Almost

It was the first game ever for Latvia in the Euro 2004 final. In the game last night against The Czech Republic, Latvia was up 1-0 until the 70th minute from a beautiful goal by golden boy Maris Verpakovskis. Verpakovskis has scored a goal in every game he has played in this year including at his new club team Dynamo in Kiev. Every bar in Latvia cheered with the thought of actually pulling off the biggest upset of the tournament. Even a tie would have been a huge set back for The Czech Republic, as they are one of the stronger teams this year. Then in the 74th minute the Czechs scored due to a lack of communication in Latvia's defense. Latvia's back were noticeably tired as the game went on. Latvia's team is not used to the extreme heat of Portugal. In the end Latvia slipped up again in the 89th minute to fall behind 2-1. Latvia's next game is against Germany on Friday, later in the day, which should be a benefit to our players.