Too soon to say who will win Euro 2008, insists Loew

Germany coach Joachim Loew insisted Tuesday it is too early to say who will win Euro 2008 despite strong opening performances from the Germans, Portugal and the Netherlands.

After his side opened their Euro 2008 campaign with an impressive 2-0 win over Poland on Sunday, Germany are living up to their pre-tournament billing as co-favourites.

But Holland hammered world champions Italy 3-0 in Geneva on Monday while Portugal enjoyed a 2-0 win over Turkey on Saturday leaving Loew insisting it is too soon to say who will be crowned champions of Europe in Vienna on June 29.

“We can't put teams up on a pedestal yet, it is too soon,” insisted Loew at Germany's Euro 2008 base in Tenero.

“Portugal were impressive in the first game, we had a satisfying result and the Dutch looked strong.

“But yesterday's win over Italy, just like the games at the weekend, was only one individual match.

“To win the tournament, you need to be very consistent and it's too early to say which teams will have that quality.”

And Portugal's coach Luiz Felipe Scolari played down his side's chances of winning Euro 2008 despite their strong opening performance against Turkey.

“I am pleased with the way our side is going, but tactically, there is no better team than Germany, while Holland played very well,” said Scolari at the Portuguese base in Neuchatel.

“I feel we have some way to go and improvements to make before we will match those sides.”