Ajax forward Klaas-Jan Huntelaar has revealed his desire to follow in the footsteps of compatriot Ruud Van Nistelrooy and star for Manchester United.

Huntelaar is one of the most sought-after commodities in this transfer window, with Real Madrid also competing for his signature.

The striker’s Ajax departure now looks imminent after the Amsterdam club smashed the Dutch transfer record with the signing of Miralem Sulejmani from Heerenveen.

Ajax have slapped a £20 million price tag on Huntelaar’s head, which could deter potential suitors. However, the player is adamant that a move to Old Trafford would be his preference.

Huntelaar has an outstanding scoring record for Ajax, with 70 goals in just over 80 league appearances for the club. He has also netted eight strikes in 13 international outings.

He now hopes to emulate his Oranje team-mate Ruud Van Nistelrooy, who spent five fruitful seasons at Manchester United.

He told the Dutch media: "I love clubs with great history like Ajax. I also love United. It`s a club that makes me dream, especially as Ruud van Nistelrooy played there and did great things with them.

“I know certain English clubs are following me, like Manchester United, who are very interested in me."

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Turkey coach Fatih Terim claimed there was "no limit to success" for his side after they defeated Croatia on penalties to earn a semi-final meeting with Germany. Terim's men looked to be on their way out when Ivan Klasnić struck in the penultimate minute of extra time, but Semih Şentürk restored parity with the last kick of the game and Turkey then triumphed in the shoot-out. Croatia coach Slaven Bilić said Turkey had the "X factor" after watching them hit back late on for the third successive match.

He says.....

I would like to congratulate the Croatia players and coach. They played well but that's football. You should never give up until the final whistle, that's what makes football interesting. I congratulate my players, too. Both sides could have won. I think we should be proud and I still haven't been able to do any damage assessment. Emre Aşık, Tuncay Şanlı and Arda Turan are all suspended [for Germany] because they were booked here, and we have injured players. We have worked very hard over the last two years and deserve to be in this semi-final. If Croatia had won, I would have said they deserved it too, but I'm delighted we did it. I tell my players never to give up. I set them goals and tell them not to be afraid of losing. I think this team could do even better. If only we could have the injured players back, but even without them, we are special. There is something special about this team.

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First knockout match between Portugal and Germany ended with Germany to be the first team qualified for EURO 2008 semi final when beating Portugal 3-2 at the St Jakob Park in Basel....

First goal at the 21th minute by Bastian Schweinsteiger after finishing setting from Lukas Podolski from left side of Portugal goal post.

Schweinsteiger again was the architect of their second here too, drifting a free-kick into the Portugal box which Klose, ghosting clear of the red shirts, headed past Ricardo.And on 40 minutes Nuno Gomes lashed the ball home after Lehmann had saved from Ronaldo to halve the Germans' advantage.

In the second half,Schwansteiger once again setting a free-kick into portugal box which Ballack easily headed the ball past Ricardo for the 3rd goal of their side.Late goal by Portugal was contribute by Helder Postiga which is brought in to replace the Portugal captain,Nuno Gomes.

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Italy beat 10-man France at Zurich's sold-out Letzigrund stadium to advance to the quarter-finals of Euro 2008 thanks to Holland's win over Romania. Abidal was shown a straight red card, leaving the French with a mountain to climb following the earlier loss of Franck Ribery to injury.

Andrea Pirlo put the world champions in front in the 25th minute when converting from the penalty spot after Eric Abidal had brought down Luca Toni inside the area. News that the Netherlands had opened the scoring against Romania prompted an almighty roar from the Azzurri faithful and the celebrating continued when De Rossi scored on 62 minutes. The AS Roma midfielder's 30-metre free-kick took a cruel deflection off Henry, wrong-footing Coupet and effectively ending the French challenge. Although Benzema subsequently saw his swerving shot brilliantly tipped wide by Buffon in the 74th minute, there was no way back for France, who finished with just one point after losing back-to-back matches for the first time in 15 years.

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June 14th 2:30pm US/Eastern Time (8:30pm Central European Time)

Stadion Wals-Siezenheim, Salzburg - Group D

Result: Greece 0 - Russia 1

Russia's young stars had been urged to "learn fast" by their coach Guus Hiddink and they came of age in Salzburg as Konstantin Zyryanov's solitary goal earned them a 1-0 win against Greece, thus ending Otto Rehhagel's team's reign as kings of Europe. After both sides had lost their opening matches in UEFA EURO 2008™ Group D, the stakes were high at the Stadion Wals-Siezenheim, but Russia emerged victorious and knocked defending champions Greece out of the tournament.







The only goal will haunt Greece goalkeeper Antonis Nikopolidis long into the night as he inexplicably chased a cross by Diniyar Bilyaletdinov that had already cleared his posts by five or six metres all the way to the touchline, and he was made to pay the full price for his 33rd-minute excursion. The Olympiacos CFP keeper was beaten to the ball by Russia captain Sergei Semak, who hooked it back over his head and Zyryanov was on hand to guide it ever so simply into an unguarded net.

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June 14th 11:50am US/Eastern Time (5:50pm Central European Time)

Tivoli-Neu Stadion, Innsbruck - Group D

Result: Sweden 1 - Spain 2

David Villa struck two minutes into stoppage time as Spain defeated a stubborn Sweden 2-1 at the Stadion Tivoli Neu in Innsbruck to guarantee their presence in the UEFA EURO 2008™ quarter-finals as Group D winners.




Spain coach Luis Aragonés surprised no one by selecting the same XI that had started the Russia game, but there were only hints of the devastating fluidity of that 4-1 win as Sweden hustled and harried effectively. Ibrahimović could even have given Lars Lagerbäck's side the lead inside the opening minute only for the FC Internazionale Milano striker's normally assured touch to escape him when well placed inside the box.

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June 13th 2:30pm US/Eastern Time (8:30pm Central European Time)

Stade de Suisse Wankdorf, Berne- Group C

Result: Netherlands 4 - France 1

The Netherlands secured their place in the UEFA EURO 2008™ quarter-finals with a game to spare after producing another devastating display against France in Berne, with Dirk Kuyt, Robin van Persie, Arjen Robben and Wesley Sneijder all scoring in a memorable win.





Twenty years after his goals led the Netherlands to the European title, Marco van Basten's 2008 crop underlined their case as serious contenders by building on their defeat of Italy to tie up first place in Group C. There may have been less of the flamboyance they had shown in beating the Azzurri – the Dutch riding their luck at times after Kuyt's early breakthrough – but the speed of their counterattacking play was again in rich evidence, never more so than in the second goal scored by Van Persie after a lightning surge by Robben.





Even when Thierry Henry halved the deficit, Robben immediately restored the two-goal cushion to leave France, punished further by Sneijder, joint-bottom of the section with a solitary point – and with everything to do against Italy on Tuesday, when the Netherlands play second-placed Romania.

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June 13th 11:50am US/Eastern Time (5:50pm Central European Time)

Letzigrund Stadion, Zurich- Group C

Result: Italy 1 - Romania 1

Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon superbly saved Adrian Mutu's penalty with nine minutes remaining to keep the world champions' UEFA EURO 2008™ hopes alive as the Azzurri and Romania battled out a breathless draw in Zurich.





Buffon dived to his left to block the ACF Fiorentina striker's stinging drive with his arm and foot after Christian Panucci had held back Daniel Niculae in the area. Defeat would have left Italian ambitions on a knife-edge but in a free-flowing match they delivered a perfect response to Mutu's 55th-minute opener as Panucci levelled a minute later. It salvaged a crucial point, which kept Italy in Group C contention before their reprise of the FIFA World Cup final against France on Thursday when Romania play the Netherlands.

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June 12th 2:30pm US/Eastern Time (8:30pm Central European Time)

St. Jakob-Park, Basel- Group B

Result: Austria 1 - Poland 1

Ivica Vastic's last-gasp penalty kept Austria in contention to reach the UEFA EURO 2008™ quarter-finals, salvaging a draw against a Poland side who had looked set to take three points thanks to Roger Guerreiro's first-half goal and some inspired goalkeeping from Artur Boruc.











Boruc made four crucial interventions to frustrate a vibrant Austria before Roger was in the right place to tap in on the half-hour and give Poland the lead. Austria were staring a second successive 1-0 defeat in the face but, three minutes into added time, Marcin Wasilewski pulled Sebastian Prödl's shirt and substitute Vastic became the oldest player to score in a UEFA European Championship, finally beating Boruc from the spot. These teams now have one point apiece, two fewer than Germany who are Austria's final opponents on Monday, when Group B winners Croatia are the opposition for Poland.

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June 12th 11:50am US/Eastern Time (5:50pm Central European Time)

St. Jakob-Park, Basel- Group B

Result: Croatia 2 - Germany 1

Croatia sealed their place in the quarter-finals of UEFA EURO 2008™ as goals from Darijo Srna and Ivica Olić earned a famous win against Germany that took Slaven Bilić's side three points clear at the top of Group B.





With both teams having won their first game on Sunday each knew victory in Klagenfurt would all but secure a ticket to the last eight, and it was Croatia who struck first midway through the first half thanks to the determination of Srna. The points looked safe when Olić tapped in just past the hour, yet Lukas Podolski set up a tense finale with his third goal of the tournament eleven minutes from time.





Croatia, whose only previous success against the Mannschaft had come in the quarter-finals of the 1998 FIFA World Cup.

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June 11th 2:30pm US/Eastern Time (8:30pm Central European Time)

St. Jakob-Park, Basel- Group A

Result: Switzerland 1 - Turkey 2

It was left to coach Fatih Terim to pay tribute to attacking midfielder Arda Turan after the hero of Turkey's win over Switzerland missed the Carlsberg Match of the Match award ceremony because of a doping control.




Terim hailed a player he called potentially one of Europe's "most outstanding" after the left-winger decided an enthralling Group A game against Switzerland with a deflected last-gasp goal. "He is a very important player, very talented," said the coach. "He needs to improve his stamina during a game, but if he does he will be one of the most outstanding players in Europe."




Arda Turan's deflected goal deep in injury time gave Turkey a win that revived their EURO 2008™ hopes – but ended those of co-hosts Switzerland.

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June 11th 11:50am US/Eastern Time (5:50pm Central European Time)

Stade de Genève, Geneva- Group A

Result: Czech Republic 1 - Portugal 3

After the Netherlands and Spain had raised the bar with emphatic wins against Italy and Russia respectively, this was Portugal's opportunity to lay down a marker of their own at EURO 2008™





Deco hopes the individual quality in Portugal's squad will leave them in a strong position to successfully negotiate the knockout phase of EURO 2008™.




Cristiano Ronaldo said Portugal had a "good chance" of winning UEFA EURO 2008™ after his Carlsberg Man of Match award-winning performance put them on the verge of a place in the quarter-finals – a step subsequently confirmed by Turkey's victory over Switzerland.






'Very happy'
Ronaldo played a part in all three Portugal goals, combining with Nuno Gomes and Deco for the first on eight minutes, striking the second with 63 minutes played, then teeing up substitute Ricardo Quaresma for the third in added time. "It's a very good feeling," he said. "We have almost reached our aim, which was to get out of this phase and reach the next. I was very happy to help my team-mates win. We played really well even though the Czech Republic played very well in the first half and we found it difficult to penetrate their defence. We played as a team and know how to sacrifice everything for the team. We have a good chance [to win the competition] but we must respect our opponents who want to win as much as we do."

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June 10th 11:50am US/Eastern Time (5:50pm Central European Time)

Tivoli-Neu Stadion, Innsbruck - Group D

Result: Spain 4 - Russia 1

After completing his hat trick in a steady rain, Villa saw teammate Cesc Fabregas also score in the Group D match. It was the first hat trick at the European-championship tournament since Patrick Kluivert of the Netherlands scored three times in a match in 2000.




David Villa's hat-trick against Russia in Innsbruck was the first by a Spanish player at a UEFA European Championship final tournament, the first in the competition for eight years, and the eighth in all.

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June 10th 2:30pm US/Eastern Time (8:30pm Central European Time)

Stadion Wals-Siezenheim, Salzburg - Group D

Result: Greece 0 - Sweden 2

Goal from Zlatan Ibramovic and Peter Hanssonn both give a secure win over EURO title defender,Greece...
The goal came just after Zlatan ang Ljungberg and thundering a curly shot past the despairing lunge of Nikopolidis....6 minute after the goal,Greece player stunned again when Swedish central defender,Petter Hanssonn manage to put the ball in to Greece goal post after been blocked by Greece defender and Nikopolidis....

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June 9th 2:30pm US/Eastern Time (8:30pm Central European Time)

Stade de Suisse Wankdorf, Berne- Group C

Result: Netherlands 3 - Italy 0

The Netherlands ended a 30-year wait for a victory over Italy in emphatic fashion as they began their Group C campaign with a rousing 3-0 win against the world champions in Berne.




Ruud van Nistelrooy side-footed the Oranje ahead in the 26th minute, a lead doubled superbly by his Real Madrid CF colleague Wesley Sneijder soon after. Edwin van der Sar, becoming only the third player to appear in four UEFA European Championships.





With coaches Marco van Basten and Roberto Donadoni schooled under Arrigo Sacchi at AC Milan an attacking treat was always in store. And so it proved, Antonio Di Natale narrowly failing to free Luca Toni in only the second minute. The FC Bayern München striker did get a glimpse of goal in the 12th minute, rising to flick a header wide from an equally promising position, yet from then on the Dutch dominated the half

The Netherlands can now look forward with confidence to Friday's meeting with France, while Italy must recover from a worst-ever EURO defeat when they face Romania.

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June 9th 11:50am US/Eastern Time (5:50pm Central European Time)

Letzigrund Stadion, Zurich- Group C

Result: Romania 0 - France 0

Romania made a promising start to their EURO 2008™ campaign, holding one of the tournament favourites, France, to a goalless draw at the Letzigrund Stadion in Group C.




France could not break down the stubborn Romanian defence and have suffered the first setback of the tournament dropping two points to a solid Romanian side. Many expect this group to be have a tight qualification with and possibly having it decided by goal differential.






France were lacklustre and failed to score in their opening Euro 2008 game against Romania which could leave them with an uphill task to qualify. Missing influential midfielder Vieira and main striker Henry, they created little against the hard-working but unambitious.

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June 8th 2:30pm US/Eastern Time (8:30pm Central European Time)

Wörthersee Stadion, Klagenfurt - Group B

Result: Germany 2 - Poland 0

A brace from Lukas Podolski gave Germany a 2-0 Euro 2008 Group B opening win against their local rivals and the country of his birth, Poland.But the goal scorer choose not to celebrate the goal.

Poland is part of my "Heart"

Podolski said he chose not to celebrate his goals because of his Polish roots.

"I was born in Poland. I've got a big family. It's a part of my heart," he said.

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June 8th 11:50am US/Eastern Time (5:50pm Central European Time)

Ernst Happel Stadion, Vienna - Group B

Result: Austria 0 - Croatia 1

Match between host(Austria) and Croatia ended by 1-0 by the scoreline.The goal was scored by new Spurs summer signing, Luka Modric by a penalty in the early minute of the game....

Luka Modric celebrating his Goal....

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June 7th 11:50am US/Eastern Time (5:50pm Central European Time)

St. Jakob-Park, Basel - Group A

Result: Switzerland 0 - Czech Republic 1

Czech Republic substitute Vaclav Sverkos crashed the party for co-hosts Switzerland by scoring the only goal of the EURO 2008™....



Sverkos struck after 71 minutes to defeat a home side already deflated by a knee injury to forward Alexander Frei. The closest the Swiss came to rescuing a Group A point was a late Johan Vonlanthen shot off the underside of the crossbar.



Sverkos is the top Czech league's leading scorer this season with 15 goals. He returned to his former club Banik Ostrava last year after four years with Borussia Moenchengladbach in the German Bundesliga.

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June 7th 2:30pm US/Eastern Time (8:30pm Central European Time)

Stade de Genève, Geneva - Group A

Result: Portugal 2 - Turkey 0

Portugal defender Pepe was unable to put his feelings into words after scoring his first international goal to put Luiz Felipe Scolari's team on the way to a 2-0 victory in their opening EURO 2008™ Group A match against Turkey at Geneva....






"I can hardly describe the emotion I felt," said Pepe, whose spectacular 61st-minute strike helped earn him the Carlsberg Man of the Match Award. However, the Real Madrid CF player – who had earlier had a first-half header ruled out for offside – was quick to praise a "great display" from the entire Portugal side as they made a winning start in Geneva...and
"we played as a real team and this is the most important thing and we knew sooner or later we were going to get a goal," the 25-year-old said. "Today it was the team effort that won us the game. Without my team-mates I couldn't have done anything and we deserve to be congratulated for a great display."

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