GERMANY are expected to be told today that they will have to open their Euro `96 campaign with two star players suspended. UEFA's executive committee are set to confirm at their meeting in Geneva that the one-match bans imposed on skipper Juergen Klinsmann and Steffen Freund for collecting two yellow cards in the qualifying competition will stand, despite German protests.
It will mean they will miss the Germans' opening group C match against the Czech Republic at Old Trafford on June 9th.
The executive committee have been unimpressed by the German appeal to have bookings incurred in the qualifiers discounted for the finals.
Germany have claimed that England would be going into the tournament with all their players eligible because they did not have to play in the qualifiers.
Five other players would also miss opening games: Daniel Prodan (Romania), Yuri Nikiforov (Russia), Marc Hottiger (Switzerland), Danny Blind (Holland) and Miguel Nadal (Spain), who is banned for two matches.
UEFA spokesman Maisimo Gonella said: "The rules are unlikely to be altered because the Germans are upset. When the competition was held in Germany in 1988 and they did not have to qualify, they did not complain then."
UEFA will also announce whether coaches can nominate 21 or 22-man squads for Euro `96. This issue has been discussed for the best part of a year, but after pressure from England coach Terry Venables, among others, UEFA are expected to endorse 22-man squads.
UEFA is also expected to endorse a decision that England will not get back the UEFA Cup berth it lost as punishment for allowing Tottenham and Wimbledon to field under-strength sides in last summer's Inter-Toto cup.
A large part of the one-day meeting will be taken up discussing changes in formats for European cup competitions.
The executive is expected to announce that all 49 UEFA members will receive at least one place in the UEFA Cup,
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