YEARENDER-Greece and Porto successes make 2004 memorable
2081
Greece&#39;s extraordinary success at Euro 2004 and Porto&#39;s victory in the Champions League final brought romanticism back to international soccer in a landmark year for the sport in 2004.
22831
The contrast could hardly be more marked. As Jose Mourinho called Chelsea&#39;s 3-0 Champions League win over Paris St-Germain &quot;perfect&quot;, Porto, who the Portuguese led to Champions League
168205
Newcastle won 4-0 at Sochaux in European soccer&#39;s UEFA Cup to advance to the round of 32, while Sporting Lisbon, Schalke and Dnipro also progressed.
652744
Olympics chief Jacques Rogge heaped praise on Greek organisers and declared the Athens Games an all-round success. Television ratings are 15% up from the 2000 Games in Sydney, while ticket sales have topped figures from the Seoul and Barcelona Olympics.
52915
Steve McClaren's England coaching debut was a success, with Peter Crouch scoring twice in a 4-0 win over European champion Greece on Wednesday.
483290
YOKOHAMA - European champions Porto defeated South American Libertadores Cup winners Once Caldas of Colombia 8-7 on penalties to win the 25th and final Toyota Cup in Yokohama on Sunday.
610551
In 2000, Greece brought home 13 medals. The Greek Olympic Committee hopes to double that number.
351019
Their success at the Games could be a catalyst for change in Greece.
676535
Vassilis Spanoulis hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer yesterday to lead Greece past Croatia, 81-78, at the European Championship in Madrid.In other games, JosÃ© Calderon scored 17 points to lift Spain past Russia, 81-69, and into the quarterfinals, and Joao Gomes had 23 points and 11 rebounds to help Portugal beat Israel, 94-85.With the score 78-78, Spanoulis, the a Houston Rockets guard, dribbled the length of the court and made a wide-open shot from nearly three feet behind the line.
66428
PARIS: AC Milan&#39;s Ukrainian striker Andriy Shevchenko, right, was last night named European footballer of the year for 2004. The 28-year-old becomes the third Ukrainian to win the award after Oleg Blockhin
515471
At the end of a year when European soccer&#39;s major titles were won by outsiders and the Copa America by an R-less Brazil, naming the best player is tougher than usual.
265869
European champion FC Porto won the Toyota Cup on Sunday, defeating Colombia's Once Caldas 8-7 in a penalty-kick shootout in a game between the top club teams from Europe and South America.
83423
Portugal waited 40 years to once again get beyond the first round of the World Cup.
80
European papers celebrated the Athens 2004 Olympics and also had a few words to say about the doping cases that marred the games. &quot;The cynics were wrong,&quot; declared London&#39;s The Independent.
368791
Albania stunned Euro 2004 winners Greece with two goals in the first 10 minutes of their World Cup qualifier on Saturday and then hung on to win 2-1 and send their fans into a frenzy as they celebrated with fireworks.
430390
PARIS  - AC Milan&#39;s Ukrainian striker Andriy Shevchenko was yesterday named European footballer of the year for 2004. The 28 year-old becomes the third Ukrainian to win the award after Oleg Blockhin in
156411
Success at the Games could boost the popularity of a sport unfamiliar to Greeks.