'Loosers' have no hiding place in modern sport

At the stroke of midnight, as the demons from sleepsville begin their march, soccer fans in the country will temporarily transform into either Greek or Portuguese nationals.
For all the others, who''ve been sleeping since June 12, it might look and feel like the beginning of Euro 2004 all over again. There would, of course, be one minor difference as the two teams now clash for Europe''s most coveted silverware: unlike on the opening day, this will not be a contest between supposedly unequal teams.
Portugal will not behave like they''re doing a big favour by being on the same field with Greece again.They will be wary and probably a little angry too; they will guard their citadel more diligently and try and take control of the midfield.
Greece will persist with the same tactics, with just a hint of innovation. They will mark Ronaldo and Figo zealously, frustrate the entire team and nation with their tough, physical game; they will hustle until Portugal''s frustration turns into desperation and desperation into panic. And then, they will start hunting for that momentary lapse of reason that had earlier consumed France, Czech Republic and so many mega stars.
Scolari will prepare his strategy with this on his mind. He understands the importance of an early strike, and if that doesn''t materialise, also the virtues of patience and calm. He will also watch Greece''s match with Russia, which is the only one that they have lost till now, very, very carefully.
For Greece, ironically, the man who started it all with a brilliant goal, Georgios Karagounis, will be missing with a couple of yellow cards. Quite coincidentally, the inspirational midfielder had sat out the game against Russia too. Is the answer hidden somewhere in this Greek riddle?
Whoever wins, for over 25 days, fans across the world celebrated or grieved their team''s victory or defeat. In India, where soccer is still a mirage, fans could only marvel at the passion of lesser-known players or scoff at the theatrics of bigger stars.
The mornings were spent arguing over the missed chances, the foolishness of a few coaches and the brilliance of some others. Some things clearly don''t change: soccer or cricket, if a move works it''s a touch of genius; if it fails it''s a moronic blunder.
The Indian cricketers fuss over even one negative word. Wonder how they would behave if they were called the idiots of the continent as the German team was called? Wonder what they would do if they were labelled good-for-nothing millionaires?
Clearly, there is no place for losers anymore in modern sport. Expectations of each nation have increased exponentially and fans have become much more demanding and ruthless. Coaches are venerated if they win and vandalised if they don''t; players are forsaken for a tiny error while Beckham doesn''t need to do anything special to get his portrait defaced. It''s not sport as we used to know earlier anymore.