Xabi Alonso finally got a game for Spain, and he brought his shooting boots with him.

Greece 1-2 Spain

Four English-based Spanish players made their first start of the tournament.

Xabi Alonso impressed, showing he is ready to step into the breach should a terrible fate befall Xavi or Andres Iniesta.

He brought back memories of Pele in 1970 when he lobbed Antonis Nikopolidis from inside his own half but, like the Brazilian legend, missed the target by inches.

Alongside him was Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas, who had a hand in creating the equaliser and constantly probed at the Green defence with clever passes.

Alonso's Liverpool team-mates Alvaro Arbeloa and Jose Reina failed to keep a clean sheet.

Arbeloa was booked after losing his cool and was part of a shaky backline that struggled with set-pieces. Reina was exposed for the Greek goal and carried out the remainder of his duties tidily.

Russia 2-0 Sweden

A night to forget for Andreas Isaksson and Fredrik Ljungberg as the Swedes were dumped out.

Manchester City bench-warmer Isaksson was blameless for his team's failure. He had no chance with either Russian goal and made a number of important stops to keep his side in it.

West Ham's Ljungberg appeared overwhelmed as the Swedes comprehensively lost the midfield battle. Never one to stick the boot in, Ljungberg let the game pass him by.

Had a great chance to equalise just before half-time but failed to get any power behind his shot and presented Igor Akinfeev with an easy save.

France 0-2 Italy

Arsenal captain William Gallas was not helped by his calamitous partner Eric Abidal, but looked edgy and no longer commands a penalty box like he used to.

As always, body language is a problem for Gallas, and he was one of the first to let his head drop once Les Bleus were a goal and a man down. Aged 30, he risks being part of a mass cull in the French ranks.

Manchester United's Patrice Evra had a tough night thanks to chaos in midfield. First left-winger Franck Ribery was injured, then his replacement Samir Nasri was taken off after France went down to 10 men.

This left Evra exposed, and he had to contend with the overlapping Gianluca Zambrotta all evening. Raced back well to tackle Toni when he was through on goal in the second half.

Claude Makelele continues to get away with murder as long as he smiles to the referee afterwards.

Nicolas Anelka made a late substitute appearance and contributed exactly what he did in France's first two games - nothing whatsoever.

Netherlands 2-0 Romania

The star of the show as far as Premier League-based players are concerned was Robin van Persie, who smashed home a satisfying second goal to ensure the Oranje maintained their 100 percent record.

He was something of a menace throughout the match, forcing a cracking close-range save from Bogdan Lobont after he had controlled and turned in the box with the score goalless. Perhaps Arsenal ought to wise up to his demands for higher wages for players at the Emirates Stadium and pay the man whatever he wants.

Aston Villa's Wilfried Bouma played 90 minutes at centre-back and improved as the game went on, overcoming some early jitters to look strong and keep a clean sheet.

With nine players rested by Marco van Basten having already secured top spot, Liverpool forward Dirk Kuyt was only introduced after the hour-mark and failed to make much of an impression.

One recognisable defender was brought on for another around the same time, a solid Khalid Boulahrouz - yes, he is still on Chelsea's books for the time being - making way for Wigan's former Blues hero Mario Melchiot, who added attacking nous down the right side as the Netherlands made use of the increased space as Romania went in search of an equaliser.

Austria 0-1 Germany

German skipper Michael Ballack turned in a typically influential performance, although he was just as responsible as any of his team-mates for the lack of quality in the final third until his 49th-minute thunderbolt almost ripped the net out of former Sunderland man Jurgen Macho's goal.

Former Arsenal keeper Jens Lehmann had a relatively untroubled night in the German goal.

His handling on crosses was particularly assured, although he was slightly fortunate to be awarded a free-kick after dropping the ball under pressure from Austrian defender Martin Stranzl in the 74th minute.

Middlesbrough defender Emanuel Pogatetz was the only other Premier League player on show, and the former Bundesliga man was his characteristically combative self, producing a terrific block to deny Miroslav Klose in the 66th minute and playing a key role in Austria's stubborn defensive resistance.

Poland 0-1 Croatia

Poland were dumped out of the tournament in Klagenfurt, but it was delight for Croatia who continued their 100 per cent record.

Manchester City's Vedran Corluka - who came on as a 27th minute substitute - didn't put a foot wrong, although the Poles hardly tested him.

Niko Kranjcar of Portsmouth came on as a late substitute for the Croats and showed some neat touches, but failed to penetrating the Polish back-line.

He may not play in the Premier League, but as a British-based player Artur Boruc deserves a mention - the Celtic goalkeeper was immense and if it wasn't for him Poland would have lost by a far greater margin.

Another British-based Pole, Southampton forward Marek Saganowski, was forced to play up front on his own and rarely threatened. The one chance that did fall his way, he could only head straight at Croatian keeper Stipe Pletikosa.

Turkey 3-2 Czech Republic

Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech was the villain as a coasting Czech Republic crashed out of Euro 2008 by conceding three goals in a calamitous final 15 minutes against Turkey.

Cech - regarded by many as the greatest goalie on the planet - was in full control of his penalty area for the first 75 minutes of this winner-take-all final Group A clash.

With the Czechs two goals to the good their place in the last eight looked assured; but when Arda Turan whipped a shot low to his near post, Cech could only push it in off the upright.

That signalled the start of a collapse now written into European Championship folklore. With three minutes remaining on the clock our man emerged from his goalmouth to claim an elementary cross and uncharacteristically fumbled, allowing a surprised Nihat Kahveci to poke home.

There was little he could do to prevent Nihat's stunning curled second in the dying seconds, but Cech's name will forever be associated with one of the most memorable comebacks in a major finals - and not in a good way.

The other English league representative in this match was Middlesbrough's hot-and-cold attacker Tuncay Sanli of Turkey.

He started in a wide role but was moved up front later on, flashing a shot wide of the target and directing a pair of weak headers at Cech's goal.

His most notable moment came when he took over between the posts for the final crazy moments after goalie Volkan Demirel was sent off, but fortunately for him a historic group-stage penalty shootout was avoided as the Turks held on for a 3-2 win.

Switzerland 2-0 Portugal

A rare start for Manchester United star Nani out wide in Portugal's midfield as new Chelsea manager Luiz Felipe Scolari rested several stars - including Cristiano Ronaldo - having already qualified for the quarters.

There was a good deal of promising play from the 21-year-old trickster in the early stages, including two firm penalty shouts that were turned down by the ref.

He also hit the near post with a low shot; but as he disappeared from the game so Switzerland came into it, the already-eliminated hosts scoring twice to record a first win in the competition.

Chelsea full-back Paulo Ferreira had a bit of a 'mare for the Portuguese, going in studs-up on Valon Behrami to incur the wrath of the home support and earn a yellow card. Minutes later, and moments before half-time, he was substituted.

Arsenal centre-half Philippe Senderos put in a timely block as the pressure built upon Switzerland in the early stages, but his work was not needed later on as the Swiss won comfortably.

Gelson Fernandes of Manchester City was busy in breaking up Portugal attacks, but his passing game could have been better.

Eurosport