THE CHANCES of a minnow football nation repeating the heroics of Denmark in 1992 and Greece four years ago have receded considerably after seeing the initial form and condition of four of the "Big Six" (Croatia hardly fit into the minnow category since reaching the semi-final of France '98. Last night proved they carry the "Dark Horse" monicker ever so well).
Only the ageing Italians and their World Cup final opponents, France, have disappointed.
The brilliance of Holland, Spain and Portugal has already sparked the competition to life, while the Germans have produced wildly contrasting performances.
Due to Spain's traditional propensity to fade in the latter part of major tournaments, this is the best opportunity to laud their hugely talented squad.
So far, the chronic underachievers have outfoxed the soothsayers who predicted the Catalans in the squad would fail to show the required desire and passion to combine with the rest.
Instead, they put on an exquisite show of attacking wizardry in dismantling a Russian side that despite creating some clear-cut chances always seemed vulnerable to the Fernando Torres and David Villa combination, aided by the intricate passing and astute positional interchanging of the midfield diamond of Marcos Senna, David Silva, Xavi and Iniesta. It was a joy to behold.
I first saw Iniesta as a 14-year-old against Northern Ireland. He was like an old pro the way he had the ball at his feet all the time. Noel O'Reilly was sitting beside me in Derry that night and we were transfixed by his potential.
Along with Torres, he won the Under-19 European championships in Norway six years ago. They beat a German team containing five of the current senior squad. Torres won player of the tournament.
It seems the fruits of several Spanish underage teams are beginning to mature. The secret seems to be to put all the young players in together, besides Xavi and Senna that is.
Doubts about their defence remain but this can be eradicated as the tournament progresses. It just looks like they need to play more together and cover Carles Puyol's lack of pace.
Of the other contenders in Group D, the Swedes are yet again excellently prepared by coach Lars Lagerback. They got their just reward for a positive approach against Greece who failed to take any risks until it was too late.
Tomorrow's meeting of Spain and Sweden in Innsbruck should decide who tops the group.
Portugal appear to have sown up Group A with Turkey and the Czech Republic battling for the runners-up spot.
Although Luiz Felipe Scolari's team are the first to secure a quarter-final berth, and the plus-four goal difference, they've not been completely convincing.
Even with the artistry of Deco and Cristiano Ronaldo, they always seem over-dependent on Numo Gomes as a lone front man in a 4-3-3 system.
This approach can be contained by a well-organised, disciplined opposition as Portugal does have defensive frailties.
This was particularly apparent against a Czech team that are severely handicapped by the absence of Tomas Rosicky and the retired Pavel Nedved.
New centre back Pepe scored a wonderful goal against Turkey but has looked susceptible alongside Ricardo Carvalho and goalkeeper Ricardo hardly provides a ringing endorsement of stability on set-pieces and crosses.
I can't see them going all the way.
What I can see is second spot being sorted on a penalty shoot-out for the first time in pool stages of any competition.
As it stands both teams have scored two and conceded three goals so the mentality tends to be ultra-cautious when they know a penalty shoot-out is looming.
As extra-time of the Champions League final showed, it's human nature to be more reserved.
Those who do progress from Group A will be matched against Group B opposition, where my initial tip for the title, Germany, reside.
Having begun their home World Cup in 2006 with little public confidence, their exhilarating performance in reaching the last four and ensuing goodwill towards what was then Jurgen Klinsmann's team seems to have been extended in to this attempt to regain the European title last won in England 12 years ago.
Joachim Loew's squad, having sailed through qualifying, without been particularly impressive in either game against us, have put aside a difficult season for individual players (see Lukas Podolski) to arrive in Austria in fine form. Their 2-0 defeat of Poland was the most impressive display from the first round of games.
Justified misgivings about Jens Lehmann and their back four were, however, confirmed yesterday as they failed to deal with the impressive Croatians who pressed, passed and defended until Germany self-destructed late on. Teams playing 4-4-2 always seemed to struggle against sides with three men crowding the middle.
The orthodox German four struggled against a five-man Croatian midfield where Nico Kovac, the expensive Spurs signing Mondric and Rakitic on the left side were prominent throughout.
Finally, to the so-called "Group of Death". France versus Romania got Group C off to a cagey start, a hugely troubling result for the French as it should have been a banker three points.
Holland defied pre-tournament suggestions of the usual unrest within the camp by blitzing the Italians. They exuded clarity of individual roles and produced some outstanding team play.
The 4-2-3-1 system with Orlando Engelaar and Nigel De Jong providing a defensive screen with concise passing initially suggested a lack of width, without Arjen Robben and Robin Van Persie.
This proved unfounded. What really impressed was the passing and movement provided by Wesley Sneijder and Rafael Van Der Vaart as they combined effectively with Dirk Kuyt and Ruud van Nistelrooy.
Italy, while not as bad as the final scoreline suggested as they did have chances, struggled to deal with the rapid counter-attacking.
Again, it was the Dutch defensive alignment that remains a concern. Despite the magnificent attacking contributions of Giovanni van Bronckhorst, a readjusted France will remain confident of exposing this potential weakness tonight.
