Greece boss Otto Rehhagel allowed his players a glass and a half of wine each in their hotel bar after Thursday's semi-final victory over the Czech Republic, but champagne will flow freely should his heroic Euro 2004 charges ruin Portugal's big day. Of the 16 teams who set out with dreams of playing in today's showpiece final, only Switzerland and Latvia were given less of a chance of going all the way by bookmakers. Greece - 80/1 shots at the start of June - confounded their doubters in their opening group game, with a 2-1 victory over Portugal. Ahead of the re-match, they stand on the brink of their greatest footballing achievement, and all this in the year that the country's legacy to the sporting world - the Olympic Games - returns to Athens. But instead of being in thrall to the Olympics, football fever has gripped Greece, and Rehhagel is earning most of the plaudits. "It is very special to me to go to a European Championship final," said the German coach, who is reportedly being lined up to guide his home country into World Cup 2006. "Every player's contribution is important." Several heroes have emerged for Greece over the course of their five matches to date, not least striker Angelos Charisteas and defender Traianos Dellas, their quarter-final and semi-final match-winners. But for former Newcastle centreback Nikos Dabizas, the tournament has been frustrating in the sense that Rehhagel now has a settled team in which the Leicester City defender does not figure. To date, he has not left the bench. "Qualifying to the Euro 2004 and going through the group to the knock-out stages was all about playing good football. Reaching the final is another thing," he said. "It is very hard to try to explain how it feels to make a whole nation proud and it is even harder to even imagine how it will feel if we win the tournament. "It's simply fantastic to see how happy everyone is back home. "Times are difficult and you don't get many chances to celebrate and be proud for your country." | 
