Euro 2008: Hatrick for Hitzfeld
Three goals each for Germany, Italy and Holland has freshened up the Castrol Performance Index top 20 strikers list to make satisfying reading for Bayern Munich coach and Castrol football expert Ottmar Hitzfeld who now has three of his club's strikers and two of his countrymen in the UEFA Euro 2008 top ten.
Hitzfeld brought top-ranked Luca Toni to Bayern in May last year and the 30-year-old has been a prolific scorer for his club ever since. This excellent domestic form has transferred to the international stage and his 45th minute goal in Italy's recent 3-1 victory over Portugal has taken him to the top of the standings. Croatia's Eduardo, formerly top of the pile, has slipped to second.
Toni's club team mate, German Lukas Podolski, has kept hold of his fifth place after enjoying much better form for his national side than for FC Bayern where he is yet to score a league goal this season.
The third FC Bayern striker in the line-up, Miroslav Klose, has had no such trouble scoring in the Bundesliga, hitting the net nine times already this season. On the international stage his goal against Austria in the latest round of friendlies topped off an impressive display of forward play that has moved him up 13 places to 10th in the CPI list.
Elsewhere Antonio Di Natale's goal against Portugal has pushed him into the top three above Romania's Adrian Mutu while icons, Thierry Henry and Cristiano Ronaldo drop out of the top twenty altogether…perhaps they should be knocking on Hitzfeld's door for some striking tips.
For more news on the European Football Championship 2008 please visit http://www.castrolindex.com
Photo:
http://www.prlog.org/
