나구장에서 열린 유럽 축구선수권대회 (EURO2000) 총 31경기중 4번째 대결. 

98프랑스월드컵 출전 멤버 대다수로 구성된 개최국 네덜란드는 로날드 데부르 (29·바르셀로나)가 후반 종료2분전 천금같은 페널티킥을 성공시켜, 체코를 1-0으로 제압하고 승점 3점을 챙겼다. 
 
‘죽음의 조’로 불리는 D조 첫경기에서 짜릿한 첫승을 올린 네덜란드는 프랑스가 덴마크에 3-0 완승을 거둬, 오는 25일 프랑스와의 예선 마지막 경기가 8강 진출을 위한 일대 혈전이 될 것으로 보인다. 

이날 아레나구장을 온통 오렌지색으로 뒤덮은 4만여 홈관중의 일방적 응원을 등에 업은 네덜란드는 전반내내 압도적인 경기를 펼쳤다. 
 
슈팅수 4-1 코너킥 5-1이 말해주듯 전반은 네덜란드의 일방적 경기. 다비드 셰도르프가 중원을 장악하고, 움직임이 활발한 공격수 베르캄프 클루이베르트에 찬스를 만들어 내는 공격적인 면모를 보였으나, 체코의 수비에 막혀 골로 연결시키지는 못했다. 

후반 시작하자마자 체코는 전반과는 정반대로 거세게 밀어부쳤다. 네드베트, 콜레르의 헤딩슛이 골대를 맞고 나오는 결정적 찬스를 맞기도 했다. 
 
무승부로 끝날 것으로 보인 후반43분 네덜란드는 교체멤버 오메르마스가 왼쪽돌파에 의한 센터링을 체코 수비수가 베르캄프를 잡아 댕겨 페널티킥을 이끌어냈다. 

체코는 호바네치감독(39)의 후반에 승부를 내겠다는 작전이 그대로 맞아 떨어진 경기였으나, 아깝게 패해 남은 2경기를 모두 이겨야 8강을 바라볼 수 있게 됐다. 
 
이날 승리한 네덜란드는 A매치(국제경기)에서 13번 만난 체코에 4승3무6패를 기록했다. 
  
Lucky Dutch  

Frank de Boer converted a penalty after his twin brother Ronald had been pulled down by Jiri Nemec in the penalty area. 

"We escaped lucky here," said Frank de Boer. "I've said it often, you really need luck in a tournament." 

The penalty conversion ended the Czechs amazing run of 10 wins in its last 10 European Championship games. 

The Czechs were furious the referee had awarded the spot kick for shirt pulling after dominating most of the second half. 

"I'm shocked and dismayed. The whole team is devastated. The referee should not be allowed to referee any more matches," Czech forward Jan Koller said of Italian referee Pierluigi Collina, who awarded the disputed penalty. 

The Czechs had relied on brilliant goalie Pavel Srnicek in the first half, before they changed from sturdy defense to flamboyant offense with stunning ease to send the favored Dutch reeling. 

"They turned the world upside down in the second half," De Boer said. 

Lazio Roma's Pavel Nedved masterminded the Czechs from midfield with both guile and brawn. Dutch midfield dynamo Edgar Davids failed to do likewise for the Dutch. 

Nedved was crying after the game. "The whole wide world saw that we were better than the Dutch. Now they have three points and we have none," he said. 

Within a furious few minutes before the hour mark, Nedved headed the ball against the inside post and Jan Koller headed against the bar, both times with Dutch goalie Edwin Van de Sar well beaten. 

Yet it all changed in the last minutes. 

France beat Denmark 3-0 in the other Group D game, dubbed the Group of Death. "It is important to get the first points under your belt," De Boer said. 

The Czech Republic showed from the start it was quite willing to roll back but would be no roll-over for the Dutch. 

With the 50,000-capacity Arena stadium bedecked in orange color heaving to the sounds of Dutch cheers, it would be an intimidating scene for any team. Patrick Kluivert and Dennis Bergkamp partnered up front made it even worse. 

That was counting without Czech goalie Pavel Srnicek. 

Within the first 17 minutes, the Sheffield Wednesday keeper made three sterling saves, which kept the Czechs in a game which so easily could have slipped away. 

First Srnicek grabbed a curling Bergkamp shot which came from behind one of his own defenders. Minutes later, he punched a 20 meter (yard) drive of Kluivert out of the corner, got up like a flash and threw himself in the path of Boudewijn Zenden who was ready to pounce the rebound home. 

It boosted Czech confidence and steadily frustrated the Dutch. The men in orange could lay siege to the Czech penalty area all they wanted, their opponents were happy to play ugly defense. 

After half-time, they proved they could play beautiful offense too. Led by a great Nedved, they turned the tables on the Dutch and were desperately unlucky not to get a goal in the first quarter after halftime. Karel Poborsky, Jan Koller and Pavel Nedved twice could have stunned the crowd. 

The towering Koller set up a smart one-two with Nedved and Edwin van de Sar was forced into a reflex save. 

But Van de Sar could do nothing when Nedved met a Jiri Nemec cross with a powerful header. The ball hit the inside post and danced on the line before a stunned Van de Sar was able to control it. 

Two minutes later in the 60th minute, Van de Sar was again well beaten but the header of Koller crashed onto the bar. 

The Dutch were suddenly all over the place, their cocky confidence nowhere in evidence. During that spell, Bergkamp and Kluivert were near non-existent. 

In the closing, both sides hung back, refusing to start their tournament with a loss. Then came the sudden penalty incident, with Nemec clearly getting hold of De Boer's shirt. 

Lineups: 

The Netherlands : Edwin Van Der Sar; Michael Reiziger, Jaap Stam (74, Bert Konterman), Frank De Boer; Boudewijn Zenden (78, Marc Overmars), Clarence Seedorf (57, Ronald de Boer) Giovanni Van Bronkhorst, Phillip Cocu, Edgar Davids; Patrick Kluivert, Dennis Bergkamp. 

Czech Republic: Pavel Srnicek Tomas Repka, Karel Rada, Petr Gabriel; Pavel Nedved, Radoslav Latal (70, Radek Bejbl), Jiri Nemec, Karel Poborsky, Tomas Rosicky; Jan Koller, Vladimir Smicer (83, Pavel Kuka).