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UEFA Euro 2016


Stromboli1

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So how about all those pre-tournament "Belgium are shadow-favorites" stories, eh? :rofl:

 

How we only manage about 20 minutes of good football in three games combined, with the players at our disposal, is beyond me. Even a Swedish team which had managed no shots on target in the two games prior to facing us looked half-decent when facing Belgium.

 

I hope we have enough to get past Hungary (which will already be a tall order). But then it'll be Wales and Bale, and we already failed to beat them in qualifying (worse still, we failed to score a single goal on them over the length of two games).

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18 hours ago, 17 Moments of Spring said:

I don't like his personality and attitude.

 

And he usurps on the name of a true genius.

 

I can't honestly say that I care for Ronaldo's every character trait either, but his ego comes as part of a package deal that makes him the player he is. Had he not put in a real shift yesterday, Portugal would have been comfortably beaten by Hungary. He refused to give up and delivered crucial goals for his team.

 

That being said, I would expect Croatia to handle this Portuguese side with relative ease in the next round. They're too disorganised at the back and I can't see their midfield being strong enough to stand up to Modric and Rakitic.

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4 hours ago, SympathysSilhouette said:

So how about all those pre-tournament "Belgium are shadow-favorites" stories, eh? :rofl:

 

How we only manage about 20 minutes of good football in three games combined, with the players at our disposal, is beyond me. Even a Swedish team which had managed no shots on target in the two games prior to facing us looked half-decent when facing Belgium.

 

I hope we have enough to get past Hungary (which will already be a tall order). But then it'll be Wales and Bale, and we already failed to beat them in qualifying (worse still, we failed to score a single goal on them over the length of two games).

 

I found it strange that after De Bruyne, Hazard and Lukaku had really begun to fire in the second half of the Ireland game, they once again looked so hesitant against Sweden. More often than not, Lukaku's runs seemed to go unnoticed by attacking midfielders who were more intent on passing backwards than stretching the game or creating space.

 

Still, I'm not sure if I could see Hungary or Wales having quite enough to knock Belgium out of the tournament. There are too many talented players in this squad who can conjure something magical out of nothing. Hazard and De Bruyne haven't even really impressed yet. Surely at least one of them must hit form at some point.

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2 hours ago, Michael* said:

 

I found it strange that after De Bruyne, Hazard and Lukaku had really begun to fire in the second half of the Ireland game, they once again looked so hesitant against Sweden. More often than not, Lukaku's runs seemed to go unnoticed by attacking midfielders who were more intent on passing backwards than stretching the game or creating space.

 

Still, I'm not sure if I could see Hungary or Wales having quite enough to knock Belgium out of the tournament. There are too many talented players in this squad who can conjure something magical out of nothing. Hazard and De Bruyne haven't even really impressed yet. Surely at least one of them must hit form at some point.

 

I hope you are right, but I'm not convinced. We were set up very badly again. We hardly pressed, especially in the second half. We still don't have any recognizable patterns in our attacking play.

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1 hour ago, Stromboli1 said:

It sucks there will be no football for two days, but this weekend and next Monday have a wonderful slate of games.

 

I can't wait. :chicken:

 

Glad it's only a two-day gap, I didn't really want to have to contemplate going outside. :yucky:

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On 23/06/2016 at 2:05 PM, SympathysSilhouette said:

I hope you are right, but I'm not convinced. We were set up very badly again. We hardly pressed, especially in the second half. We still don't have any recognizable patterns in our attacking play.

 

I suppose the disappointing thing for Belgium is that it's hard to see clear progression between now and where they were two years ago at the World Cup. They're a bit bewildering because they seem to lurch from flashes of talent and sweet combination play, to almost completely switching off at times.

 

It might be that Wilmots just suddenly hits upon a system that wrangles them into a more cohesive unit, but even if he doesn't, I still think this group can achieve in spite of him. Either way, it's going to take a good team to knock them out.

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Croatia - Spain. It's also a matter of personal preference.

 

But I think anyone from that top half of the draw can get to the final. Except Northern Ireland maybe. Croatia-Portugal is a 50/50 match imo.

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Croatia is by far the best team in our half of the draw. Unless they have a huge off-day, they should be a shoe-in for the final.

 

Other side of the draw is harder to predict. France still hasn't convinced me, but they have the easiest path to the semi-final on that side of the draw.

 

I think it might come down to fitness and how many/the nature of each team's suspensions, but I think Germany-France will be the semi-final on that side of the draw, with the Germans winning a close contest. Croatia to beat Germany in the final to become another surprise (though not quite) Euro winner.

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^Best result of polish national team since ... I don't remember better result. Well it was great first half. If  strikers improve accuracy we can reach semi-finals. Now I hope we will meet Portugal in next phase.

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Decent start to the knockouts. The reluctance of the Polish coach to refresh his midfield was a headscratcher, but the team looked solid overall. If Lewandowski can sort out his shooting boots, they'll be a handful for Croatia or Portugal.

 

It’s a pity that we'll not be seeing any more of Shaqiri in this tournament, he was the best player by a mile in the second half and extra-time. Man alive, was that goal amazing. :thumbsup:

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It was always going to take a bit of luck or a big mistake to swing that one way or the other, and it came thanks to Bale's superb cross. For the most part though, the game was a colossal bore. Very heavy on physicality and very light on quality.

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