Baros Retires – Highs and Lows of International Career

Having lost to Portugal in last night’s Euro quarterfinal, Czech forward Milan Baros has opted to retire from international football. At the age of 30, the retirement can be considered premature but Baros could not live up to expectations at Euros and perhaps made the decision to see someone younger take over. He scored 48 times for his nation in 93 appearances and currently plays for Turkish club Galatasaray. Soccerisma covers the highs and lows of Milan Baros’s International career.

 

HIGHS

International Debut:
Baros made his first appearance in Czech Republic shirt when he was just 19 years old. The game was against Belgium in 2001 and the youngster impressed everyone by scoring his first goal for his nation in a match that ended 1-1.
Euro 2004:
Euro 2004 remains his best tournament for national side where Baros won the golden boot prize by finishing as competition’s top scorer with 5 goals. Czech went behind in every group match and Baros helped his side to victory by scoring in all of them. The group included top teams like Germany and Netherlands. Adding to that, he was unstoppable versus Denmark in the quarterfinals as his brilliant brace helped Czech reach the semi finals where they were eliminated by eventual champions Greece in extra time.

San Marino Thrashing:
In September 2009, Milan Baros scored no less than 4 times in a single game against San Marino where his nation won the match 7-0. This was a qualification fixture for 2010 FIFA World Cup for which Czech Republic failed to qualify.

LOWS

2006 FIFA World Cup:
Much was expected from the striker who topped goal-scoring charts two years back in Euro 2004. However, Baros entered the tournament with an injury that led to his exclusion from first two group games. He did feature in the last one against Italians but could do little to revive his side as they were eliminated from the group stages. A moment to forget for Baros who featured in his first, and perhaps the last World Cup game if he does not plan to come back from retirement.
National Ban:
In April 2009, Milan Baros alongside few other team mates was banned from playing for the national side. The players were found drinking heavily late night after defeat in World Cup qualifier against Slovakia. The forward was however recalled back to national side 4 months later.
Euro 2012:
Baros featured in every game to lead the line but failed to shine. He was booed off the pitch against Russia for a nightmare performance and tried to work hard versus Greece but could not create chances. His only notable contribution at the championships was in the last group fixture versus Poland where he provided crucial assist that ensured Czech’s qualification to knockout rounds. In his final international appearance last night, Baros was largely a spectator and could not provide the spark when had the ball as Czech were ousted without even hitting a shot on target against Portugal.

Czech team spokesman Jaroslav Kolar claimed:

“The other (Czech) players and the coach reacted with a big applause (hearing about retirement) that lasted about five minutes. It was pretty long and it was pretty emotional”

Milan Baros deserves all the praise and applause after closing the curtains on his international career having served his nation for 11 long years.
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