For Croatia a
performance that just about encompassed everything that the Sunday game against
Austria was not. Comfortable, composed and confident Croatia was well organized
and prepared to largely stifle the Germans attacking options.
Germany may
have had the edge in play but it was Croatia that had the definite advantage in
clear chances. With Kranjcar moving into a more central role Germany had
trouble dealing with the numerical advantage that Croatia held in midfield.
Marcell
Jansen underwent a torrid time at left back and his failure to deal with Pranjic’s
cross (a reminder of how very few crosses we have seen so far in this
tournament) saw Srna turning the ball in at the back post for the first goal. Not
long after Kranjcar had another great chance but Lehmann pulled of####reat
reaction save.
Not
surprisingly Jansen was substituted at half time with Fritz dropping back to
right back and Lahm switching sides. Impact player Odonkor came on ............but failed
to make any impact. Croatia’s second goal (from Olic) seemed to have put the
game well beyond Germany reach only for Podolski to score a cracker. The effect
of the goal may have clouded how good a goal it actually was.
But with ten
minutes left and their lead halved rather than panicking Croatians moved into
what was their most impressive spell of the game. Playing in three and fours
with one touch passing Croatia killed off the game and left only enough time
for Bastian Schweinsteiger to get
himself sent off.
Croatia within a hairs breadth of qualification and Germany now has to
beat Austria and even then they may still have to keep fingers crossed.
Man of the match – Given a free role by Slaven Bilic Niko Kranjcar proved impossible for Germany
to control.
Austria 1-1 Poland
It was a match that delivered much more in the way of incident and excitement than might have been expected. Austria came away with a
share of the points after it looked as if their pressure – particularly in the
first half – was again destined to deliver nothing. A point each keeps both
countries in with a chance to advance but Austria could have had this one
wrapped up in bows before thirty minutes was on the clock.
The Austrians streamed
forward in waves with Korkmaz and Harnik raiding almost at will down the flanks.
As the Polish defence went AWOL it was Artur Boruc vs. Austria. The Celtic
keeper stymied Austria at least four times and he was the reason Poland was
still in the game by the time they took the lead.
The goal came completely
against the run of play as it so often does and it came from a
Southampton-Brazil combo accompanied by a hint of offside. Southampton’s Marek
Saganowski saw his “shot” find Brazilian import Roger Guerreiro who had no
trouble from close in.
The goal took the sting
out of Austria’s attack in as much as they stopped creating chances although
still enjoyed the edge in possession. The second half lacked the cut and thrust
from Austria as the Polish defence reasserted their position. Then with stoppage
time minutes ticking down and a second Polish goal on the break looking more likely
than goal from the co-hosts – finally a goal for Austria and from the penalty spot.
The old man of the
tournament Ivica Vastic put his foot through the shot and the valiant
Boruc went the wrong way.
Update – No group B tie breaker is possible. Croatia qualify
as group winners and will play Turkey or the Czech Republic. Germany will join them
with a win or a draw against Austria. An Austrian win combined with Poland not
beating Croatia will put the co-hosts into the last eight. However, in order to
finish second Poland needs to beat Croatia by a goal more than Austria beats Germany
by. So Germany or Austria or Poland will play a rested Portugal.
Comment of the Day
"People
often think coaches can predict results. Coaches are like you, they are very
bad at giving predictions.” - Arsène Wenger
Tie Breaker
There seems to be a fair bit of confusion regarding the tie breaker rule for the group stage.
Excerpt Competition
Regulations – 7.07 and 7.08
If two or more teams finish equal on points after
all the group matches have been played, the following criteria will be applied
to determine the ranking :
(a) Greater number of points obtained in the matches
between the teams in question.
(b) Goal difference resulting from the matches
between the teams in question (if more than two teams finish equal).
(c) Greater number of goals scored in the matches
between the teams in question (if more than two teams finish equal).
(d) Goal difference in all the group matches.
(e) Greater number of goals scored in all the group
matches.
(f) Coefficient of points from the last two
qualifying competitions for the final rounds of the 2006 World Cup and Euro
2008 (points gained and divided by the number of matches played).
(g) Fair Play conduct of the teams (final
tournament).
(h) A drawing of lots by the Organizing Committee.
Criteria (a) to (h) above are not applicable
under these circumstances :
If two teams meeting in one of the last group
matches have the same number of points, the same goal difference and the same
number of goals, and if this match stands at a draw at the end of normal time,
then the ranking of these two teams will be determined by kicks from the
penalty spot, provided no other teams within the group have the same number of
points on completion of all group matches.
Conventional wisdom would have had an early goal for Croatia offering up the platform for a resounding win. Conversely the Austrians would have been expected to fold given the form guide going into the tournament. As it was the early penalty kick turned into a curse for Croatia and a blessing for Austria.
The early goal (a dead-cert penalty decision) seemed to dull Croatia’s appetite for the game as they failed to string passes together in any meaningful way. Without Ivica Olic the Croatian attack would have been completely anemic with Petric utterly anonymous.
With Croatia showing little ambition to increase their early lead the Austrian’s slowly settled into the game, grew in confidence and from the 30th minute onwards they dominated large chunks of the match.
Croatia allowed Austria far too much space in midfield as time and time again the co-hosts were allowed time to look up and to pick out their targets. Modric and Srna were particularly culpable as Austria regularly found Martin Harnik on the right side with raking crossfield passes.
Substitutions by Croatia’s manager Slaven Bilic failed to turn the ever increasing tide of Austrian attacks while each change rung by opposite number Josef Hickersberger upped the pressure on the Croatian defence.
In the end Croatia played poorly but still took three points; for Austria a glorious loss.
Three games gone and no surprises - so far.
Germany 2-0 Poland
After an early goal in the first game of the day, we could have had two in the first five minutes of this one. The first chance fell to Poland after Lehmann chose to try and gather a cross under pressure rather than punching clear. The fumble dropped awkwardly to Jacek Krzynówek who shot over from just outside of the box.
Only a couple of minutes later Klose caught the Polish back four flat-footed and square and was left with a clear run on goal. Rather than shooting Klose opted to pass to Gomez who in arriving late had to stretch to make contact. It made for a weak connection and the ball rolled agonizingly past the post.
Both incidents were to be harbingers as the first half progressed. Krzynówek was the central focus of most of the Polish attacks, while Klose again beat a stagnant Polish defensive line to find himself one-on-one with Boruc.
Once more Klose opted to pass but this time it was Lukas Podolski who was in support and he potted the chance. By half time it could well have been 3-1 as Germans continued to press with purposeful play and although Poland continued to look shaky under pressure they still carved out a great chance for Zurawski.
Half time substitute Roger Guerreiro helped Poland to their best period of pressure in the first twenty minutes of the second half but after Podolski scored with twenty minutes left a German win was never in doubt.
Podolski produced the best individual performance of the tournament so far and it was not just down to his two goals. Starting on the left side of midfield Podolski worked hard getting up and down the park and was a constant irritant to Poland.
Germany will be happy with the result and satisfied with the performance. Poland can take something away from this game as well. The defence and midfield settled down after a wobbly start but they look to have same problem as a number of other countries at his tournament – no one to finish at the business end.
Comment of the Day
In my Spain preview I included this comment - "Spain’s soft spot might
be in midfield and that in turn may put the centre of defence under stress and
strain. In midfield tidy passing types pervade but they may turn out to be
lightweight over potentially three weeks of competition. Ball possession may
not be a problem but moving the ball quickly to the strikers could be".
Writing in The Times Gabriele Marcotti provided his thoughts on the Spanish dilemma and in the process he included some memorable alliteration.
"Cesc Fabregas may be the best
foreign midfielder not named Michael in the Premier League, but it holds little
stock with Luis Aragones, the Spain manager. His place with Spain is in serious
jeopardy which, frankly, seems extraordinary until you look at the midfielders
at Aragones' disposal. For whatever reason, Spain excels at producing
pint-sized pass-happy pixies: Xavi, David Silva and Andres Iniesta are all in
the same mould, creative little fellas who can pass the ball to death. The
problem is, you can only fit so many of them in your team.
Already Aragones is having to deploy
Iniesta and Silva wide, despite the fact that both are probably more suited to
a central role. And while deploying Xavi and Cesc together in the middle is a
sexy idea, Spain need at least one holding midfielder, otherwise they'll be
steamrollered. And that spot goes to Marcos Senna. Which means that Aragones
has two options: he can either go with a 4-5-1 formation (but that would mean
leaving out the in-form David Villa) or he can make a difficult choice between
Xavi and Cesc. And, in that case, Xavi would be favored by a mile. It's
debatable that he's a better player, less debatable is that he's more
experienced and plays his football in Spain which means that, if things go
horribly wrong, Xavi's exclusion is likely to haunt Aragones for far longer."
Before we gaze into the crystal ball here are some statistics collected from UEFA.com and other sources on the players, countries and club affiliations at Euro 2008.
Players Oldest – Ivica Vastica a midfielder for Austria will be 39 in September which makes him six weeks older than Germany’s goalkeeper Jens Lehmann.
Youngest – Swiss forward Eren Derdiyok will no longer be a teenager when he turns 20 in six days time.
Tallest – Czech Republic forward Jan Koller stands at 202 cms. which is little over 6 foot 8 inches. But beware Koller and other tall players have been known to grow during major tournaments. Commentators take it upon themselves to add half an inch here and there and so if the Czechs reach the final game don’t be surprised if Koller is over seven foot by June 29th.
Shortest – The player jumping up and down in the tall grass will be Romanian midfielder Florentin Petre who is nearly 5 foot and six and a half inches although he claims that the wall chart in kitchen shows six and five eighth inches.
Countries (average) Oldest Sweden 29.14
Italy 29.10
Greece 29.05
Youngest Russia 26.13
Switzerland 26.38
Spain 26.40
Countries with players 21 or under at the start of the the tournament - 21 Switzerland, Portugal, Austria and Turkey 3 each
Croatia, France and Poland 2 each
Romania, Czech Republic and Spain 1 each
Countries with outfield players 34 or over at the start of the the tournament - 16 Austria, Sweden, France, Croatia, Italy and Czech Republic 2 each
Poland, Italy, Germany and Turkey 1 each
Countries with the fewest domestic based players in their squad Croatia 2
Czech Republic 3
Countries with the most domestic based players in their squad Russia 22
Germany and Italy 19
Tallest (average) Croatia 184.91 (a smidgen under 6 foot 2 inches)
Germany 184.87
Switzerland 184.61
Shortest (average) Spain 179.61 (180 is 6 foot)
Turkey 180.35
Portugal 180.57
Players contributed by clubs Panathinaikos (Greece) and Lyon (France) 10 each
Galatasaray (Turkey) and Bayern Munich 9 each
Premiership clubs represented – 17 of 20. Arsenal and Chelsea 7
Liverpool 5
Manchester United 4
Highest representation of players by league Germany 56
England 43
Spain 41
Italy 36
Russia 30
For those making predictions don’t be to despondent should your “dead-cert can’t lose winner” get off to a slow start. There is ample evidence to show that countries can recover from a set-back or two at the group stage and still go on to the final or even win the Championship.
1980 – Belgium won only once in the group stage but went on to finish as runners-up to Germany.
1984 – Spain recorded just one win in three group games but qualified for the knock out stage all the same and finished as runners-up to France.
1988 – The Netherlands lost their opening game of the tournament to the Soviet Union but gained revenge when the counties met again in the final when the Dutch won 2-0.
1992 – Danish players were recalled from the beaches and golf courses of Europe to take the place of Yugoslavia. Denmark had a draw and a loss in their first two group games before beating France and moving into the last eight. From there the Netherlands were beaten in a penalty kick shoot-out and the Danes took the title beating Germany 2-0 in the final.
1996 – The Czech Republic lost their opening group game 2-0 to Germany but rebounded to make the final against the same opponent. However, Germany doubled the Czechs with a golden goal from Oliver Bierhoff.
2004 – Few would have predicted that the two countries that opened the tournament would also make it all the way to the final match. But that was exactly what happened. Greece beat Portugal 2-1 in the opener and then again 1-0 in the final.
However, few seem to remember that the opening game win was Greece’s only victory in group play. The second match was a 1-1 draw with Spain and Russia then beat the eventual winners 2-1. Portugal actually won group A while Greece only moved on based on scoring more goals than Spain having finished tied on both points and goal differential.
Predictions Before anyone jumps all over anyone's predictions there is one rule. No criticism allowed unless you also post your own predictions under the comments section. A scoring system can be found at the end of my predictions.
Group A 1. Portugal 2. Czech Republic 3. Switzerland 4. Turkey
Group B 1. Germany 2. Croatia 3. Poland 4. Austria
Group C 1. France 2. Romania 3. Italy 4. Netherlands
There has to be at least one surprise and for me this is it. I flipped between France and Italy not to qualify and the decision eventually swung on Cannavaro’s injury and the potential France have available from the bench. We will see.
Group D 1. Spain 2. Greece 3. Sweden 4. Russia
Quarter Finals Portugal to beat Croatia
Germany to beat Czech Republic
France to beat Greece
Spain to beat Romania
Semi Finals Germany to beat Portugal
France to beat Spain
Final Germany to beat France
Prediction scoring system 1 point for every group position picked correctly.
2 bonus points for getting 1st or 2nd position in the group correct
3 points for correctly predicting the winners of each of the quarter final matches
5 points for correctly predicting the winners of the semi finals
10 points for correctly predicting the winners of the competition.
By my calculation sixty-four points (64) constitutes the maximum score.
Germany (twice as West Germany) has won the European Championship in each of the decades since the seventies – 1972, 1980 and 1996. This is a last chance to keep the streak going.
How they qualified Germany was the first country to secure qualification through group play but finished as runners-up in Group D to the Czech Republic after drawing two and losing one of their last four games.
The Germans finished two points behind the Czech Republic but ten points ahead of the Republic of Ireland. Lucas Podolski scored nine times (five in one game against San Marino Nil).
In all Germany had twelve different scorers (plus an own goal) contributing to their total of thirty-five goals – the most by any country in the qualifying round.
The Coach The switch from World Cup boss Jurgen Klinsmann to Joachim Loew has been seamless – an improvement even. Given that the improvement came about from a willingness to experiment and to offer youth a chance means that Germany’s performances since Klinsmann moved on can be categorized under the heading of extremely impressive.
But with the improvement comes increased expectations and most German fans expect another European Championship this summer. A far cry from 2006 when the World Cup was being dreaded rather than anticipated.
Key Players Michael Ballack’s late season return to form is encouraging for Germany as an in-form and revitalized Ballack is pivotal to German hopes. The German defence looked wobbly in the early going of the 06 World Cup but matured into a solid unit.
Per Mertesacker (Werder Bremen) and Christoph Metzelder (Real Madrid) will be likely be depended upon at the centre of the defence although doubts linger as to the Spanish based players fitness. Bayern full backs Philipp Lahm and Marcell Jansen enter the tournament as German’s first choice full backs.
David Odonkor will probably play the role of speedy substitute once again while Mario Gomez, Miroslav Klose and Kevin Kuranyi will rotate through the two striking positions.
Great Euro Memory With three European Championships and another twice as runner-up there are no shortage of memorable moments for German fans. However, the 3-0 destruction of the Soviet Union in 1972 can be considered special given that it ushered in a period of dominance for German football.
Runners-up to England at the 1966 World Cup and a beaten semi finalist to Italy four years later the 1972 tournament was a break through win. A Gunter Netzer inspired performance destroyed England in the first leg quarter final at Wembley and Gerd Mueller scored doubles in the semi final win over Belgium and again in the final against the Soviets.
A World Cup win followed in 1974 and West Germany became the first country to hold the two trophies at once. At the club level Bayern Munich completed a hat trick of European Cup wins in 1974, 1975 and 1976 while Borussia Moenchengladbach won the 1975 UEFA Cup.
Synopsis What do you do if you are 3-0 up against Germany? Make sure you score another goal that way you will at least get a draw. Such is the never say die spirit of Germany a country never to be discounted in a big tournament.
Germany looks to have more fire power than they did two summers ago and have received a favourable draw – but don’t they always. And you know that if penalty kicks are needed that there are few teams that will fancy their chances against the Germans.
Coming Up in World Cup Qualifying Liechtenstein, Azerbaijan, Wales, Finland and Russia in Group 4.
Amazingly this will be Poland’s first appearance in the finals.
How they qualified Poland seemed to be suffering a severe World Cup hangover as they started with a home loss to Finland, a draw away to Serbia before a second half goal away to Kazakhstan gave them their first three points.
They then set off on a run of six straight wins before a three game stumble brought a loss and two draws. Nonetheless they recovered to win Group A and finishing a point ahead of Portugal and four ahead of third place Serbia and Finland.
Ebi Smolarek was Poland’s top scorer in qualifying with nine goals including a ten minute hat trick away to Kazakhstan after a power failure.
The Coach Leo Beenhakker broke an 85 year-old tradition of Polish born coaches when he took over from Pawel Janas after the last World Cup. For the sixty-six year-old Dutchman it is another stop on a road that has seen him manage more than twenty teams since taking his first coaching join in 1967 with Go-Ahead Eagles.
At the international level Beenhakker has coached the Netherlands and Trinidad and Tobago at 1990 and 2006 World Cups.
Key Players Ebi Smolarek spent time with Feyenoord and Borussia Dortmund before moving to Racing Santander in Spain last summer. However, Smolarek can be a temperamental character who has been known to lose the plot from time to time.
Celtic’s Artur Boruc is currently the starting goalkeeper while Beenhakker is able to leave Jerzy Dudek out of the squad all together. Premiership-based keepers Lukasz Fabianski and Tomasz Kuszczak are in the Polish squad.
Great Euro Memory Polish fans will be hoping that the best is yet to come.
Synopsis A lack of consistency and quality has hurt Poland in the past and it may strike again. The final group game against Croatia may require a Polish win if they hope to move on to the last eight.
Coming Up in World Cup Qualifying The Czech Republic, Northern Ireland, Slovakia, Slovenia and San Marino will provide the opposition in Group 3.
Simon Kuper on the pleasure of playing just for the sake of playing.
Moritz Volz talks of player platitudes and interviews.
John Giles’ thoughts on the arrival of Dennis Wise at Newcastle.
I received an e mail over the weekend that said I was full of you-know-what when I claimed that Guinea was ranked third by FIFA in Africa. Sorry but here is the FIFA ranking for Africa.
An excerpt from an interview Robert Pires gave to Champions magazine.
Another Sunday, another draw. This time it is for the European Championship Finals. Here are some initial thoughts on the draw and what might be in store.
Group A Switzerland, Turkey, Portugal, Czech Republic
June 7 – Switzerland vs. Czech Republic, Portugal vs. Turkey June 11 – Switzerland vs. Turkey, Czech Republic vs. Portugal June 15 – Switzerland vs. Portugal, Turkey vs. Czech Republic
Summary The Czech Republic and Portugal will start as the favourites to move on but as one of the co-hosts Switzerland should not be easily discounted. The Czechs have a fine history in this tournament and made it to the final game in 1996, the semi finals in 2004 and were unlucky to be drawn together in a group with co-hosts the Netherlands and eventual winners France in 2000. However, the Czechs would have preferred not to have drawn the co-hosts in the opening game of the tournament.
Portugal is another country that has performed well at the last few European Championships. After going unbeaten at the group stage in 96 the Portuguese went out to the Czechs in the last eight when Karel Poborsky scored the only goal of the game. In 2000 they took winners France to extra time and it needed a golden goal from a Zidane penalty to decide the game. As hosts in 2004 their tournament got off to a poor start when they lost to Greece. Although they bounced back and made it to the final they again faced Greece and lost once more.
Turkey missed out on the 2004 finals although they qualified in 1996 and 2000. There appearance in 1996 was a first at the European Finals and they went winless in three games. Lessons were learned and four years later they made it to the quarter finals where they lost 2-0 to Portugal. Qualification for 2008 consisted of a series of highs and lows. A great start was highlighted by a 4-1 away win against European champions Greece. A series of poor performances and dropped points meant hopes of qualification were rapidly receding before two wins (including a come-from-behind win away against Norway) saved the day.
As co-hosts Switzerland will enter the tournament without the advantage of any competitive matches since the 2006 World Cup. However, Coach Kubi Kuhn will be hoping that his young side can build on a solid performance in Germany last summer. Switzerland made it to last summer’s World Cup after beating Turkey is an ill-tempered play-off game and memories of this are unlikely to have receded by next summer.
Keys Under manager Karel Bruckner the Czechs are the consummate team. Any side that knocks off the Czechs can look forward to going deep into the tournament.
Portugal will be difficult to break down but their progress might be largely dictated by whether or not they can find a reliable international goal scorer.
Which Turkish side will turn up at the tournament?
Switzerland went to the last sixteen in Germany last summer and was knocked-out without conceding a goal. Another strong defence showing – although in 2006 goalkeeper Pascal Zuberbueler seemed to more lucky than good! – and some opportunism in front of goal might generate the kind of momentum that leads to a shock or two.
Group B Austria, Poland, Germany, Croatia
June 8 – Austria vs. Croatia, Germany vs. Poland June 12 – Austria vs. Poland, Croatia vs. Germany June 16 – Austria vs. Germany, Poland vs. Croatia.
Summary Based on performances Germany will not be particularly concerned with their draw. However, with two traditional rivals in Austria and Poland this group will have a derby game flavour and that should be a cause for concern. A re-emerging Croatia side will also be looking to repeat their countries famous win over Germany at the 1998 World Cup in the knock-out stages.
Poland bounced back from a poor start in qualification to move on with room to spare. Surprisingly this will be Poland’s first appearance at the Euro Finals and they will be looking to make it to through the group stage of a major tournament for the first time since 1986. Poland pushed Germany all the way last summer before losing to a late goal. However, it was a poor display and a first game loss to Ecuador that was critical. A win over Austria is mandatory if they are to have a realistic chance to progress.
By knocking out England in group qualifying Croatia lost any chance of sneaking under the radar. Slaven Bilic has created a confident and competent side that should make it to at least the last eight.
Austria have already been labeled as the worst country (performance-wise that is) ever to host a major tournament. They are so bad that a group of Austrian fans started a petition that asked the team to withdraw in order to save face.
Keys Germany has a huge target on their backs and needs to meet their historical rivals Austria and Poland head-on. A slow start might be costly.
Poor starts have cost Poland dearly at the last two World Cups and they can ill-afford a repeat.
Expectations are so low that even one win in the group stage might be considered a success for Austria.
The schedule has been kind to Croatia with an over-matched Austria first. Next up is Germany before what might be a decider against Poland in the last group game.
Group C Netherlands, France, Romania, Italy
June 9 – Romania vs. France, Netherlands vs. Italy. June 13 – Italy vs. Romania, Netherlands vs. France June 17 – France vs. Italy, Netherlands vs. Romania.
Summary As soon as this draw was made the Group of D***h label was applied. No team can be overlooked here.
Romania only lost one game in qualifying and that was once they had guaranteed their spot in the finals. Along the way they beat Netherlands for the first time ever and now look to be fulfilling their potential of a few years ago.
France , insults, Italy, Materazzi, video replay, Zidane, revenge, head-butt, World Cup Final, sisters, Domenech saying something stupid – that is what we have to look forward to for the next six months. At least it won’t be go to penalty kicks – unless they hook up again in the semi final game!
The draw was not kind to the Dutch and then the schedule really put the boot in. Italy followed by France is not what the Dutch would have wanted. The 1988 European Championship remains the only major trophy won by the Netherlands. After this tournament it is unlikely that this will have changed.
Keys As the best-known Romanian players Adrian Mutu and Christian Chivu are going to garner most of the headlines but this squad has a lot more depth than just these two. In any other group Romania would have an excellent chance to move-on but ….
France made it the World Cup Final last summer with one of the oldest squads ever seen at the Finals. It is almost inconceivable that they can repeat while looking to the same core of veterans …or is it?
Italy won the World Cup with a squad of players that were almost all in the prime years of their footballing lives. Donadoni needs to squeeze out another round of great performances before moving on. If he can, then a World and European double is not out of the question.
Goal scoring was a problem during group qualifying and in a number of games the Dutch were only a goal way from embarrassment. Chances have to be converted on a more regular basis or the Dutch may be out of contention before game three.
Group D Greece, Russia, Spain, Sweden
June 10 – Greece vs. Sweden, Spain vs. Russia June 14 – Greece vs. Russia, Sweden vs. Spain June 18 – Greece vs. Spain, Russia vs. Sweden.
Summary This is probably the most open group and a lot of attention will be paid to the amount of grey hair in charge pulling the coaching strings.
The reigning European Champions Greece has bounced back after failing to make the 2006 World Cup Finals. A humiliating home loss to Turkey (4-1) was the only bump on the 2008 road which was then negotiated without too much difficulty.
Spain has now made it to the last fifteen of sixteen major finals and has generated a lot of momentum since starting poorly in group qualifying for 2008. But as we all know Spain’s problems normally start when they reach the finals of a major tournament. The squad is more than solid containing a number of players that could find a place in any team in the world. However, until they win a major final (1964 is so long ago and pretty much discounted) the doubts will remain.
There were a few hiccups along the way for Russia but major tournaments and Guus Hiddink seem to mix very well. Like Spain, Russia has (the Soviet Union did win the first European championship in 1960) rarely delivered on the world stage and one of Hiddink’s challenges is to instill a sense of believe in a squad that has considerable talent.
Sweden has a great record of qualification for major tournaments and is always a difficult opponent.
Keys There will be no element of surprise for Greece this time. The other fifteen countries will be well prepared should Otto Rehhagel opt for a repeat performance of stifling defence and opportunism in front of goal. What can the coach come up with this time?
Hiddink’s ability to chop and change on the fly as needs arise is almost without parallel. Spain needs to finally win a must win game. If they can do that then maybe years of disappointment will melt away.
If Sweden is to drive deep into the tournament then it is probably going to be on the back of Zlatan Ibrahimovic. The talent has never been in doubt and from his early season performances for Inter he seems to have now achieved a level of consistency that has previously been missing.
Quarter Finals June 19 – Winner Group A vs. Runner Up Group B, (Game 25) June 20 – Winner Group B vs. Runner Up Group A, (Game 26) June 21 – Winner Group C vs. Runner Up Group D, (Game 27) June 22 – Winner Group D vs. Runner Up Group C, (Game 28)
Semi Finals June 25 – Winner Game 25 vs. Winner Game 26, (Game 29) June 26 – Winner Game 27 vs. Winner Game 28, (Game 30)
Final June 29 - Winner Game 29 vs. Winner Group 30.
Henk Ten Cate will bring attacking verve and a notoriously short temper to Stamford Bridge, writes Daan Schippers. Cate or should it Ten Cate played 21 games for the Edmonton Drillers in the NASL in 1980.
Former Manchester United winger and now Dallas resident, Gordon Hill, chimes in with his thoughts on the dearth of young English talent. What a sight Hill and Steve Coppell were on the wings in Tommy Docherty's Manchester United side of the mid-seventies.
The G14’s response to Michel Platini’s proposals to reshape football in Europe.
Ask fans to name the first Dutch team to win the European Cup and many will blurt out Ajax. However, Feyenoord beat them to it. Here is an abbreviated article on their coach Ernst Happel who also took the Netherlands to the 1978 World Cup Final.
Glenn Moore on the Premiership striker’s best friend – Paul Robinson.
Touch blue (no pun intended) paper and retreat. SFA Chief Gordon Smith chimes in on Old Firm bias.
The surgeries and treatment rooms of Europe are full of football players – so we must have another break for European Championship qualifying. But this time over the next five days there is also the start of the marathon that is South American qualifying. And so this week we start in South America.
The last two World Cups have seen Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador and Paraguay qualify both times with Uruguay moving on through a play off in 2002 after finishing 5th in the ten country group. Uruguay repeated as 5th place finishers two years ago but failed to negotiate a way passed Australia.
Whichever country finishes one behind the four automatic spots two years from now will play the 4th place CONCACAF team rather than New Zealand (sorry that should have read the winner from Oceania).
Winning at home is critically important in any competition but South American World Cup qualifying reinforces just how important it actually is. Tracking back though the 2002 and 2006 qualifying results show that the top four have only lost three games out of their 72 home games and have drawn only 14.
In 2006 the “final” four only lost once at home (Paraguay to Colombia), drew 8 and generated 89 points from a possible total of 108 - 82%; in 2002 two games were lost at home (Ecuador to Argentina, Paraguay to Colombia), six were drawn producing 90 points out of possible 108 – 83%.
Go back a further four years and although World Cup holders Brazil did not have to qualify, the overall outcome was very similar. Argentina, Paraguay, Colombia and Chile all qualified with Argentina unbeaten at home. The others lost four games but three of them were to table topping Argentina. Even so the top four still generated 88 out of a possible 108 points at home (81%).
Argentina are at home to Chile who have former Argentine coach Marcelo Bielsa in charge of a competitive game for the first time. Chile made the headlines for all the wrong reasons at the Copa America this past summer and Bielsa has his work cut out if he is to make it to South Africa 2010. He has some very promising youngsters on the threshold of solid international careers but qualification for a World Cup may have to wait another four years.
Brazil start with an away match against Colombia and Ecuador hosts the ever improving Venezuela. Bolivia are preparing very differently for an opening game at sea level against Uruguay and then a home match against Colombia at altitude in midweek. Domestic players are continuing to train at altitude while foreign based players (including DC United’s Jaime Moreno) are working out at lower levels. Peru versus Paraguay is the other game.
European Championship qualifying for next summer’s finals in Switzerland and Austria may give us a first qualifier this weekend to join the co-host nations. However, if it does happen it won’t be from Group A.
The top four countries all face potential banana skin matches. Group leaders Poland have never made it to the Euro finals and are two points clear at the top with three games left. On Saturday they are at home to Kazakhstan, a country they beat 1-0 earlier in qualifying.
Serbia are away to Armenia (in their final four games Serbia plays the bottom three and host Poland in the last round); Finland travels to Belgium – a tricky fixture for Roy Hodgson’s side; Portugal with four draws in their last 5 matches travels to Azerbaijan.
Scotland may lead Group B and may “only” require two wins and a draw to qualify but I have this horrible feeling that this is the weekend (or Wednesday) when it all goes pear shaped. And before I receive any e mails questioning my “Scotchness” let me tell you something. Any Scottish fan over the age of 25 has to be worried or they are brain dead.
Far too many Scottish football revival articles being printed for my liking. For every piece I’ve read I can come up with a heart breaking disappointment. In reverse chronological order – losing 6-0 to Holland Euro 2004 qualifying; knocked out of the 2000 Euro play off by a poor England side; losing to Morocco 3-0 World Cup 1998; Costa Rica, a 1-0 loss WC 1990; 1986 WC scoreless draw against 10-man Uruguay for 89 and a half minutes; Hansen and Miller in a Keystone Cops routine WC 82 in a must win game versus Russia; Iran 1978 1-1 ; losing 2-1 to Spain at Hampden 1974 European qualifying; Zaire World Cup 1974, at least that was a 2-0 win; England 1968 at Hampden; losing two late goals to Poland 1965 at Hampden; World Cup play off against the eventual runners up Czechoslovakia in Brussels in 1962. And there are more. If Scotland goes through I will be as happy as anyone. But until that moment arrives my skepticism will be unabated. Oh yeah, they play Ukraine at Hampden on Saturday.
Germany are the most likely nation to be the first to book one of the remaining 14 spots. Unbeaten in eight games with seven wins and a draw, the Germans need only a share of the points when they play the Republic of Ireland in Dublin. A loss for the Irish would put the Czech Republic within a sliver of joining the Germans.
England should be able to qualify with a win over Estonia and then draws against Russia and Croatia. But rather like my feeling about Scotland, I am tending towards a counter intuitive view of England. Impressive wins over Israel and Russia a month ago can only mean an unimpressive display is on the cards versus a poor Estonia side. No matter they will get three points which will nicely set up Wednesday’s massively gigantic showdown clash (a bit of tabloid stuff there) in Moscow.
Israel faces a mammoth task in beating Croatia in Zagreb if they are to maintain a realistic chance of advancing. The last time these two countries met Arsenal’s Eduardo da Silva notched a hat trick as Croatia inflicted a 4-3 home loss in Israel. A win on Saturday would put Croatia impressively through with two games to spare.
Denmark and Spain renew a bitter rivalry (bitter for the Dames anyway) with Denmark desperate for a win that will keep them in contention for a top two spot in Group F. Since 1984 Spain has beaten Denmark in the 1984 European championship in France; thrashed Denmark 5-1 at the 1986 World Cup; won 3-2 at the group stage of Euro 88; defeated Denmark at the qualifying stages of the 1990 and 1994 World Cup and lost the corresponding fixture of this competition 2-1 back in March.
Denmark have six shut outs in eight games but none of their four wins have come against any of the top three teams. Even so Denmark currently trail Spain and Sweden by 5 points and Northern Ireland by two a win here could put the Danes in a decent position. Spain, Sweden and Northern Ireland all have to play each other while Denmark has to face the Irish (a) and Latvia and Iceland at home.
Sergio Aguero will garner the headlines but there was much to admire in Argentina’s overall performance and their 3-1 win over Poland. With the second half only seconds old Aguero flicked to ball up and over the Polish defender, pivoted and deposited the ball past Bialkowski.
Aguero’s second of the game, with only five minutes remaining, was another for the highlight reel as he took the ball past the keeper in Romario-style (around the 400 goal mark not the thousand) and rolled the ball over the line.
The first goal from Argentina that pegged the Poles back to 1-1 was simply spectacular. Banega who was the source of such much creative play in the Argentine midfield started the play ten yards inside his own half. The ball eventually reached little Moralez the other side of the halfway line and he proceeded to skin four Polish defenders. Given the outcome the last defender must have regretted pulling out of a tackle which would have stopped the Argentine number 17 but would have likely led to a yellow card.
On Moralez went playing a one-two that he then picked up in the penalty box before squaring to Di Maria who scored. Moralez operated just behind the front two and his pace and dribbling skills were a constant menace to Poland.
Eight minutes before Dawid Janczyk had put the Poles into the lead after the Argentine defense was caught ball watching. Was it offside? Perhaps, but it was an extremely close call and Argentina did not appeal the decision.
Poland was a worthy opponent and tackled ferociously but fairly most of time and Janczyk’s sending off in the last seconds of the game was more due to frustration than any malicious intent.
Argentina moves on and awaits Mexico or Congo in the quarter final.
As a post-script fifteen minutes after the game the Argentina fans are holding an impromptu celebration in the north end of BMO Field that looks as if it is going to continue for a good while.
It is the second day of the round of sixteen and if we can come close to the drama and excitement of yesterday, we will be doing well. I’m heading to the stadium to watch Argentina and Poland in twenty minutes and if I pick up any additional information I will be sure to pass it on.
The last time I watched Argentina live was the 1996 Olympic Final in Athens, Georgia. Nigeria won 3-2 in what was a classic encounter. The Argentina squad in 1996 contained the likes of Hernan Crespo, Claudio Lopez, Robert Ayala, Javier Zanneti and David Beckham’s (the obligatory mention this week) pal Diego Simeone.
Atleti_female - over to you on Argentina's chances. Any Polish fans that would like to contribute - feel free.
Congo beats Canada and so the four best third place finishers come from groups A, B, C and D. The draw for the last sixteen is now final and on side one its Austria vs. Gambia; USA vs. Uruguay; Spain vs. Brazil; Japan vs. Czech Republic.
On side two it is Chile vs. Portugal; Zambia vs. Nigeria; Argentina vs. Poland; Mexico vs. Congo.
In the quarter final round it will Austria or Gambia vs. USA or Uruguay and so on. The winner of that quadrant will play the winner of Spain or Brazil vs. Japan or the Czech Republic.
I'm heading to Toronto to cover the USA vs. Uruguay and Argentina vs. Poland games.
The remaining federation was Oceania represented by New Zealand who finished last in group C. Unlike the World Cup where you often have countries from the same federation drawn in the same group the under-20 tournament has no such duplication. It can make for some interesting comparisons.
Both South America (four for four) and Africa (four for four) lead the qualifiers based on home federation. UEFA has more countries in the last sixteen (5) with Scotland failing to move on from group F. CONCACAF have two countries out of a possible five qualify while only Japan out of the four Asian representatives have been successful.
Points gained by federation after the first group round:
FEDERATION P Pts % South America 12 21 58 Africa 12 21 58 Uefa 15 24 53 Concacaf 15 20 44 Asia 12 12 33 Oceania 3 0 0
You can send any information (fsr@mts.net) that you think might be of interest about the twenty-four countries and I will post a regular selection. If you have a FIFA Under-20 blog go ahead and post your link under comments.
Scotland fans are well use to failures at World Cups. But as of last night Scotland has now taken it to a different level. Scotland’s last second loss to Costa Rica meant that not only are they heading home across the Atlantic but they also reduced the host country Canada’s chances of moving into the last sixteen. You invite someone to your party and they “water” your living room carpet!!
Yesterday was not a good day for the host nation as the options for qualifying for the knock stages eroded as the day went on. Prior to group B action the best scenario for Canada was this.
What Canada needs to do to definitely move on. Must win (against Congo) and… Hope Scotland and Costa Rica draw or….. Zambia and Jordan don’t win.
But Zambia did win.
And so before Group F action it had been reduced to – Update - What Canada must do to move on. 1. Must beat Congo and… 2. Hope Scotland and Costa Rica draw or if Scotland or Costa Rica win….. 3. Canada must then win by enough goals to finish with a better record than the other countries that finish third with three points.
But Costa Rica did win and so we are down to essentially two games that will decide Canada’s fate.
First of all here is a recap of the process to decide the four best place finishers from FIFA.com. “The four best place finishers will be determined by; most points gained in group matches, goal difference in all group matches, most goals scored in all group matches, fair play system in which the number of yellow and red cards are evaluated, drawing of lots”.
So applying the tie breaker rule we know that after yesterday’s games that North Korea is definitely going home (only two points) while Brazil (3 points and a minus 1 goal differential but have scored 2 more goals than Costa Rica) is moving on. Zambia’s win pushed Uruguay into third place but with four points they make it to the last sixteen with at least a point to spare.
So that leaves two of four spots for the best third place finishers left to fill. The teams that are left to fight it out are Portugal, Gambia, New Zealand, Canada, Congo and Costa Rica.
As they say in golf, Costa Rica is in the club house and they have set the bar (or is it they are sitting at the bar?). Here is each of the team’s positions.
Although on paper New Zealand is still in with a chance they are at a severe disadvantage. They are the only country left that could win today (against Mexico) and still finish bottom of their group. Because Portugal plays Gambia and Congo plays Canada a win for any of these countries means that they are guaranteed to finish no lower than third. So we are going to discount the chance that the Kiwis and fate can conspire to produce an unprecedented set of results and focus on the other four.
Portugal is clearly in the best position to move on and can afford to lose 2-0 to Gambia and still qualify because of goals scored. If Gambia can score the first goal then Portugal might be more inclined to cruise rather than chasing a game and possibly being hit on the break and losing heavily.
That's an advantage to Gambia but conversely they sit in a rather precarious position because of their goal differential of -2. Canada and Costa Rica especially will be hoping that Portugal can win. That scenario would put Costa Rica through. Canada would also then move on if they beat Congo (by any score) and Gambia lost by two goals to Portugal. A two goal win for Portugal is clearly the best case scenario for Canada.
If Portugal only wins by one goal then Canada should be hoping that Gambia is shut out in the process. A high scoring one goal win for Portugal would require Canada to exceed Portugal’s high scoring one goal of a difference win or beat Congo by two clear goals. If Portugal scores first then Gambia will have nothing to lose by piling forward.
Unfortunately for Canada there is one more possibility which may actually be the most likely outcome of the Portugal and Gambia match-up. A draw would mean that the group positions would stay as they are and both Gambia and Portugal would move on. That would leave Canada needing a three goal win to move on at the expense of Costa Rica.
No matter the outcome of the late afternoon games we know that when Congo and Canada kick’s off tonight both countries will know what is required. In the case of Congo they know already. A win puts them through to the last sixteen – with the possibility that they could still finish second in the group. A draw does neither country any good and so if we get an early first goal then the other side is going to be forced forward which could mean a lot more opportunities at both ends. The first goal in any game is critical but even more so tonight.
Latest Betting on today's games
Canada 2/1, Draw 11/5, Congo 11/10.
New Zealand 10/1, Draw 9/2, Mexico 2/11.
Portugal 4/5, Draw 7/4, Gambia 4/1. (I like the odds on a win by Gambia)
FIFA Under-20 World Cup Champion
Argentina 3/1, Mexico 4/1, Spain 7/1, USA 8/1, Portugal 9/1, Nigeria 10/1, Uruguay 11/1, Brazil 11/1, Chile 12/1, Japan 14/1, Czech Republic 20/1, Poland 33/1, Zambia 50/1, Austria 50/1, Costa Rica 125/1, Congo 200/1, Gambia 200/1, Canada 300/1, New Zealand 500/1.
Has there ever been a time when you could get odds of 11/1 on Brazil in a men’s international tournament at the last sixteen stage?
