Disappointed Poles rue Euro exit
Poland's press on Sunday expressed disappointment at the national side's early exit from Euro 2012, after their 1-0 defeat to neighbours the Czech Republic.
"It's already over," said the centre-left daily Gazeta Wyborcza on its website, calling the match in the southwest Polish city of Wroclaw on Saturday "the worst of the tournament".
"Hope was never greater and it all ended just as it has done for the last 26 years," it added, referring to the last time Poland advanced to the knock-out phase of a major competition, when they lost to Brazil in the last 16 of the 1986 World Cup.
"The end of the dream," wrote Rzeczospolita in its online edition, stressing that "certainly the white and reds (Poland) were ambitious and wanted to fight".
The newspaper also reminded readers that Poland "has only participated in the European championships twice: four years ago (in Austria and Switzerland), the team also failed to make it past the group stages."
"Our team not only didn't manage to qualify for the quarterfinals but it didn't win a single match," said the Super Express tabloid on its website.
The mass circulation publication identified substitute goalkeeper Przemyslaw Tyton, of Dutch club PSV Eindhoven, as Poland's strong point in the match.
"On several occasions he prevented more goals but could do nothing about the goal that was scored," it added.
Tyton kept his place in the starting line-up after coming on for first-choice keeper Wojciech Szczesny, who was sent off in Poland's first match against Greece, and saved a penalty with his first touch of the match.
The newspaper also singled out French-born Bordeaux midfielder Ludovic Obraniak and captain Jakub "Kuba" Blaszczykowski, as well as striker Robert Lewandowski "but on his own up front, he couldn't do much".
