WARSAW, June 5: Champions Spain and under-pressure Italy were the main teams expected to arrive in Poland for the European championship on Tuesday, as the 16 finalists completed their final warm-up matches.
Vicente Del Bosque's side, aiming to become the first team to win back-to-back titles after their victory four years ago, were due to arrive in the Baltic port city of Gdansk on Tuesday evening boosted by the return to training of midfielder Cesc Fabregas.
Fabregas and some of his team mates were back using Twitter on Monday after an initial ban on using social networking sites was lifted.
“Good news! Finally we are allowed to use social networks so we will be in contact during the Euro Cup,” Fabregas, one of Spain's most committed Tweeters, wrote on his feed.
The tournament favourites and world champions take on Italy in Gdansk on Sunday.
Italy, rocked by fresh match-fixing claims that even included a police search of the team hotel and the arrest of several players in the top flight Serie A, were scheduled to fly in on a charter flight from Pisa to the southern city of Krakow.
Italy were eliminated from Euro 2008 by Spain on penalties in the quarter-finals.
“(Spain) play great football but we shouldn't be afraid of anyone,” Italy midfielder Claudio Marchisio said. “We've got to work hard in this final week, but we're not worried.”
The Republic of Ireland arrived in Gdansk in the small hours of Tuesday direct from Budapest, where they took on Hungary in a friendly match on Monday night. Croatia, the final Group C side, arrived on Tuesday morning.
Portugal arrived late on Monday night in the western city of Poznan to prepare for their opening Group B match against title contenders Germany in the Ukrainian city of Lviv on Saturday.
And Veteran striker Miroslav Klose wants to celebrate his 34th birthday on Saturday by getting Germany's campaign off to a winning start.
“Basically I only want three points, I would love to have a victory and I would love for us to put into practice what we know we can do,” said Klose when asked about his birthday wish.
Holland and Denmark complete the so-called group of death and Dutch playmaker Wesley Sneijder believes having such a tough group can be a help rather than a hindrance.
“Maybe it can be an advantage, we have a tough group but we want to win the Euros so we have to beat all of them,” he said.
“We know it will be a difficult group but we are ready for it and we'll see what happens.”
Ireland's 0-0 draw with Hungary was Giovanni Trappatoni's 14th game without a defeat and, with veteran goalkeeper Shay Given coming through the match unscathed after an injury scare, will boost the side in tough group.
Co-hosts Ukraine, though, were playing down concerns about their readiness after a friendly defeat to Austria.Veteran star Andriy Shevchenko insisted: “Our preparations for the Euro are going according to the plan and the results of the friendlies are not really important. Neither the 4-0 win over Estonia nor the defeat at Innsbruck count for anything.”
Instead, the 35-year-old former European player of the year, who bows out of international football after the tournament, said Ukraine's opener against Sweden on June 11 will show whether they are physically and mentally ready for the tournament.
Ukraine also take on England and France in Group D.
England were expected to arrive at their Krakow base on Wednesday, while France were due in Donetsk, Ukraine, after their friendly match against Estonia in Le Mans on Tuesday evening.
England have been hit by a succession of injuries, forcing Frank Lampard, Gareth Barry and Gary Cahill to withdraw. They are also without Manchester United star Wayne Rooney for the first two group matches through suspension.
Rooney's Old Trafford team-mate Rio Ferdinand, meanwhile, moved to play down claims from his agent that coach Roy Hodgson had shown a lack of respect for not picking the defender as Cahill's replacement.
“Just so we don't get twisted ere....i'll be in a pub somewhere supporting England this summer! Love the lads!” tweeted the former England captain.
The Czech Republic, meanwhile, suffered a fresh injury worry when striker Milan Baros pulled out of training on Tuesday with a thigh strain, ahead of their opening Euro 2012 match against Russia in Wroclaw, Poland on Friday..
Captain Tomas Rosicky, who has struggled with a calf problem, trained for a second straight day but Baros left the training pitch early after feeling tightness in his thigh.
Meanwhile, UEFA revealed that tickets are still available for several European Championship matches in Ukraine, including the final.
All matches being played in Poland have sold out.—Agencies