Euro '96 was the archetypal European Championship staged aft Czechoslovakia separated - forming the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
But cipher expected the Czech squad to person overmuch interaction astatine the tournament, including the country's ain players.
They were outsiders, and astir of the squad were inactive based successful their home league.
Several had booked their holidays for consecutive aft the radical signifier - which progressive Germany, Italy and Russia - and Vladimir Smicer was adjacent owed to get married.
Midfielder Patrik Berger says his past Borussia Dortmund team-mate Jurgen Kohler did not adjacent cognize the Czechs were astatine the Euros... and the defender was successful the Germany squad.
Berger, speaking to the BBC Sporting Witness podcast earlier this year, said of Kohler: "He was asking maine what my plans were for the summer. I said 'I'm going to the Euros' and helium said 'to ticker games?'
"I said 'no, we're playing you guys the archetypal crippled of the radical stages and past we volition play successful the final' - and helium was laughing."
The Czechs mislaid their opening crippled 2-0 to Germany astatine Old Trafford earlier beating Italy 2-1 astatine Anfield.
Smicer's precocious equaliser successful a 3-3 gully against Russia - astatine his aboriginal location of Anfield - was capable to spot them done due to the fact that Italy failed to bushed Germany successful the different game, finishing 0-0.
"We knew we were inactive successful it, but we didn't cognize what the different effect is," said Berger, who would spell connected to play for Liverpool with Smicer. "One infinitesimal we're not qualifying, the adjacent it was we qualified, truthful we didn't truly know.
"After the last whistle it took a fewer minutes earlier we realised we qualified for the quarter-finals."
In the quarters came 1 of the astir memorable European Championship goals ever, with Karel Poborsky scooping the shot implicit Vitor Baia from the borderline of the container to springiness the Czech Republic a 1-0 triumph implicit Portugal astatine Villa Park.
And, aft a goalless gully against France successful the semis astatine Old Trafford, the Czechs would triumph 6-5 connected penalties.
Their spot-kicks were netted by players including aboriginal Ballon d'Or victor Pavel Nedved, Berger and Poborsky, who was backmost astatine the crushed weeks aboriginal arsenic a recently signed Manchester United player.
"You don't privation to spell there," said Berger of taking a punishment successful a shootout.
"If idiosyncratic says thing antithetic they're lying. Nobody wants to instrumentality that penalty."
He said the squad "couldn't believe" they had beaten France.
"We were surviving the dream," Berger said. "It was an astonishing feeling. An astonishing infinitesimal for the country.
"To get to the last was benignant of similar a occurrence for everyone."
Two days earlier the final, Smicer returned to Prague to get married.
Thousands of Czech fans turned retired successful the metropolis centre for the occasion, but Smicer had to instrumentality to England the aforesaid day.
The Czech Republic faced Germany successful the last astatine Wembley - and led aft 59 minutes done Berger's drilled penalty.
He revealed helium was not adjacent meant to beryllium the punishment taker but "could spot cipher truly wanted to instrumentality the ball".
"The lone happening successful my caput was deed it arsenic hard arsenic imaginable connected target," helium said.
Sadly for the Czechs, Oliver Bierhoff equalised 14 minutes aboriginal - and past scored the archetypal ever aureate extremity successful a large tourney last to springiness Germany the win.
"It wasn't meant to be," said Berger. "I'd emotion to beryllium European champion, but metallic for america was similar a golden due to the fact that it opened doors to truthful galore of us. And it opened doors to the procreation aft us. I person nary regrets.
"Thanks to Euro 96, due to the fact that it was played successful England, I caught the oculus of Liverpool.
"There were 100,000 waiting for america successful Prague celebrating. Even metallic felt similar winning the tourney for us."
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