EURO 2016: Five things to know about Czech Republic

Five facts about the Czech Republic ahead of Euro 2016 where they face Spain, Croatia and Turkey in Group D.

MUST READ: Five things you need to know about Croatia

MUST READ: Five things you need to know about Spain

MUST READ: Five things you need to know about Turkey

MUST READ: All you need to know about GROUP A, GROUP B, GROUP C, GROUP D, GROUP E, GROUP F

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1) Lucky sixes

Two Euro tournaments have so far been played in years ending with a 'six', and the Czechs made a mark at both.

In 1976, former Czechoslovakia, which split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia in 1993, won the title in a penalty drama in Belgrade following a 2-2 draw in the final against Germany.

Antonin Panenka converted the final kick as he introduced his falling-leaf penalty style. Twenty years later, the Czechs lost 2-1 to Germany in extra time at Wembley to take silver.

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2) Leaky defence

In 19 games under coach Pavel Vrba, the Czechs have not managed a single clean sheet, despite having the reliable Petr Cech in the goal most of the time.

(Last December Cech set the English Premier League record of 174 clean sheets in December).

Vrba has yet to find two stable centre-backs, with Basel's Marek Suchy and Bursaspor's Tomas Sivok looking like an option.

The next opportunity to finally grab a zero will be the first game at the Euro -- against Spain.

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3) The Rosicky factor

Will he play or will he not?

Tomas Rosicky has played 100 games for the Czech national team since his international debut in 2000, but the figure could have been much higher if it had not been for injuries.

The 35-year-old Arsenal midfielder and Czech Republic captain has managed just one league game since picking up an injury in a Euro qualifier in Iceland in June 2015.

Coach Pavel Vrba has said seeing Rosicky play was the only condition he had before calling the stalwart up.

"For Arsenal's first team or academy, it doesn't matter," Vrba said. "There's no point in discussing his qualities as a player."

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4) Drunk-driving defender

David Limbersky, the first choice on the left-hand side of the Czech defence, added a few wrinkles to Vrba's forehead after slamming his Bentley into a fence while drink driving last September.

The 32-year-old Viktoria Pilsen icon tried to flee the accident but was quickly caught by a policeman who, fans said, would thus deserve a spot on the national team.

Limbersky, who caused damage worth over 18,500 euros ($21,000) to his car, faced up to three years in prison but a court shelved the case in January after Limbersky had paid the damage and promised not to drive for a year.

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5) Six in a row

While world cups are a rare pleasure for the Czechs, they have not missed a single Euro since 1996, a feat rivalled only by France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain.

After finishing second in 1996, they took the bronze in 2004 with a star-laden midfield comprising Pavel Nedved, Karel Poborsky, Vladimir Smicer, Tomas Rosicky and Tomas Galasek behind their offensive weapon Milan Baros, the tournament's top scorer with five goals in as many games.