Poland coach bemoans nervousness

Poland coach Leo Beenhakker offered few excuses for his side's Euro 2008 exit, conceding his big-name players had been unable to perform at their best.

A 1-0 defeat to Croatia put the seal on a disappointing campaign that saw them return just one point from three games.

"Everyone is very disappointed as we wanted to do better" said Beenhakker.

"We showed in most of the qualifying matches that we can do much better but the players who gave us something extra in qualifying didn't do it here."

Poland topped their Euro 2008 qualifying group in a section that included Portugal, Belgium and Serbia.

But the the Poles struggled to replicate that form over the last fortnight, scoring just one goal as they suffered two defeats in three matches.

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"During this tournament we were not good enough," added Beenhakker. "Several important players were not in the best shape, not in top form.

"That can happen sometimes, the moment when it happens can be unlucky. Over the three matches, apart from some unlucky moments, we were not good enough to handle this level.

"The only thing to do is go back to the training pitch and practice to compete at this level."

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