Euro08 has ended for awhile now. I know it's pretty late now for me to express my thoughts on it but I've been busy lately and well... better late than never...
I'm pretty proud of myself for watching EVERY single match in the Euro08 finals (Hey, that's no easy feat for a person living on the other side of Earth!). Despite almost dozing off in some uneventful parts of matches, I still managed to pull through and watched every match. From the upsets by Turkey to the class of Spain and to the surprises from Russia, I've watched every moment. Here are just some of my feelings about Euro08:
Disappointments:
There's bound to be disappointments in every tournament and Euro08 is no different. In terms of teams, France and Italy were major disappointments. France, despite being named as major contenders by many, were extremely disappointing in this tournament. They managed to score only 1 goal and concede 6 goals; A very shocking goal scored/conceded ratio for an European powerhouse such as France. A pity that Thierry Henry and Patrick Vieira were injured and unable to help much; Their presence on the pitch may have been just what France needed to qualify from their Group of Death. Thierry Henry showed the world just what an excellent player he is from the goal he scored against Spain despite just getting back from an injury. Pity that he wasn't able to participate further in Euro08; He may have more tricks up his sleeves. I felt that perhaps France is still missing the influential Zinedine Zidane. He was the star of the show in France's run-up to the 2006 World Cup Finals and to me, his grace with the ball was simply mesmerizing. He could have created much better opportunities to score, which France seemed to lack throughout the tournament. Italy was almost as disappointing as France. Conceding 4 goals and only scoring 3 goals, Italy seemed a pale shadow of itself back in the 2006 World Cup Finals. They were almost impenetrable in defence back then and yet, they conceded an average of a goal in every matchin Euro08. Andrea Pirlo didn't seemed able to be as dangerous as he was for AC Milan and Gennaro Gattuso and Daniele De Rossi failed in helping to stabilise the Italian defence. Although I'm a fan of both Gennaro Gattuso and Daniele De Rossi, they didn't manage to dominate the midfield as much as they could have. Perhaps, Italy was missing their captain, Fabio Cannavaro's assurance in defence? Possible but I'm not sure if it's true. What I am certain is that 1 player can sum up Italy's performance in Euro08: Luca Toni. The 193 cm striker came to the Euro08 finals full of confidence after helping his club, Bayern Munich, win both the Bundesliga and German Cup with 24 goals in 31 league appearances. However, his performance in Euro08 was lacklustre and he never quite seemed able to score. Similarly, Italy won the 2006 World Cup and came up tops in their Qualifying Group, yet, they were unable to perform in Euro08. Perhaps, both Luca Toni and Italy felt the pressure from the press to perform in Euro08. Or, did they felt too overconfident...? Petr Cech, too, disappointed for the Czech Republic. He started the tournament well, making saves that he was well known for in Chelsea. However, the world class goalkeeper shows that he too is prone to mistakes by making an error that allowed Turkey to eventually score a 3-2 defeat over the Czechs. However, he has admitted to letting down the Czech Republic and I believe he will never make this mistake again. How bitter he must felt, making a mistake, in a crucial match, that caused the Czech Republic to fail to qualify. Another to begin the tournament brightly was Cristiano Ronaldo. He amazed during his first 2 matches, creating 2 goals and scoring a goal, and seemed deadly with freekicks from almost anywhere on the pitch. However, his failure to perform in the 2-3 loss to Germany has made many believe he is more interested in discussing a move to another club than in playing for his country after rumours before the match that he was interested in a move to Real Madrid. He simply failed to perform when his country needed him most. Mario Gomez was another major disappointment. The 2007 German Footballer of the Year failed miserable to impress and never seemed to be able to score. Despite scoring 19 Bundesliga goals for Stuttgart, he never showed why Arsene Wenger had set sights on him and only seemed able to miss easy chances that he should never have missed. Perhaps, he is too nervous in his first appearance in a major International Football tournament...afterall, he is only 22 and his future is still bright.
Surprise:
The biggest surprise to everyone is perhaps the upsets by Turkey and the performances by Russia. Turkey were fortunate in a 2-1 victory over Switzerland and didn't seemed to have much hopes winning against the Czech Republic. To everyone's surprise, they did not just scored a fortuitous 3-2 victory over the Czechs, but they even beaten the mighty Croatians in a penalties showdown to face the Germans in the semi-finals. They almost scored an upset over Germany too, despite having many of their star players out. However, it was not to be and they crashed out of the championship after conceding a 90th-minute Philip Lahm strike, losing 3-2 to Germany. Russia had a disastrous opening match against Spain, losing 1-4 and getting outmuscled in every department. However, they bounced back after that defeat and went on to win their next 3 games, with the help of the safe pair of hands from Igor Afinfeev, the overlapping runs by Yuri Zhirkov and the threats up front: Andrei Arshavin and Roman Pavlyuchenko. They beat Greece 1-0, Sweden 2-0 and even the Netherlands 3-1, before being taught a lesson by the mighty Spaniards 3-0. However, their performances before the game against Spain caught the eye of the world and everyone was amazed by them, especially the match against the Netherlands who seemed unbeatable prior to the match. Their performance caused clubs to be in a frenzy and suddenly almost every club in the world wanted Andrei Arshavin's signature. Igor Afinfeev, Yuri Zhirkov and Roman Pavlyuchenko, too, found themselves on the shortlist of scouts around the world.
Triumph:
Spain has failed to reach beyond the quarterfinals of any tournament in 24 years but they have finally ended this wait for glory after Torres' lone goal in the 1-0 victory over Germany made them European Champions. They truly show that they deserved to win Euro08 after scoring 12 goals and conceding only 3 goals throughout the whole tournament. A player who impressed me alot was Marcos Senna. I felt his presence helped Spain to break down attacks and allowed his more known team mates such as Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta to attack the opponent's defences without worries. The twin terror David Villa and Fernando Torres also proved too much for their opponents as they scored 6 goals in 6 games between them. Iker Casillas proved his abilities as a world class goalkeeper as he only managed to be beaten twice. But what impressed me was his penalty saving prowess. He actually managed to dive in the right direction for every penalty kick in the penalties showdown against Italy. Cesc Fabregas, too, showed his class everytime he touched the ball as he had the unbelievable talent to pick out team mates who were in the free. Sergio Ramos played brilliantly throughout the tournament and his overlapping runs were a joy to behold. He impressed particularly in the 3-0 victory over Russia, tormenting Yuri Zhirkov with his terrifying overlapping runs and cool defending. This is the first time I've seen the Spanish national football team work so well together, it just seemed that everyone's style of play complemented each other. Even the subs, such as Daniel Guiza and Santi Cazorla, who were relatively unknown prior to the start of the tournament, performed ever so well. I hope this Spanish side will stay united for many years to come. This Spanish side sure look ever so likely to contest for the 2010 World Cup.
Euro08 has been an enjoyable experience for me. However, all good things have to come to an end. Although Euro08 has ended a little too early for my liking, I've enjoyed every single minute of it. Now, just a few more months before the English Premier League starts again...
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