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So with no football at the moment, I decided to re-watch Euro 2008 (bar some dead rubber matches perhaps). It's the last competition before I began to compile my Team of the Season/Tournament selections.
(Thanks, @footballiaweb )
(Thanks, @footballiaweb )
Portugal - Turkey 2-0, deserved win but low-quality match, ball moves very slowly, Turkey old-school
Standout performer: Pepe, did his (easy) job in defense well and with a Beckenbauer'esque goal, a level above physically
Cristiano meh on the right, but much better on the left
Standout performer: Pepe, did his (easy) job in defense well and with a Beckenbauer'esque goal, a level above physically
Cristiano meh on the right, but much better on the left
Switzerland - Czech Republic 0-1, ball actually moves faster than in the abovementioned match, but very little threatening stuff from both sides
Standout performer: -
Best of the rest: Ujfalusi, good anticipation, seemed very solid
Standout performer: -
Best of the rest: Ujfalusi, good anticipation, seemed very solid
Germany - Poland 2-0, looked like it could turn into a blowout early on but Germany too imprecise, CBs look shaky too, still deserved
Best player: Podolski, 2nd goal is well-taken, lots of defensive work in the beginning
Best player: Podolski, 2nd goal is well-taken, lots of defensive work in the beginning
Austria - Croatia 0-1, Croatia start much better, then needlessly "play it safe" with long balls, inviting Austria to become part of the game
Best player: Modric, way ahead of his time, his teammates should play every other pass to him, Croatia's game would be better for it
Best player: Modric, way ahead of his time, his teammates should play every other pass to him, Croatia's game would be better for it
Romania - France 0-0, dire, France only field two midfield players and that shows, long balls and Halbfeldflanken galore
Best player: the one who stayed home
Best player: the one who stayed home
Netherlands - Italy 3-0, 10 minutes of this match had more quality and more action than the rest of the tournament so far, a classic, Holland great but Italy far from bad
Best players: Sneijder, Buffon, van Bronckhorst, Pirlo, van der Vaart, van der Sark, Engelaar
Best players: Sneijder, Buffon, van Bronckhorst, Pirlo, van der Vaart, van der Sark, Engelaar
Spain - Russia 4-1, those Spaniards, eh? Russia aren't even that bad...
Best players: Xavi (!), Villa (!), Puyol, Torres, Iniesta, Fabregas, D. Silva, Cazorla, Pavlyuchenko
Best players: Xavi (!), Villa (!), Puyol, Torres, Iniesta, Fabregas, D. Silva, Cazorla, Pavlyuchenko
p.s.: How Valencia managed to keep David Villa for so long is beyond me. Those were different times. Surely some offers they could not refuse were coming in way before 2008?
