UEFA Euros 2012, Groups are set, begin tournament talk

So they had the draws for the Euros next year so folks.. it's time to get our Euros thread started! Yes, we have to wait til June for the tournament to begin but we can look at the group stages and make predictions, etc. Here is how the group stages look!

Group A:
Poland
Greece
Russia
Czech Republic

06/08/12: Poland vs Greece, Russia vs Czech Republic
06/12/12: Greece vs Czech Republic, Poland vs Russia
06/16/12: Czech Republic vs Poland, Greece vs Russia

Group B:
Netherlands
Denmark
Germany
Portugal

06/09/12: Netherlands vs Denmark, Germany vs Portugal
06/13/12: Denmark vs Portugal, Netherlands vs Germany
06/17/12: Portugal vs Netherlands, Denmark vs Germany

Group C:
Spain
Italy
Ireland
Croatia

06/10/12: Spain vs Italy, Ireland vs Croatia
06/14/12: Italy vs Croatia, Spain vs Ireland
06/18/12: Croatia vs Spain, Italy vs Ireland

Group D:
Ukraine
Sweden
France
England

06/11/12: France vs England, Ukraine vs Sweden
06/15/12: Sweden vs England, Ukraine vs France
06/19/12: England vs Ukraine, Sweden vs France

Quarter-Finals:
06/21/12: Group A winner vs Group B runner Up
06/22/12: Group B winner vs Group A runner Up
06/23/12: Group C winner vs Group D runner Up
06/24/12: Group D winner vs Group C runner up

Semi-Finals:
06/27/12: Group A W/Group B 2nd vs Group C W/Group D 2nd
06/28/12: Group B W/Group A 2nd vs Group D W/Group C 2nd

Finals:
07/01/12: ? vs ?

I definitely have stuff to say but will make those comments later. Just getting this going for now!

PREDICTIONS:

- The finals will be Brazil vs Antarctica.

- Someone will be jump-kicked in the chest.

- Nikolai Volkoff will sing the Russian National Anthem before all their games, inspiring them to victory in their group.

- Scotland and Wales will form their own continent and hold a competing tournament, however both nations will fail to qualify and the Faroe Islands will be victorious.

- Over/under on hyper-excited ALL CAPS word that Dro will write about the tournament: 2,188. Take the over.

- The finals will end when Sultan Azam Sharif throws the captains of both teams off the interview platform, leading to a double countout.

OK, my thoughts and predictions, group by group!

Group A:
Poland
Greece
Russia
Czech Republic

Some are scoffing at this group and the Russians cheered like they automatically made it into the Quarter-Finals when the draw was announced. I think Russia will probably advance, yes, but I think this group will be tougher than some expect. I think Poland will turn out to be tougher than they seem at the moment because they are co-hosts of this tournament and host nations usually rise to the occasion. On the other hand, both Czech Republic and Greece have the potential to make it out of this group. It's a very hard group to call, in all honesty. I'm going to make a wild guess that Russia wins the group, Poland somehow squeek in 2nd place.

Group B:
Netherlands
Denmark
Germany
Portugal

This is the GROUP OF DEATH! I think Germany will win the group, but 2nd place.. could be anyone! Even Denmark could make surprises! Every match is going to be a HUGE match up in this group and it will be one that everyone should make time on their schedule or dvrs to watch the games. I pick Germany going first and.. Portugal or Netherlands finish 2nd.

Group C:
Spain
Italy
Ireland
Croatia

Oh how my heart sank when I saw Italy drawn in this group. Italy are a historic bogey team for La Furia Roja, the last Euros being the only time we have been on the winning side against them in a tournament in my lifetime at least. (that I can remember). I think Spain make it out of the group but I think Italy will top the group. In the end, I feel bad for Ireland, they had to do so much to make it to the tournament. They should've been in Group A, they would've had a fighting chance. Here, I just don't see it for them. Italy tops this group, Spain finish 2nd.

Group D:
Ukraine
Sweden
France
England

English everywhere cheered at drawing this group. I think England make it out but I think they are gonna have a hard time. France is steadily improving and IMO will top this group. Sweden may very well knock England out of the group, and Ukraine is a co-host and they may surprise here. But I think France wins the group, England in 2nd place.

Quarter-Finals:
Russia (Group A Winners) vs Portugal (Group B Runner Ups)
Italy (Group C Winners) vs England (Group D Runner Ups)
Germany (Group B Winners) vs Poland (Group A Runner Ups)
France (Group D Winners) vs Spain (Group C Runner Ups)

Semi-Finals:
Portugal vs Italy
Germany vs Spain

Finals:
Italy vs Germany

Winners: Germany

That's how I see the rest of the tournament going. I would LOVE if Spain won it and became the first country to win 3 major tournaments in a row but I find it highly unlikely. Germany is in the ascendency, I think they're winning it all.

I think Netherlands or Spain will take it home. Germany may very well be eliminated in Group Stage already. In my opinion, Loew is too hesitant bringing in new players and trusts "the old guard" too much since that group features some tough, tough match-ups.

My pessimism for Germany is grounded, as always in my doubts about Loew. Germany may have done well in spite of him lately, but he seems to insist on pushing "the old guard" like Podolski, Klose and Friedrich which may prove Germany's undoing.

At least it promises to be an exciting tournament. Too bad I won't be able to attend any of the games. It would have been a short trip to Poland but I won't get days off at work next summer.

Fabio Capello resigns as manager for the England national team amidst the FA going over his head to strip John Terry of the captaincy due to the racial abuse charge against Terry stemming from a Chelsea-Queens Park Ranger game. Harry Redknapp is the most likely candidate to replace Capello. I kind of see both sides to this in all honesty. I see why Capello would be mad at the FA going over his head BUT.. I also see why the FA would not want someone who has a criminal trial coming up in the future (conveniently after the Euros) for the charge of racial abuse to be the captain of the English national team. I kind of think Capello should've just tooken it on the chin and done his best come the tournament but now I fear England will do really poorly and this will be yet another excuse fest for them to blame their failures on. Oh well.. We shall see what happens this summer! VIVA ESPANA! OLE OLE!

Roy Hodgson is appointed the new manager of England officially this morning. Not sure really how I feel about it one way or another. But it's an opportune time to BUMP this since the Euros are a month away!

Anyone up for some fantasy football for Euros 2012?! I created a league for us! Go to... http://en.euro2012fantasy.uefa.com/ then register, sign in, create your team, and at some point when it comes to joining leagues click on the private league option and type in this code: 64553-16152 and you should have joined this league: JTF-Euro2012 So.. YEAH! Should make the upcoming Euros even mor efun when we have FANTASTY FOOTBALL AT STAKE! If you remember we did something like this for the last World Cup in 2010 and I sent the winner (or actually the runner up cos I ended up being the winner but that was a prediction league) an art postcard. I'll do the same this time around, the winner (or runner up if I win but I doubt I will win in this type of league) will get an postcard with art by me on it in the mail! So let's do this! Woo! BRING ON THE EUROS!

EDIT: I realized there is a subforum for the fantasy sports so I started a thread there for the above so yeah!

BBC Panorama did a piece about racism in Poland & Ukraine ahead of this summer's Euros 2012 (starting 2 weeks from this Friday) and.. wow.. Watch the below but be warned it is very very very rough emotionally.

EURO 2012 STARTS TOMORROW! *MARK OUT MANIA* To celebrate here is a Euro 2012 Prediction Preview Special under 20 minute edition of Viva Football podcast! Go to.. https://sites.google.com/site/fantasyfightnetowrk/dromania and find viva-football-euro2012-preview.mp3 and.. ENJOY! And tomorrow... 9:30am Eastern, 10:30am Central, IT BEGINS! WATCH THE EUROS! WATCH THEM AND ENJOY THE BEAUTIFUL GAME OF FOOTBALL!

I'm running out of time to get a prediction in under the wire, so here it is... if there's going to be a surprise team winning this tournament, it will be Russia. They've got a brilliant goal scorer in Arshavin (who we already know can handle the pressure, given his performance in 2008), they will have time to ramp up their game given the easy group they're in, and they should be cohesive given how many of their players play on Russian club teams together in St. Petersburg or Moscow. It's not who I'm rooting for - I'm hoping for a miracle from Ireland somehow - but if I had to pick a longshot, that's who I'd bet on.

Russia looked FANTASTIC against Czech Republic today though if they had played that openly against Spain or Germany I almost feel they would've been cut to ribbons. I'm going to save my thoughts on the games til I do a mini-podcast probably on Monday covering all of the first round of group games but I am also putting up quick thoughts on my twitter account at https://twitter.com/#!/texanspaniard but I will say briefly.. GREAT FIRST DAY FOR THE EUROS! If you missed the games, catch the replays late tonight. Great first day!

A quick thought on the first half of Germany-Portugal... the card handed out very late in the half really annoyed me. Nani was definitely fouled (not sure if it was worthy of anything more than a free kick, though), but what bothers me is that he chases after the ball, and only later when he realizes he won't catch up to it does he flop to the ground like he was shot with a cannon, some twenty or thirty feet past the spot where he was hit. I hate to see diving like that rewarded with a card.

'Dro's Euro 2012 Thoughts Vol.01
-Well my plan was to do podcasts with these notes but I decided today (Monday) that I don't feel like yelling into the microphone so.. YOU GET MY NOTES! These are notes I took during the games and some random thoughts at the end so enjoy!


06/08/12
============================
Group A:
-Poland vs Greece
[Opening ceremonies were very elaborate, kind of cool. National anthems, these always tug on my heart because my mother and me loved to watch national anthems together. Anytime you see national anthems before games in tournaments think about stuff like that. Polish fans, WOW. They were so loud in singing along with their national anthem, gave me goosebumps!
1st Half:
Poland pressing, had about 4 good chances to score before they finally do off a header from Lewandowski. There was one chance before the goal where they totally opened up the goal and not scoring was criminal, I thought it would come back to bite them but no, they scored soon after and go 1-0. The red card for Greek was very very harsh. One could say if he doesn't get the first yellow then he's in no danger for the 2nd but it doesn't change.. the 2nd yellow the guy was slipping and falling already on his own, the Greek player does not do anything to send him down. A very harsh red card. Will be interesting to see if this leads to more goals from Poland in the 2nd half or if this leads to a siege mentality thing from Greece in defense or attacking. Poland definitely the better attacking side in the 1st half, deserve to be up 1-0 but Greeks don't deserve to be down to 10 men.
2nd Half:
WOAH! Greece have equalized! I go to the handball and I come back, someone scored! BAH! Wow, I was not expecting Greece to equalize! Can Poland fight back here? FUCK it's disaster. Sciezny concedes a PK and gets redcarded! It's 10-10 now. Fuck. This is turning into Polish disaster. Now the GK sub has to defend a PK. Fuck. HE SAVES IT! HE SAVES IT! OH MY GOD HE SAVES IT! UNBELIEVABLE! WOW! This is a fantastic dramatic first game! WOW! GREECE SCORES.. It's offsides! Oh My God! After surviving that PK situation but wow.. Poland needs to shape up! Greece defense is fantastic, they can just stop a game when they want to. Well, it ends 1-1. Poland better in the 1st half, if they had made some of those 4-5 opportunities they had they would've won easy. Greece was unfairly put down to 10 men in 1st half. 2nd half, Greece way better, deserved to win it in the 2nd half. 1-1, in the end a fair result. Heck of a game. Really good opening game to the tournament. Drama, action. Fun stuff!]


-Russia vs Czech Republic
[1st Half:
Opening 10 minutes, Czechs dominate, press well, control possession. But then Russia take over and score soon after. They did a great move that opened the Czechs up but initially a header goes off the cross bar and I was like THEY BLEW IT THEY CUT THEM OPEN BUT THEN THEY BLEW IT but no... the ball bounces out to another Russian.. IT'S IN THE NET! It's not long after that Russia score yet another! 2-0! Russians control until the last 5 minutes or so when Czechs seemed to get back into the game but no goal. Good first half of footy!
2nd Half:
Open attacking football, really good football in this 2nd half! Czechs take one back and then press for a while but the Russians then regain their rythm and press and press with wave after wave of good football and it finally pays off with a 3rd goal! Some really nice football here. A 4TH GOAL! What play by Roman Pavlyuchenko! He kept the ball alive going this way and that, not stopping til he makes his space and.. BLASTS IT IN THE NET! Russia are fantastic here! Aww, it looked like Czechs got a 2nd goal but it was offside. 4-1 for Russia here. Really good game, really fun, Russia were really good, Arshavin if he played this well in club football everyone would want him. Good stuff!]


06/09/12
=============================
Group B:
-Denmark vs Netherlands
[1st half:
Netherlands start off controlling game, looking like how most people expected this to look but then.. NETHERLAND SCORES! It's a different game now! For a bit after the goal Netherlands are scrambling in too much of a panic because it's still early in the game relatively. Then most of the rest of the 1st half Denmark take over the game and if not for some finishing issues they probably could've scored more.
2nd Half:
Netherlands had some great opportunities, including the one Sneijder set up that Van Persie blows but Denmark's defense holds up. Denmark pull off the upset, everyone is STUNNED and yeah.. It is pretty shocking! Maybe not the best match at times but it was a good match and continuing that anything can happen idea of this tournament.]


-Germany vs Portugal
[Some people really disliked this match. I had to see it in bits and pieces after it happened but what I saw was almost like a cagey boxing match or something. It was kind of cagey, was kind of physical but was always interesting what I saw of it. Mario Gomez delivers the winner for Germany and Portugal had bad formations IMO. There are ways to use Ronaldo where he is more effective to say the least. The result I expected but it wasn't easy, none of the matches will be.]


06/10/12
============================
Group C:
-Spain vs Italy
[FRUSTRATION! GAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! Spain deploys basically a 4-6-0 formation trying to go at it with no striker up front and Italy outplay us and if not for Iker Casillas who knows what the result would have been. Mario Balotelli was too volatile, he played well enough but it was smart to take him off. And of course, off goes Mario, on comes Di Natale.. Pirlo assist.. GOAL! GAHHHH! But.. 3 minutes later... Silva to Fabregas.. GOAL!! 1-1! Fabregas comes off, Torres comes on... *sobs* I'm torn. Spain played better the last 15-20 minutes that Torres was on and he created great movement and made two great opportunities. The problem? HE BLOWS THOSE OPPORTUNITIES. The chip one... THAT FUCKING CHIP ONE! You just need a simple chip and it goes into the wide open net since Buffon has run a mile away from goal. Torres chips it alright.. INTO THE CROWD. GAHHHHHHHHHHH!!! Xabi Alonso had two good chances that he shot wide as well in this period. GAHHHHHHHHH! FRUSTRATION! Sticking with my pick that Spain isn't winning this tournament. Italy looked better than they've looked in some time. Frustration aside this was a good game, a really good game. Some good football, some good drama, some good stories in the match. I just wish Torres hadn't blown that DAMN CHIP AND WE COULD'VE WON THE MATCH! *CRIES*]


-Ireland vs Croatia
[I only got to see stretches of this match. Alot of folks are talking up Croatia because of the result. I didn't come away from it that Croatia were so fantastic particularly as more Ireland used horrible tactics in this match. I get why. Ireland felt this was their best chance to win a match so they went all out BUT.. you can not go all out if you do not have the means to pull that off. Ireland don't have the means for that, they should've been more cagey, more defensive and tried to score on the counter or on a set piece. Instead trying to go all out got them ripped open and Croatia just had to finish their chances. At least Croatia could do that unlike Spain. *sobs* ANYWAYS... 3-1 for Croatia. They top the group and Ireland is now going to be super f-ing defensive against Spain and that game is going to be even more difficult. *sobs*]


06/11/12
=============================
Group D:
-France vs England
[1st Half:
France look dangerous, have good form and good attack build up. England is looking solid on defense and going for the counter attacks. ENGLAND SCORES OFF A HEADER BY LESCOTT FROM A FREEKICK! WOAH! France looked like they were going to equalize there, Diarra's header, Hart saves, Ribery keeps it alive, Diarra 2nd header is wide.. MAN, that was close! WOAH! Samir Nasri equalizes! Some good passing, forcing the English defense to open up and then, BLAST IT IN by Nasri! Oh we have a game folks! This is a game! France are bossing the game now. Halftime can't come soon enough for England cos France is looking likely to score at any time, Benzema is opening them up easily with his movements. Good 1st half, good stories, can't wait to seee how this one ends up.
2nd Half:
Steven Gerard doing a dive attempt at the edge of the box haha. England doing a good spell here of possession early on here. France look dangerous on a counter attack here. The game going into a bit of a lull with both sides trading possession and then either side having a good counter attack opportunity. France starting to put together a good run of possession here, doing good build up. Slowing down again. Are they settling for the draw? Benzema with a good chance cut off by defense, England with a dangerous counter but it fizzles in the end. The crowd is great, booing the hell out of stuff going on hahah. Ribery with his 2nd dive of the game, really playing it up. Get a freekick out of it and now a corner and.. OWH! Almost a goal~! Another corner now for France! Hart grabs it. Game is getting lively now in the last 10 minutes. France looking fresher of the two. England make a great opportunity but it ends up going wide! It's looking like a draw. Benzema's long range shot was dangerous but Hart stops it. It's a 1-1 draw. France looked more dangerous and England looked good in defense and good on the counter. Good game that slowed down some in the 2nd half.]


-Ukraine vs Sweden
[Ukraine was loud in the anthem but not as loud as Polish were. ADVANTAGE POLAND! *wink*
1st Half:
Very open attacking half. Ukraine had more chances but Sweden had more dangerous chances. Zlatan hits the crossbar with a header, Schevchenko goes just wide when the GK is beaten, both sides had chances they should've scored on. It's been entertaining as heck this first half. 2nd half should be really good.
2nd Half:
Hot opening from both and 7 minutes in.. ZLATAN! ZLATAN SCORES! Sweden is up 1-0 against the host nation! Yowza! This is really going to get good now! WOW WOW WOW! SCHEVCHENKO! HE EQUALIZES WITH A HEADER! I JUMPED OUT OF MY SEAT! FANTASTIC! VIVA FOOTBALL! 3 minutes or so after Zlatan's. This is going to be a hot finish I bet! Ukraine are bossing it now, they are empowered by that goal! SCHEVCHENKO SCHEVCHENKO! THIS MAN IS GOING OUT IN FASHION! Another header this time off of a corner kick, man.. THIS IS GOOD STUFF! Ukraine are leading 2-1! Game is turning a bit physical. Good chance by Zlatan but the GK blocks and Zlatana can't quite get a header off the bounce. Shevchenko getting a justified heroe's ovation here as he's subbed off! Love the crowd booing like nuts anytime Sweden get possession then MARK OUT MANIA anytime Ukraine regain possession. Ukraine doing a pretty good job of trying to kill off this game with possession. OH! ELMANDER HAS THE NET WIDE OPEN AND BLOWS IT! Oh God! Sweden could've equalized! ELMANDER BLEW IT! Egads! Elmander & Torres together in a tree... DAMNIT TORRES! *cries over that chip opportunity some more* Ukraine doing anything to stall out the game now aka lessons learned from watching Italy. Sweden tries again to equalize at the death but it's never going in. This crowd is going to erupt when that final whistle blows.. AND THEY DO! Ukraine have won 2-1 in a fantastic game! Not really a Ukraine supporter but Shevchenko has always been a class performer and this was a really really good game and that was fun as heck! What a great end to the first round of group matches here in Euro 2012!]



Random Thoughts
===================================
Commentators during Ireland-Croatia and England-France were going on about players going down and the referee not stopping the match and the other team continuing to play etc. OK let me clear all this up a bit. Traditionally, it is courteous and sportsmanlike for teams (club & country) to kick the ball out of play if the referee does not stop the play if a player goes down and stays down. Now the other team is not OBLIGATED to kick the ball out of play. BUT traditionally it is done. Ireland did NOT do it in the Croatia game and England didn't do it against France in their game so France didn't do it back to England also in that game. My feelings are it's a pretty ASSHOLE thing to not kick the ball out of play. Ireland and England both should have done it and France while justified in not doing it since England didn't do it for them, it would have been CLASSIER if they had done it, especially when it wasn't done for them. I only bring it up cos the commentators were going on about it, trying to justify Ireland not doing it and later justifying it when England didn't do it and then with annoyance in their voices begrudgingly justifying it when France did it back to England. No one should do it and it should've been called out every time. That's just my opinion.


Kits! In my opinion the best jersey so far in the tournament has been Ireland's. The stripes the subtle difference in the shades of green, the polo collar. It's a really smart looking jersey. Of course I like Spain's kit (jersey, shorts and socks) the best but I am TOO BIASED so I will stick with Ireland as having the best kit right now. We'll see as I get more looks at the jerseys and the away kits and stuff come into play. But now.. The jackets the teams wear during the national anthems.. VIVA ESPANA! I really think Spain has the best prematch jackets so far in the tournament. England is a close 2nd though! The red in the collar was a nice touch in their prematch jackets. But you know, we'll see how I feel as the tournament progresses on the kits and jackets and what have you.


Overall, FANTASTIC start to Euro 2012! This has been really great tournament so far. The next round of group matches look to be really promising and I think the 3rd round will be good too because some groups I think will have some very decisive matches in that 3rd round. My predictions aren't holding up that great so far outside of my ultimate one of Germany winning the whole thing. If you haven't been watching.. FOR SHAME! Watch! You missed 8 really good matches. You have time to watch the rest though. Catch the replay of Ukraine-Sweden if you can today if you missed it. Excellent stuff, VIVA FOOTBALL! Expect another round of notes and thoughts on Friday and check out my twitter for short thoughts about the games as well. The url is up there in another post somewhere. Anyways, thanks for reading and adios!

'Dro's Euro 2012 Thoughts Vol.02
-Alright amigos, another round of notes and reactions as I watch the games and what have you! Here we go, more Euro 2012 thoughts!

06/12/12
=====================================
Greece vs Czech Republic
[1st Half:
Something came up and I missed the opening 22 minutes of the half so I missed Czechs going up 2-0! Can't wait to see the clips of all that! Commentators are stupid though, laughing about how the Greek GK could pull his hamstring. It's so easy to pull any muscle in all sorts of ways! Nasty stud scrape across the top of Karagounis' head by Rosicky! Karagounis is pissed! Czechs controlling the game pretty well here in the first half. OH GREECE SCORES.. NO! OFFSIDES! Aw!! Replay shows offsides but yeah.. Greece should be empowered here. They CAN break through here! Czechs trying to kill this off with possession but there will be a whole other half to go in this game. They should be trying to score more not defending what they have yet. 1st half is over. Czechs up 2-0, now to see the highlights in the halftime of the goals. THe first goal Czechs open Greece up and get a good strike to score. The 2nd was again good movement, good cross and the finish was a bit of a cluster muck but the ball got in the net so mission accomplished there. Goals happened early. Well Greece need to get more into this match if they want to survive. If they lose here they will have to beat Russia for a chance to advance and hope some other stuff goes their way that they have no control over. Ready for the 2nd half!
2nd Half:
Interesting.. Czechs have taken Rosicky off. Is he injured maybe? Hrmmm.. OOOH Knee to the groin! KNEE TO THE GROIN! Pro Wrestling Heeldom in Football! Greeks showing some good possession and build up here early on in the 2nd half. OH MY! Petr Cech makes a HORRIBLE goalkeeping mistake and GREECE SCORE! EGADS CECH! You blew that, left the net wide open, any finish will do, GREECE HAVE TOOKEN ONE BACK! This is a new game now! Expect drama now! I bet Czechs wish Rosicky were still on now! AH, I see a little better what happened in this replay. Cech's idea was still dumb but his defender running into the way of his punch out messed up his idea from probably working. Czechs seem to have lost their good form and shape. They seem to just be going for long balls down the field like it was 2nd division English football or something. A bit of diving going on from both sides. I don't know what this hand shaking thing the Greek supporters are doing means. Czechs are calming down now, regaining some of that form. Greeks doing the pressing now though. Rosicky's absence is very obvious in this 2nd half. Czechs trying to come on in the last 12 minutes here but not as organized as before. Czechs trying to kill the game off with possession which is a good idea as long as Greece doesn't pull off a killer counter attack. Well, I thought this game was going to get dramatic after Gekas' goal but no, it hasn't been the msot exciting 2nd half. Aww, the Greek supporters kissing and laughind despite the loss looming over them. That's it, Czechs win 2-1. I worry for Poland now. Russia will be eager to qualify with a win. Come on Poland! This wasn't the best match I must say, probably the first truly lackluster game of the tournament so far.]


Poland vs Russia
[What an atmosphere with this one! National anthems, Poland not as loud as the first day. Now I'm sad haha. I'm still rooting for Poland here, GO POLSKA!
1st Half:
AWWWWW! Such a great opportunity there for Poland to score! GAHHH! The freekick put in perfectly, it just needed a header or a foot to it.. COME ON POLSKA! ANOTHER CHANCE! Corner kick, header but the GK saves it. Bah! Khrzkov tries to dive for a PK but it isn't called, thank goodness! Oooh, Perquis has a nasty gash no doubt from someone's studs somewhere. Hey, Kasey Keller, you were a good GK for clubs and country but FIFA isn't the one holding this tournament, it's UEFA! Russians are looking dangerous, boo! YES YES FUCK FUCK! OFFSIDES! Poland scores but it's offside! FUCK! I jumped out of my chair and everything! Bah! Nasty dangerous boot to the face by Perquis to Khrzikov! This game is intense! Scrappy! FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK! Dzagoev who scored twice vs Czechs, scores with a header. BOOOO! Russia leads! So sad about how this is going! Russians are playing alot better though, it's not undeserved. Russians leading 1-0 at halftime.
2nd Half:
GAH! Lewandowski has a good chance but doesn't take it! They've got a corner though and it leads to nothing. Bah! Come on Polska! AH! Another good chance but the Russian GK clears it. Gah, Russians are dangerous! Man, these Russians are good. At least against the opponents of Group A they look good. POLSA POLSKA POLSKA!!! YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES!!!!! POLAND POLAND POLAND!!!!! Not even going to try to say the guy's name who scored the goal but wow.. WHAT A SHOT! OPENS UP SPACE AND BLAST! YES! WE'RE EQUALIZED! YES YES YES! GO POLSKA! GRAB ANOTHER! GRAB ANOTHER
DAMNIT! GO POLAND! Oooh, shoving and arguing, it's gonna blow up now! I've got a storm blowing up outside here where I live! A thunderstorm in the middle of the game, BOOO! Russia makes a great chance, Dzagoev almost scored but it's saved! And... THE POWER WENT OUT AND MY CABLE WENT OUT AND I MISSED THE REST OF THE 2ND HALF! WTF!!! I do know it ended 1-1 but man... MAN! I was way into this game! What I saw was really good, wish Poland had managed a win out of the game but a point will have to do. Can Poland actually pull off a win against Czech Republic? Probably not but we'll see.]


06/13/12
=====================================
Denmark vs Portugal
[1st Half:
Good start with both teams doing good possession. Portugal is starting to control the game, not bossing it but having more possession. PEPE! PEPE! GOL! MY IBERIAN BROTHERS! Yes, us Spanish resent the Portugese for not wanting to still be under our umbrella but funny how winning the World Cup can soften these kind of attitudes. IN ANY EVENT.. Pepe, A REAL MADRID PLAYER, has put Portugal up 1-0 with a good header from a tough angle! OH! Another good chance for Portugal but it doesn't pay off. Postiga kind of laid into the Danish GK there. Portugal looking stronger as this half is going on. POSTIGA!! POSTIGA! WHAT A FINISH! A great cross and then struck the ball and.. IT JUST ROCKETED INTO THE NET! Portugal up 2-0!! We just need a Ronaldo goal now! C'mon Cristiano! BENDTNER!! A defensive slip up from Portugal leads to Denmark pulling one back! This is going to turn into a game now!
2nd Half:
Portugal looking nervous, Denmark looking more solid early on in the 2nd half.
RONALDO!! DAMN! He has the GK one on one and the GK is coming out of the net, he could've faked and went around put it in.. Could've chipped.. Nope. Pops it right to the keeper! BAH! Denmark give the ball away, Postiga making a slow run as if he was expecting to get fouled and get a freekick. Well he gets fouled but nothing doing and no freekick, waste of an opportunity there. He should've just gone for it. Nani, listen, you do not have to do 7 rolls when you get fouled. One or two will do. Seven is a bit excessive and playacting. Denmark putting together dangerous counterattacks here, they are looking likely to equalize. Denmark looking more and more dangerous, they're going to equalize. Portugal needs to get it together, get their shape back and get another goal. WHAT THE FUCK?!!! Ronaldo! CRISTIANO WTF??!!! You have the GK dead for rights, you have the net wide open.. YOU SHOOT IT WIDE! FUDGE FUDGE FUDGE! WTF Ronaldo?!! FUCK! Bendtner. Header, 2-2 EQUALIZED! Fuck it. Portugal only have themselves to blame now. Ronaldo blew two sure fire opportunities. If we're going to eat up Torres we have to eat up Ronaldo too here. Fuck. Nasty boot to the face by Ronaldo. Freekick is saved. I think this is going to a draw. Will basically be game over for Portugal. Ronaldo.. fudge. Weak shot at the end but he was under a lot of
pressure from the two defenders. YES YES YES YES YES SIS IS IS IS SI SI SI!!!!!!
PORTUGAL! Cross by Nani I think, Ronaldo misses it but VARELA DOES NOT! 3-2!! VIVA IBERIA!!! VIVA IBERIA!!! Denmark trying to equalize in stoppage time, but they sky this chance! The Whistle! PORTUGAL WIN! That was engrossing and fantastic high drama! What a game, and what a tournament this is turning into! What a great match, there has been lots of them. VIVA FOOTBALL!]


Netherlands vs Germany
[Some business came up and I was away for a bit and missed the first half. Saw most of the 2nd half and yeah.. It's kind of shocking. Netherlands are basically going out here. They'd have to beat Portugal by quite a margin to advance and have Denmark lose to Germany. Germany are going to win this tournament. Germany are through to the Quarter-Finals and yeah.. I think this is it for Netherlands. Interesting stuff! Not as compelling as Portugal-Denmark but yeah, Germany are in the ascendency folks. Expect to see Germany lifting the trophy in the final.]


06/14/12
=====================================
Italy vs Croatia
(Note: These are taken from a chat while the game was happening)
[1st Half:
gah, Italy have just blown like 2 chances to score in this game against Croatia
Pedro: OH MY, the chances Italy just had.. Croatia needs to pay their GK more money he saved their asses there
PIRLO SCORES
ITALY UP 1-0, FANTASTIC FREEKICK BY PIRLO
weak counterattack by Croatia, they're desperate but they have a whole other half to make up a 1-0 defecit
1st half was decent, Italy controlled possession mostly, Croatia tried to break on
counter attacks, Italy blew several great chances to score until Pirlo put in that
awesome freekick goal
2nd Half:
Modric makes great space, opens up the shot and shoots the ball.. right at Buffon the GK
WOAH, Luca Modric with a really dangerous rocket of a shot but it's just over the
bar, off a break after Cassano tried to dive for a PK but no go
Croatia are slowly getting their shape and form together, they are calming down and focusing a bit, getting a lot of corners in this stretch, and De Rossi just got a
yellow
Croatia has ugly jerseys, the worst so far in the tournament
they look like an advertisement for Five Guys Burgerand Fries or something
HAHHAHA TWO Italians rolling around like they're on fire playacting and diving like
crazy trying to kill off this Croatian possession with stalling
Though Srna's challenge was like a Macho Man flying knee to the back
ah, Italy make a good chance off the break but Super Mario shoots it over the bar
well, i have to say the diving playacting tactics worked cos Croatia have yet to
really get their form back since Italy deflated their stretch with the playacting,
Croatia are looking desperate again
HOLY MOLY RAVIOLI CROATIA HAVE EQUALIZED
Italy showed a little weakness and the guy got in there close and popped it up and in it's all tied up now, smoke bombs going off in the stands, singing of White Stripes 7 Nation Army, this is going to be an interesting last 18-20 minutes
so much smoke Howard Webb has put a stop to the game momentarily in hopes the smoke will clear up
i thought Italy was looking solid enough to see this one through to a 1-0 win, not sure now cos the Croatians look inspired
hard to imagine Cassano is out there so long after having a heart attack and heart surgery all in the last season
Italy looked like they opened up Croatia wide open but it's offsides
the female Italian supporter dressed in all these Italian flag flower hat things
looking annoyed and doing the angry Italian hand shaking thing was awesome
HAHHAHAHHA a Croatian grabs an Italian's shirt and the Italian sells like his chest
is on fire and/or the guy is clawing his skin off
drew a freekick but Pirlo cant' recapture the magic of earlier freekick
5 minutes of stoppage time
Italy is looking for Pirlo to make the magic again
not happening
Croatia tries to counter late but I think Italy have cut off the attack , THE SHOT..
BUffon saves it, it's over, there is the whistle
1-1, Italyo n 2 pts, Croatia with 4pts
the match was good, not the best 1 all draw of this tournament but it was fun, and..
SPAIN HAS TO WIN NOW VIVA ESPANA AUPA ESPANA GO LA FURIA ROJA!]

Spain vs Ireland
[I am SOOOOOOO anxious for this match! SPain HAS to win! PLEASE WIN ESPANA! VIVA ESPANA POR SIEMPRE! VAMOS LA FURIA ROJA!!!
1st Half:
I am SOOOOOOOOOOO anxious! My apologies to the Irish but I NEED Spain to rip Ireland to ribbons in this game! For my money the two best jerseys of the tournament going at it right now. I am siding with Spain's jersey seeing them side by side but of course I would. YES YES YES VIVA ESPANA! VIVA ESPANA! TORRES! GRACIAS EL NINO! YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YE YES YES!!! VIVA ESPANA!!!!!! Torres I take back EVERYTHING if you keep this up! VIVA ESPANA!!!! Spain 1-0 Ireland! Good build up by Spain, Silva ended up shooting it right at Shay Given though. A GREAT CHANCE FOR A GOAL but Torres put it wide! COME ON SPAIN!!! Poop, a corner for Ireland. Whew, Dunne heads it way wide.
Thank goodness. That should've been a corner, pssh. Steve McMannaman wants you to believe it came off Xavi's shin but the replay surely did not show that British asshole. Pique kept the ball alive but ended up shooting it at Givens. Ireland tried to break but thankfully they wasted it. Spain had several chances, all blown, bah. Xabi... Hits it wide.. Pique... Heads it wide.. BAHHH! WE KEEP SHOOTING STUFF WIDE GAHHHH! Spain is doing such good possession, such good attacks but the finish just isn't there! Xavi! Should've scored it! Irish are under siege in this stretch, Spain is attack and attack. XABI.. WIDE... AGAIN! Spain's defense letting Keane in.. squelched, phew. Iniesta.. on target but Givens is up for it. Well, Spain possession wise and creating chances has been great but the finish! Yikes. 1 up, should be alot more up here. Hope it doesn't come back to bite them in the 2nd half.
2nd Half:
True story, I was eating lunch with the TV on in the background. I hear Silva scores, I jump up, run to the TV, see the score and celebrations.. I MARK OUT LIKE A KID! Eat lunch with 'Dro during footy and you are often susceptible to these things! Spain bossing the game! And of course when I say that Ireland break and have a dangerous chance to score and get a corner but Spain take care of it. Come on Spain! WIN THIS GAME! YES YES YES YES YES!!!! ESPANA ESPANA ESPANA!! TORRES!!! 3 TO NIL!! VIVA ESPANA!! VIVA LA FURIA ROJA!!!! Gracias Torres! Gracias for finding form again! Torres off, Fabregas on. Thank you Torres, PLEASE SCORE MORE IN THE NEXT GAME AND WIN THIS FOR US!!! OOH defensive lapse, Keane witha chance.. SAN IKER SAVES! Shot of older Irish man crying in the stands, that is very moving. But... VIVA ESPANA! Ooh, Santi Carzola nearly got one in from long range but Given with another good save and.. FABREGAS! FABREGAS!!! VIVA ESPANA VIVA ESPANA!!!! VIVA LA FURIA ROJA! 4-0 now! GO SPAIN!!!!!! 3 minutes left in regulation time, VIVA ESPANA!! So great, the Irish fans SINGING THEIR HEARTS OUT even though they are being put to the sword. You have to love the Irish and feel sorry for them. The singing going on all the way to the end, total class by the Irish supporters! I'm glad Spain are going to win but I wouldn't mind Ireland scoring a consolation goal. There is the whistle, VIVA ESPANA! Spain win this, I AM ONE HAPPY MOFO!!! VIVA ESPANA! Now they have to beat Croatia on Monday! OE OE OE OE VIVA ESPANA VIVA ESPANA!!]


06/15/12
=====================================
Ukraine vs France
[1st Half:
Mother Earth is unhappy with the Euros! Match stopped due to lightning and rain!! Hay Caramba!! Almost an hour later we are ready to get going again! Benzema with a shot on goal but the keeper saves it easily. Crowd is great, cheering like mad when Ukraine touches the ball, booing like crazy when French touch it. French looking more dangerous, better organized than Ukraine. France ripping Ukraine open here and.. MENES.. GOAL.. NO OFFSIDES! Ukraine are going to have to get it together or the French are going to cut them up. Not sure if it's the weather delay but no one is quite firing off on all cylinders. France is looking better but no one is looking great yet. Decent build up by Ukraine there but the shot goes wide in the end. Menes with a good chance, Ukraine defense all scrambled, but Menes shoots it over in the end. Benzema with a long range shot but right at the keeper and without much power. RIBERY CREATING.. MENES.. THE GK SAVES IT!! That should've gone in! The GK totally saved Ukraine there! AWESOME shot of the sky through the stadium opening, red orange clouds, looking awesome.. Top marks to the TV crews for capturing that! SHEVCHENKO GREAT RUN.. NOOOOO! Lloris makes the save, I thought Shevchenko had SMASHED it in! Ah, don't know why I was wanting that to go in haha. OH MY! Samir Nasri freekick, MEXES... NO! GK Saves it! WHAT A SAVE THAT WAS! Game is opening up here as the 1st half ends, should be an interesting 2nd half.
2nd Half:
SHEVCHENKO!!! NO.. JUST HIGH! Long range shot, just high. France opening Ukraine up.. MENES! MENES FINALLY SCORES!!! France up 1-0! BAH! I go to the restroom and I miss a goal for France by Cabaye! Benzema set it up from the replays. France up 2-0 now. Ukraine is not looking very likely to score. Ukraine look desperate and take bad shots because of it. Taking shots when they should be setting up folks. France with a freekick on the edge of the box. Goes high over. I missed the end of the 2nd half but the final score was France 2-0 over Ukraine. What I saw that made sense and was the deserved result. France are looking good, will be tough in the knockout rounds.]

England vs Sweden
[1st Half:
I got to see some of this while I was on the phone, Andy Carroll's goal was a really great header off of a great ball by Steven Gerard. Sweden tried to fight back, Zlatana had a few good chances but Joe Hart was up for the task. Things are looking good for England if they can keep this up but Sweden may surprise everyone yet.
2nd Half:
HOLY MOLY! HOLY MOLY RAVIOLI!!! Zlatan freekick, wall blocks, Zlatan kicks it back in and somehow the ball is put through in goal.. SWEDEN HAS EQUALIZED! SWEDEN HAS EQUALIZED!!! SWEDEN!!!! THEY SCORE AGAIN!! MELBERG!!! TWO GOALS IN THIS GAME! Sweden are beating England 2-1 now! Oh my! If England loses here, the SHITSTORM to come in the English press! This is FASCINATING DRAMA!!! Oh my, this is a game! ELLMANDER.. ZLATAN.. AW! Sweden had quite a break there to go another goal up but it didn't pay off that time. HOLY MOLY JOHN TERRY ALMOST SCORED!!! What a save by the Swedish GK! I thought that was going in!!! MY WORD THIS GAME IS OWNING!!! THEO WALCOTT!! THEO WALCOTT! HE EQUALIZES!!! Sweden heads the ball away from a corner but it bounces to
Walcott who BLASTS IT IN!!!! 2-2!!! THIS IS A FUCKING GAME!!! YIKES! Quite an elbow to Scott Parker's face there! AW! Great chance for Andy Caroll to get a winner but it sails over the net! A good chance for Sweden but it's skied! ZLATAN FROM LONG DISTANCE.. JOE HART SAVES IT!!! OH MY GOD what a goal that would have been! WELLBECK!!! HOLY MOLY RAVIOLI!!! He scores with the edge of his foot as he's going down sneaking it past the GK!! DANNY WELLBECK HAS PUT ENGLAND UP 3-2!!! WHAT A F-ING GAME THIS IS!!! It's slowing down but both sides trying to grind out opportunities. OH MY GOD! Sweden were WIDE OPEN, THREE ENGLISH PLAYERS ADVANCING.. and somehow... THE GK SAVES IT!! Wow!! Sweden almost out of time though, they're fixing to be eliminated. Final whistle, ENGLAND WINS AN AMAZING FUCKING GAME! This was fantastic
drama! If you missed it, FOR SHAME! Fantastic game.]

Random Thoughts
=====================================
This tournament has been QUALITY! The number of great games is alot! Lots of really good games in this tournament, some of them great games! If you have not been watching this European Championships, that is only your loss! 'Cos it has been really great so far! Only two teams can not progress at all right now, Ireland and Sweden. Every other country in the tournament is still alive in one way or another. Expect a great final round in Group Stages starting tomorrow! WATCH THE REST OF THIS TOURNAMENT!!! Excellent stuff, I'm hyper and hyped up.. VIVA FOOTBALL!!! VIVA ESPANA!!!! VIVA EUROS!!!!!

Full credit to Greece for managing a win and getting through to the quarterfinals... if I'm reading things right, they'll have to play the Group B winner, which will likely be Germany. If this tournament were a wacky sports movie, the Greeks would bet on themselves to win and then pull of a major upset with some sort of trick play, using their winnings to pay off the national debt just before the arrogant Germans were about to foreclose on the country. Then, in the rush of victory, the team captain would finally get the girl. So, yeah, basically it'd be the ending to Dodgeball.

In real life, of course, Germany will win that game 5-0 and then, feeling bad for the Greeks, pass around the hat and all throw in a few Euros so the Greek players can afford to fly home.

And kudos to the Czechs as well, they certainly didn't look like they were going anywhere when they got stomped by Russia in the first game, but now they've won the group.