Michael*

I wouldn't normally be that bothered by Ronaldo making a statement like that, except that I remember Portugal's last three opening tournament games and the total absence of attacking intent they showed in all of them.

France got there in the end against a brave Albanian side, and the second goal by Payet was another cracker. A very flat performance overall, but how many times have we seen a team tear up the group stages, only to end up going home after the first round of knockouts. I can't believe we're into the second lot of group games already.

What started as a potential dud ended up turning into a really fun game. Lovely goal by Hamsik to decide it.

I’d suggest Cristiano take a long hard look in the mirror, but well, you know. Iceland’s presence alone at the Euros is a minor miracle, they used what was available to them and produced a wonderful fighting performance. The last few games have really proved that individual stars can be upstaged by teams full of spirit. The writers in Reykjavik played a blinder last night, too...

That was quite fun, wasn’t it? What a terrific result for Hungary, one of the real outsiders at the tournament. While Ronaldo and Bale continue grabbing the headlines for being miles better than any of their teammates, the much less heralded Alaba seems to be in a similar position with Austria. He was by far their best player, always involved at both ends of the pitch and really unlucky not to grab himself a goal.

Belgium-Italy was pretty much the ultimate example of the difference that a coach and his philosophy can make to a game. It beggars belief that despite being 1-0 down and facing at least three defenders on yellow cards, Hazard and De Bruyne didn’t try to run at them more. Lukaku was atrocious too, if rather isolated by Fellaini's inability to turn and run forward. All is not lost for Belgium though, at least not yet. Origi might be erratic in front of goal, but his mobility and close control caused Italy problems. I can't imagine there's any conceivable way that he and Dembele don't start the next game. When was the last time an Italian team came to a big tournament without being described as ‘ageing’? It might be time we did away with it as a word implying some kind of limitation or weakness in reference to international football.

Yeah, I can't imagine a conceivable way that any network would allow an unadulterated version onto our screens, but if it's even a tenth as interesting and entertaining as the original work, then it'll be well worth watching. I'll certainly give it a shot if and when it reaches the UK, I'd like nothing more than to see them knock one out of the park, so to speak.

How sad that the Czech Republic seem to have so little going for them these days. I can't be the only one who remembers how brilliant they were at Euro 2004. Such a thrilling attacking force, probably my favourite team of that decade.

I've been dreaming of seeing a good adaptation of this for quite a while, although I can't help thinking that nailing the tone is going to be a real challenge. The books were so dark, so dry, so outrageous and yet so oddly plausible at the same time. Seth Rogen's involvement makes me a bit nervous too.

Should be fascinating to see how Spain get on later today. Despite Del Bosque's apparent struggle to work out what it is that he actually wants from his new wave of players, this is still a squad packing immense strength in depth. For a nation who've made this tournament their own so often in recent years to be so widely unfancied now feels a bit off.

A weird microcosm of the British media's attitude towards Mesut Ozil last night. The commentators spent the full 90 minutes either running him down or damning him with faint praise, despite him actually playing really well. Late on, his awareness to make a diagonal run and then with a quick glance up, provide Schweinsteiger with a goal on a silver platter, was a touch of absolute class and yet his involvement went virtually unheralded in the moment. Even Schweinsteiger himself seemed willing to celebrate with anyone and everyone, apart from the man who'd just assisted him.

I've a frivolous fiver on Belgium to win it all and another one on Giroud to top score. My past success rate isn't too bad, although I only ever gamble when there's a major international tournament going on.

I like it. If you can get Dembele pulling the strings in midfield, every opponent will be in trouble. Add Fellaini or Witsel and allow Hazard, De Bruyne and/or Carrasco enough freedom to choose their moments to drift. I'm always a bit torn on Hazard though, if I'm honest. Having witnessed first hand when he single-handedly ripped our back four to shreds, there's no doubt that he's extremely talented, but he can also be quite flaky. Still, aside from a slightly uneven defence, this is a very able squad. Wilmots has no excuses.

A victory 58 years in the making for Wales and the perfect start for them. I don't know if I could see them setting the tournament alight in the later stages, but they should qualify from the group quite comfortably, which in itself would be a fantastic achievement. I think we start Thursday's game as second favourites now.

That would be another strange one. In general I quite like Fellaini, but he seems to disrupt Belgium's play more often than not, even in games where he chips in with a goal or two. Do you think Carrasco will get a chance? He's really shown his talent for Atletico as of late, although I'm not sure if I'd consider him a reliable 90-minute performer just yet.

A harsh lesson for England there. You could sense complacency setting in towards the end, and a mistake or a lapse in concentration almost felt like an inevitability. In fairness, they looked decent for the majority of the game, but a really good side would have turned their dominance into a comfortable lead. What came afterwards was shocking in the extreme. This is fast becoming a serious issue for UEFA.

Yeah, I'd noticed that the Russian fans had started setting off some of their pyros, but there was one in particular that sounded very loud, at least on television. Quite a scary moment.

Wasn't overly excited about Albania-Switzerland, at least not compared to today's other games, but now I'm quite looking forward to it. The intriguing subplot involving the brothers Xhaka goes a long way to boosting the curiosity factor.

Remember all those tournaments when sections of England's travelling support didn't act like idiots? Me neither, unfortunately. Anyway, stay safe my friend. Hope you enjoy tonight's game.

Hopefully not too good, though.

I'm given to understand that Wilmots is dead set against playing Vertonghen and Alderweireld in their club positions, which seems like a bit of a head-scratcher. Particularly after they enjoyed such a superb season as a centre-back partnership.

A bit harsh on Romania perhaps, they probably surprised a few people tonight. I can still see France making it to the final, a hard-fought win in the opening match is quite often the hallmark of real contenders and it gives them something to build on. Plus, when you have a player like Payet who can bust out a goal of such majestic quality, you've always got a chance.

I've moved this into the Model ID section.

Yeah, I think making a good start is going to be imperative for us. If we don't, then the Wales game suddenly becomes a high-pressure situation. Not too sure about most of the Russian players, although they seem quite functional. I remember their team at Euro 2008 being really exciting, but in more recent tournaments, they've been undone mostly by their own lack of pace and ambition. Having two central defenders in their mid-thirties could be a problem for them, too. We'll find out soon enough.

The Beeb seem to be playing it safer than ever this year, but ITV's squad has a surprisingly leftfield look to it. The prospect of putting Lothar Matthaus, Tony Pulis and Eni Aluko in the same room at the same time must surely be some kind of threat to the space-time continuum.