Greece leads Russia 1-0 at halftime in Group A

Published Jun. 16, 2012 4:36 p.m. ET

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Giorgos Karagounis gave Greece a 1-0 lead over Russia at halftime of their final Group A match at the European Championship on Saturday.

Karagounis shot low under Russia goalkeeper Vyacheslav Malafeev with the last kick of the half.

Greece, needing a win to progress, started the match with a defensive set up aimed at stifling Russia's passing game in the midfield, but still had the best of the early exchanges.

Dimitris Salpigidis headed over from close range and Costas Katsouranis flicked on a corner from the right by Karagounis but Malafeev palmed away the ball.

Russia, needing only a draw to reach the quarterfinals, gradually took control and also came close, with Andrei Arshavin sending a close range effort straight at goalkeeper Michalis Sifakis. Aleksandr Kerzhakov and Yuri Zhirkov also came close with long range shots.