Warsaw: Polish officials guaranteed that the country will be ready to host the next European football championships after a visit by UEFA head Michel Platini amid concerns Poland and co-hosts Ukraine are behind schedule in their preparations.

"Platini and I listed all the warnings regarding the state of Poland's preparations for Euro 2012," said Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Wednesday. "And I can happily highlight that the plan - which we accepted and the UEFA accepted - is being realised."

Tusk said he guarantees the plan would be carried out and that Platini recognised Poland as "reliable." Sports Minister Miroslaw Drzewiecki said his meeting with Platini went "very well," and assured that all projects would be completed either before or on the deadline. He said that while Platini was well informed, "today he saw for himself that everything was coming along on schedule."

The report on the visit by the boss of the sport's governing body in Europe will be completed in September and the final decision will come in the autumn on Poland and Ukraine hosting the tournament.

The visit came amid rumours the two former Soviet-bloc nations could lose the championship to better prepared and willing hosts like Italy or France. Platini is slated to visit Ukraine on Thursday, where tensions are high amid long-stalled work on a decrepit stadium and worries about the country's ability to hold its share of the games.

Last year UEFA officials said Poland wasn't making enough progress in building stadiums, hotels, roads and airports. In January, Platini warned organisers of "critical slippages" and said the months ahead would be critical. He gave organisers another "wake-up call" in March.

Source : IANS