General Comments
June 8
EURO2012
espn contracted michael ballack to commentate??? i love it. good to see ballack, even if it isn't on the field.
June 11
i love how ballack and lalas disagree. lalas is totally american, do whatever it takes to win, kill your mother if you have to, whereas ballack is about playing beautiful soccer, the way it ought to be. can't help but side with ballack on this. joga bonito my friends
June 14
a bit of euro trivia for you anti-german-football-team-peop
July 1
when its all said and done, no one can argue that spain is the best team in the world. even without puyol and davidvilla, they find a way to retain their title, a feat never before accomplished. the italians have to be proud exceeding all pretournament expectations. the germans end a long season with another defeat, and the bayern players must be asking what is wrong with themselves at the moment. a lot of shocks in the group stages but then we saw the real superpowers separate themselves in the knockout. if we can take away anything from this tournament, itd be one of three things: special goalline officials arent good enough to counter the goalline technology movement; the 16-team tournament is the perfect size and a 24 team tournament would definitely not be as exciting; and spain dont care about history and are writing their own, winning tournament after tournament with excellent defense and probing possession. they'll have their work cut out for them in 2014 though, as all world cups held in north or south american have been won by american teams. but for now, enjoy the triumph, viva espana, and forever more joga bonito.
Group Stage
Poland v Greece, June 8
oh my ... 2 extremely harsh yellow cards that were both undeserved leading to a sending off ... and then an OBVIOUS hand ball in the box goes uncalled ... aside from the fact that poland has been playing better, how much did this ref cost them you wonder?
a man down, brilliant chip in from greece, keeper shown a red card for taking the striker out, penalty awarded, sub keeper comes in and SAVES the penalty!! 10 on 10, anyone's game. this is insane. great start to the EURO!
Russia v Czech Republic, June 8
great second game. russians picking up where they left off in 2008. looking forward to the group of death's first matches :-) great opening day for euro2012
Netherlands v Denmark, June 9
fantastic match. ball just wasnt bouncing the dutch way in the first half. danes playing phenominal football in the second. tis indeed the group of death, and the dutch are now in trouble. here's to the danes! this euro is not proving disappointing in the least!!
Germany v Portugal, June 9
oh my!! portugal centimeters from a goal. slow half. hoping for more forward play in the second.
great match. germany defending well, portugal with changes but just couldnt come up with it. bring on group C!
Spain v Italy, June 10
¡Viva España!
umm, Ilustrísimo Señor Marqués de Del Bosque, porque no hay ninguno striker en tu equipo hoy?
is it just me or is iniesta the only one who looks like he wants to score a goal?
listen to those spanish fans cheer!! gorgeous touch into fabregas. give me another please!
seriously, what happened to that sense of urgency? turn it on for 3 mins and score a goal. why can't they play with that pressure some more? dont sit back and take the draw. play for the win damnit.
bring on torres!!!
oh fernando, brilliant run... dow did that not go in? brilliant goalkeeping by buffon though.
umm, can someone mark di natali please?
good game. if only torres was in all game, he might have had finishing form on at least one of his brilliant creations. so goad differential to decide who wins the group now? brilliant keeping by casillas and buffon though. that was a pleasure to watch.
Ireland v Croatia, June 10
sloppy defense by the irish. poor reactions by the keeper. after 3 minutes it already looks over for them :/
GORGEOUS set piece from the irish. back to square one :-)
bah, sloppy in the back. have to clear the ball when you have the chance.
good effort by the irish. handed croatia two goals, nearly took back 1 and some good efforts that also barely missed. good play though, but can't be sloppy in the back and expect to win. bring on group D!
France v England, June 11
oh my, shot on the open net goes well wide, england ruing the opportunity?
good game. england defended well. or was it france that attacked poorly? certainly can't win the tournament playing that slow football, but surely can make it out of the group ... unless zlatan has something to say about it that is.
Ukraine v Sweden, June 11
this game is infinitely more entertaining than the last .... zlatan missing by a few inches, scrambling defenses, fast paced offenses, lots of crosses into the box, all kinds of deflections on shots, attacking down the wings. great game so far
imbrahimovic and Shevchenko swap gorgeous goals from beautiful passes into the box from close range. lets hope this pace keeps up!
excellent match to wrap up the first set of games. ukranian hero shevchenko steps out of history to deliver an equalizer and a winner within 7 minutes of eachother. can't help but feel happy for the co-hosts. maybe they can pull a quick one on france or england as well??
Greece v Czech Republic, June 12
great game coming up. both teams hungry for the three points, not wanting to leave a must-win situation for game 3 with a draw, and a loss spelling doom. here we go, first of the second round of matches in group play. can baros, rosicky and cech ignore their age and play like 20 year olds? will the greeks pull from within and smash a few surprises home? Joga bonito!
oh my, greece finding themselves in a hole early on. greek defenders just giving a little too much space and the czechs taking advantage with a beautiful through ball and excellent finishing. keeper getting a touch but not enough to keep it out. czechs playing with all kinds of confidence now.
oh no, thats 2 now. another beautiful through ball from rosicky, a great pass in, sloppy defending, keeper getting another touch and the attacking man using his entire body more or less to make sure the ball goes forward into the net... not looking good for the greeks, especially against petr cech, even if he is 30 yrs old. after 5 minutes rosicky looks like he can do whatever he wants
umm, why is the greek keeper coming off?? ... apparently when you're 38 you randomly pull muscles while playing in goal ??
oh no, more greek tragedy. a header into beating cech .... from an offside position by a matter of inches. what a difference that would have made.
and thats one back for the greeks after a huge mistake by petr cech. gekas coming on at halftime and a nice nick into the open goal 7 mins in. "a gift on a silver platter". can they drum up another? comeback kings in the making ... ?
"The yellow card club has ever increasing membership in this game"
well, czechs hang on for the 3 points. i wouldn't say they've bounced back completely from their loss to russia. brilliant opening minutes but greece again dominating the second half of play. greece now facing a do or die against russia, perhaps if russia wins this evening they might play lightly since they'd be gaurenteed first place in the group?? im sure poland has other objectives. another good group A game.
Poland v Russia, June 12
dzagoev header off a beautiful arshavin free kick makes it 1-0 in an extremely exciting game thus far. russia on their way to group A victory! poland attacking well though. surely this isn't the last goal. russia have never lost though in a euro when scoring first (11 wins, 1 draw). both sides not without other great opportunities, but good keeping has kept the scoreline down. group A is putting on a better show than any of the 'great' countries thus far!
gorgeous strike from the top of the box into the side netting puts poland equal to russia. absolutely phenominal shot from the polish captain. wonderfully attacking game, pretty balanced as well with opportunities for both sides, and you have to expect that neither side wants to settle for a draw.
great set of games today. after 2, greece and poland needing wins to go through, russia and czech only needing draws. that'll make for an exciting set of games on saturday! on to group b tomorrow, hopefully those teams can gives us more exciting football than they produced in their first set of matches.
Denmark v Portugal, June 13
great first half. cristiano really really really wants to score. and isn't afraid of whining when he doesn't and blaming uneven pitch if a shot goes bad. great set pieces from the portuguese. they certainly are exposing denmark's defensive weaknesses. apparently all the dutch had to do to win was play attacking football instead of just dicking around passing the ball back in forth in the middle of the field. can the danes notch one more to even it up? will the portuguese cry and complain their way to victory? will the portuguese play the beautiful soccer they're capable of on their way to victory? are the dutch totally boned if they dont beat the germans?
well, second half left another excellent 45 of soccer. denmark with some brilliant opportunities, worked hard but couldnt finish them all. cristiano with 2 absolutely gifts of an opportunity but amazingly not putting either into the goal. a sloppy half volley followed by an absolutely gorgeous half volley from an unlikely left back is what gives port their 3 points. the danes surprising us all with their excellent play. certainly without attacking power. can they shock us against germany?
Netherlands v Germany, June 13
germany v netherlands. this better be better than their first group games...
well after one half the dutch are pretty boned. more even play than the scoreline suggests with both teams getting good opportunities, the germans (specifically mario gomez) just has that finishing touch that the dutch dont seem to have today. also, the germans finding ALL kinds of space in behind the dutch defense. they'll need to clamp down and hope for some inspired play in the attacking half to even have a chance to make it out of this group.
well, the second half of netherlands germany wasn't all that different from the first. slightly more attacking play from the dutch, plenty of opportunities on both sides. i wouldnt say the germans dominated by any means, it could have just as easy been a dutch victory. however, the dutch are left needing a big win against portugal and germany to beat up on denmark. not all together unrealistic, but i'm sure they'll be disappointed with their results. to be fair, their play hasn't been all that bad, they just havent had the finishing touch that theyve needed to secure points. everything still to play for, and another great set of third day group matches in the making.
Italy v Croatia, June 14
well after some inspired play by the croatian keeper, a gem of a freekick by pirlo has italy up 1-0... surely they feel it should be at least 3 and i dont think they'll be happy until they score again. croatia certainly has had opportunities, but nothing materializing well for them at the moment. can their keeper continue to give them hope and can they steal one back? itd be shocking in the least
well, croatia didn't look like an attacking threat at all ... until they scored that is. and then all of a sudden they looked the attacking side and italy looked like they were being outplayed. so 70 minutes of italian domination and 20 minutes of croatian domination ends in a tie. You have to expect italy can beat ireland, so croatia seemingly need a point at least against spain ... iono, but i'd say they're boned. im sure italy will complain about the result, but they're really not in bad shape in the group. they've got their destinies in their own hand, and if they win, only a croatia-spain tie that leaves BOTH spain and croatia ahead on goal differential would see them out... i.e. watch out ireland, italy is going to want to beat you by more than just one goal.
Spain v Ireland, June 14
performance of the tournament thus far: ireland goalkeeper shay given. he did a phenomenal job keeping spain to only 4 goals. ireland had one or two chances but just didnt have the midfield to contend with spain. i mean, when you have the likes of cesc fabregas and santi cazorla coming off the bench, you know you have an excellent sqaud. A for effort, but unfortunately that just isn't always good enough. that being said, GO IRELAND. i'd like to see at least a draw against italy.
btw, i TOLD you it was a good idea to play torres. he better start all the rest of the matches this tournament too.
also, 89th minute, down 4-0, irish fans COMPLETELY drown out spain fans. thats really soccer footballing fandom. i love it.
btw, i TOLD you it was a good idea to play torres. he better start all the rest of the matches this tournament too.
also, 89th minute, down 4-0, irish fans COMPLETELY drown out spain fans. thats really soccer footballing fandom. i love it.
Ukraine v France, June 15
well after a rain delay, great defending, some excellent goal keeping by ukraine, and in general just a slowed down game. the field being soaked is probably to blame and not playing styles. i'd be surprised if it finished 0-0 though, there have been some good chances and you cant help but have the feeling that a smart substitution by one of the managers will be what swings the game
well, ukraine certainly with a few good chances, shevchenko among them ... that is until france put in two goals within minutes of eachother. after that it was all france. both sides looking tired. good game nonetheless. either way, its still anyone's group really as we get set for the second match of the day.
Sweden v England, June 15
well, quite a few efforts. good defense and good goalkeeping. or was it poor passing and poor finishing? 1 header destined for goal separates the sides, otherwise relatively uneventful. sweden definitely do not look threatening at the least, nor strong in the middle, nor settled in defense. if they dont at least get 1 pt, they can join the irish on the early flight home. im not sure it can be fixed though. they do not look creative at all in the midfield.
well a sloppy freekick leads to a sloppy shot thats saved and deflected into a defender who takes it into his own goal but nearly cleared it but it ricocheted off the post back into his own goal... all tied up. maybe sweden can steal another but actually make it look good this time
well, that was MUCH better. gorgeous header off the freekick. and the swedes have certainly pulled a bag of tricks out of their pocket. can england respond? im thinking we havent seen the last goal
well that was certainly a lot more exciting than i had though. unfortunately, sweden goes out on a GORGEOUS flick on by welbeck. sets up a great match england v ukraine with the cohosts needing the win. final group games here we come!
Czech Republic v Poland, Greece v Russia, June 16
Well, totally anticlimactic set of first halves until right before the halftime whistle where the Russians decided to disappear and Greece goes up 1-0! However, they were totally outplayed the rest of the half and you have to imagine it won't last
Well shows what I know. Russian shots not finding their target and Poland unable to beat Czech defenses sees czech through on top and Greece on the second place tiebreak... How important are those new tie breaking rules. Only one goal today but certainly not short on drama.
Portugal v Netherlands, Denmark v Germany, June 17
Well certainly a more eventful set of first halves than group a. Germany looked coasting and the dutch looked in full control and then magic goal by Portugal shifted the tide completely to Portugal while Denmark equalizes but still under heavy duress... Not looking good for the dutch and the Danes have their hands full with the German attack. Certainly suspenseful
The Dutch unable to find their groove after the first Portugal goal, the Danes learning the even if you dont think the man your marking will get the ball, you should probably continue marking him, especially if they're german. Great set of group matches.
Croatia v Spain, Italy v Ireland, June 18
well, italy knocking on the doorstep all half. finally crack the irish defense, which has held rather well, off a header from a corner. spain dominating position, but unable to create any clear chances on goal. croatia defending well and closing down spaces and runs. italy just needs to maintain the status quo. spain might think of bringing on fabregas to have another threat opposite torres. i wouldnt be surprised if spain and croatia do end in a draw, although keep in mind the 2nd place time has a potential date with germany in the semis, and winning the group would help either team on a run to the finals. expect spain to be aware of that and not settle for the draw.
torres off for navas?? didn't see that one coming...
for a while there it looked like spain wasnt interested in scoring, but when the croatian defense decides top stop playing, i guess you dont have a choice but to score. italy just too much for ireland, but they did a good job holding them to two. mario balotelli with a gorgeous goal to seal it late. italy look much better than most people thought they would, and spain need to stop playing 11 midfielders and get some strikers on the pitch to attack the goal.
England v Ukraine, Sweden v France, June 19
on whether or not ukraine has a chance of progressing out of the group:
absolutely, but i'd only put it at around 30%. unfortunately, with the new tiebreaking rules they'll need a win to come out of the group even if france lose. however, host nations have a history of digging deep and pulling out miracles. they'll need shevchenko to put on another performance like game one (he was inches from scoring against france though, more than just once as well). their defense will have to be on their toes because i think the english counterattack is a HUGE threat. rooney's back, but we have no idea what kind of form he'll be in, so hope that he's off the mark. I think at the least they'll need to score 2, because I can't see their defense holding england to just 1. I'm pretty sure they'll come out attacking, probably down the wings, but England will be comfortable defending you have to think and pushing up on the counterattack when they have the chance.
well, ukranians knowing they need the win going all out attacking well, england with better chances though, yet no one being able to finish well. france looking the better squad but sweden certainly not without chances, probably the best one as well. neither team really seeming too bothered about a draw.
so a few lucky deflections gives rooney a gift, an absolutely GEM of a goal by zlatan puts the swedes on top (they finally look like the squad capable of wining the group), and the ukranians robbed a goal by the refs.... hopefully this will prove to FIFA that you NEED goal-line technology, the extra ref still makes mistakes
well, ukraine robbed of a goal and a point, but it doesnt change anything. england still going through on top and have a date with italy. sweden playing excellent soccer, france still unable to figure out how to score, and sweden could have even scored more but for some great goalkeeping. one beautiful danny welbeck flick on goal keeping them out of the quarterfinals. great last day of group matches, on to the knockout phase!
Quarterfinals
Czech Republic v Portugal, June 21
here we go, day 1 of the quarterfinals, czech republic v portugal. neither team looking exceptional in match play, although portugal without doubt the tougher set of opponents so far. cristiano finally notching goals in the last group stage match, he'll be full of confidence but more importantly he wont feel as much pressure of needing to score in the competition. we'll see who gets a date with spain/france. Joga Bonito
well, portugal certainly looking the likelier side at this point. attacking well, creating opportunities. cristiano with a shot off the upright, and another bicycle kick sailing just wide. granted, the pitch also see a few mini-hissy-fits from him as well. can the czechs hold on a strike a surprise counter attack? certainly doesn't look like it thus far.
well it was really only a matter of time until portugal scored the way the czechs were playing, and they never really posed any serious threat to score themselves. its unfortunate to see such poor play in a quarterfinal match from a teamp playing in a group that had some very exciting games. certainly not deserving to go through, and portugal without doubt earning their semifinal spot. cristiano scoring once more will do wonders for his confidence and portugal look a serious threat against spain or france.
Germany v Greece, June 22
well, the germans are heavy favorites here. i'm not sure greece has much of a chance at all, especially with karagounis out on suspension. i imagine the germans will have around 2/3 of possession, and greece will do well to make it an entertaining match. they do defend well though, so germany will have to be in good finishing form to win. certainly, nothing is given though, as greece showed europe 8 years ago. joga bonito!
well it was only a matter of time. the greeks defending well for the most part. even with a few chances on the counterattack. the germans will be disappointed they havent scored more with all the possession they have. i'd assume more of the same in the second half, greece moving forward in numbers is just too dangerous so im not sure they'll want to try anything aside from the occasional counterattack. id expect a bit of change from the germans
well the counterattack worked!! how important were those halftime substitutions? absolutely beautiful from salpangidis and samaras
pressure back on germany to score, so i assume more of the likes of the first half. will german desperation prove their undoing? i'd try to find klose on every ball, that man is mr automatic, or gomez if he comes back on. the greek crowd with elation in their chants
well, sami khedira making up for it on a gorgeous volley from point blank range
klose saying thank you very much after the gk makes a horrible charge at clearing the corner. surely now the greek run ends here without doubt
so it took greece scoring a surprise goal for the germans to get their act together. aided by the keeper breaking down and making a few mental mistakes. well played by the greeks for the most part, but the germans too much to handle. so far, two totally one-sided quarterfinals. these next two should be a bit more even.
perhaps if the greeks waited to score later on in the match, the germans might never have kicked it into high gear and they could have stolen it...
Spain v France, June 23
Two teams overloaded in midfield should provide some excellent battling. not sure why Torres isn't playing either. I thought del bosque already tried this and saw it didn't work. Also, why are nasri and evra not playing? These lineups make me think neither manager is interested in scoring goals
A gorgeous header from an unmarked xabi Alonso sends Spain up. Otherwise, lookin very crowded for both attacking sides. Uno mas por favor!
A good first half. Play bogged down in midfield as expected, expect France to make some big subs to try and male a difference. Perhaps Torres might even come on to assist the Spanish counterattack. Second half coming up
Two goals for xabi as he earns his 100th cap. France's attack ineffective leaving the Spanish counter with a few chances. Spain with seemingly all the possession in the second half playing pass as if on the practice field. Great win and now a great all Iberia semifinal to look forward to as well :)
England v Italy, June 24
well england and italy to square off for a semifinal match against germany. both teams with no expectations entering the tournament, and you have to expect both teams must think they can win. this might be the best/most exciting quarterfinal this tournament. great matchup between two evenly matched teams. i think they'll both be pretty aggressive and play for the win. joga bonito!
after one half, some really close opportunities for both sides. a very open game. anyone's game really at this point. might just come down to which keeper is luckier. second half to come
well the pace seriously settling down after more or less an entire half of italian domination. i suppose its just a matter of time until the italians find the back of the net, and im sure they'll want to do that before pks (although i suppose we all know the history the english have in pks ... which begs the question why arent THEY trying to score?)
extra time nothing more than hoards of italians running toward goal. excellent service from pirlo, no finishing good enough to end the game yet though. england playing for pks, but we all know their history, and having to choose between hart and buffon, im not sure anyone would bet against italy. to pks we go with a semifinal spot on the line!
Well, after going up 2-1, Joe Hart guesses wrong one too many times, and a Buffon save plus another miss off the woodwork sends England home. To be fair, the italians were the better team tonight, namely Andrea Pirlo. Joe Hart shouldnt be too upset though, 'english goakpeers have only saved 3 of 31 penalties in shootouts over the last 22 years' and England have done well compared to expectations coming into the tournament.
Semifinals
Portugal v Spain, June 27
well, semifinal 1 at our doorsteps. spain have to be the favorites, but portugal with exactly the players needed to be able to make a difference on a quick counterattack. cristiano with 3 goals on 2 games, looking to extend the streak. again no striker for spain, and personally i simply cant understand it. perhaps portugal can make spain pay for their lack of a pure striker in the box.
so, nil-nil after 45, which really isn't surprising. portugal with some good countering, which is how you have to beat spain. spain playing well in midfield, but once more not having anyone to finish the ball. as much as i respect del bosque, i simply do not understand this tactic of playing 6 mids and no strikers. i dont care if torres isn't who he used to be, 5 mids are more than dominant enough, and the absence of a pure striker is KILLING spain. hopefully torres comes on soon enough before portugal pulls a fast one on spain and then sits back and defends themselves, which is exactly what they'll be trying to accomplish.
One of the most disappointing halfs of play from both teams, Spain especially. Portugal without doubt the better chances in the second half, and again, Spain playing as if they have all the time in the world. Unfortunately, they only have 30 more minutes, and I dont think anyone would prefer penalties versus winning in extra time (or even better, regulation). Somehow it looks doubtful del Bosque will put in Torres, which again, is just baffling to me. I dont understand it in the least. Ronaldo on the other hand will be ruing his opportunity late in regulation when Portugal looked poised to go up 1-0. Will Spain actually go on attack? Will cristiano actually shoot the ball on target? Will the extra time be of as poor quality as the rest of this match? Lets hope for something not that last one.
well thats much better from spain, an excellent 30 mins of play. if only they did that earlier in the match. several excellent chances, particular 2 from iniesta, one of which im still not sure how it went in. Pedro with some excellent runs. But none of the matters, its all down to a penalty shootout for a spot in the final. Portugal have never lost in two penalty shootouts in major tournaments the last being in 06 against england, Spain 3 from 6 in major tournaments their last being the quarters against Italy in 08. This really is a coinflip. Here we go...
what an INTENSE shootout. both teams having their first shots saved .... sergio ramos channeling his inner andrea pirlo and then portugal bouncing one off the crossbar, sets up cesc fabregas with a beautiful penalty coming into the goal off the upright leaving the keeper helpless. Spain are through, and they will have a chance to make history on Sunday. Who they will face decided tomorrow. Nerve-wrecking stuff, and portugal once more seeing their hopes dashed.
Germany v Italy, June 28
spot in the final against spain up for grabs. germany must be favorites here, although italy has surprised a few people and are certainly not without talent. pirlo has looked brilliant for italy, so you have to wonder if someone else can step in to help out or if he will be smothered by germany's strong midfield. should be a good one, joga bonito
well who saw this coming? 2-0 after the half ... from a balotelli double! Surely he'll be looking to complete his hattrick, and those two less days of rest don't seem to be a factor at all. Perhaps Gomez AND Klose on the pitch can lead Germany back. Germany not without chances though, just unable to find that lucky touch. Surely one of the more exciting halves of play is coming up next with a spot in sunday's final coming down to these last 45 minutes.
im slightly surprised gomez came off for klose. its not like gomez was playing all that poorly, and why not play both up top? oh well
well exiting stuff in the last few minutes, and its italy through for a group c rematch in the final. germany can hardly believe it and their trophy draught continues. perhaps the team was tired from bayern's long and painful season. either way, italy and spain will both look to improve on their 1-1 draw from the group stages. sets up for an excellent final, and who saw italy through to the final before the tournament? excellent semifinals, and only one more match left unfortunately (platini is ok with going to 24 teams but no third place match? i dont get it)
Final
Spain v Italy, July 1
