Spain v Italy - The Final Statement

For the sake of their legacy, Spain needed this.  Any kind of win would have given them their third consecutive major title, but in winning this way they put themselves up their with the all time great teams.
This was their AC Milan 4 Barcelona 0, their England 3 Hungary 6, their Brazil 4 Italy 1, indeed for many of the team it would have reminded them of Barcelona 5 Real Madrid 0!  This was a statement win, it silenced the doubters who branded Spain boring and questioned the wisdom of playing without a recognised striker.  It showed just how far ahead of the pack Spain are.  Most importantly, it is a performance that will be remembered for decades to come and provided a fitting finish to a wonderful Euro 2012.

In fairness to the critics of Spain, they hadn't hit top gear during June and had been stretched by Croatia, Portugal and ironically Italy in their journey to the final.  Indeed, a lot of people (myself included) thought that the Italians would clinch a remarkable victory.  After all, they had produced the performance of the competition against Germany in the semis and handed out a 0-0 thrashing to England a few days before.  However, it was clear from almost the first minute that Spain were in the zone and getting the ball off them would be a massive task.


It seems churlish to name individuals in this team, but so much of what Spain do well goes through Xavi.  In the semi final he was poor and subsequently Spain struggled.  Here, he was everywhere. Always available for a short pass, always looking for the killer ball and always making sure Spain retained possession. An early period of play saw the Spanish string around 20 passes together before Xavi put a 20 yarder inches over the bar.  The first goal seemed inevitable and sure enough it arrived shortly after.  This time it was Iniesta and Fabregas carving up the defence allowing David Silva to head a great finish into the Italian net.  It looked very simple, but was anything but.

To Italy's credit they carried on trying to attack and had a few near misses. Casillias had to be alert to deal with some dangerous Pirlo corners, whilst Cassano stung his hands with a 25 yard smash.  The problem for Italy was sustaining any period of pressure. As soon as they lost the ball it was taking an age to get it back.
The second Spanish goal was the team in microcosm - a perfect through ball form Xavi and a gut busting 50 yard run from young Jordi Alba to get on the end of it. Perfect mix of pace, timing, technical ability and finishing. And the man at the centre of it was the left back!

I've barely mentioned Italy so far, but I actually thought they put up a good display in the Final.  They had a large dose of bad luck and had to play the last 30 minutes with ten men due to an injury to Thiago Motta, but up until that point they had competed well. Di Natele put one header over and was later denied by a great block from Casillias. But after going down to ten men, they were a spent force. The final 2 Spanish goals came as no great surprise and once again it was the assists that were as memorable as the goals.  Lovely passes from Xavi and Busquets helped to round off the scoring and 4-0 was about a fair reflection of the game.

I could go on eulogising about the Spanish performance, but I'm sure you've read numerous other reports doing the same.  Instead I'm going to go thorough my highlights of the last 3 weeks in the form of a few Top 5's:

Top 5 Matches

1. Spain v Italy Group C - Little did we know that it would be a preview of the final, but it was great seeing 2 high quality teams giving a masterclass in passing and possession.  Best of all, they both played to win, which is not always the case during the Group stages.

2. Denmark v Portugal - 5 goals, numerous near misses and a fantastic second half.  The of game that may be gone when the competition expands to 24 teams.

3.  Germany v Italy -  The night Mario Balotelli showed he can be great.  And the night that Andrea Pirlo confirmed just how great he is. Germany played with class but Italy stood firm and probably should have won by more.

4.  Poland v Greece - The best Euro opener since.....well certainly since I started watching the sport. Red cards, goals, brilliant atmosphere, controversy and a penalty save from a reserve keeper.

5. Russia v Poland - Just a joy to watch. End to end action, wonderful moves and a fantastic goal from the Polish skipper.  The subsequent celebration will be one of the abiding memories of the whole competition.


Top 5 Goals


1. Ibrahimovic v France - Zlatan can now lay claim to the best goal at each of the last 3 Euros!  I had the privilege of being there to witness his absurd back heel volley against Italy in 2004, and whilst this bullet of a volley from a horizontal position wasn't quite in that class, it was certainly the best on show at this tournament.  If only the rest of the Swedish team were as good!

2.  Blaszczykowski v Russia - See above. Wonderful moment in a wonderful game. The Dortmund midfielders first touch and finish were both of the highest order.  The knee slide wasn't bad either!

3.  Jordi Alba v Italy - Spain in microcosm.  Amazingly, they only had 2 players in the Italian half during the entire move, but Xavi and Alba found a way to goal.  Alba may have settled the "who's the best left back" debate for a good few years.

4.  Van der Vaart v Portugal - Largely forgotten due to the subsequent collapse of the Dutch, but just for a few minutes it looked like Holland were clicking.  This was a lovely 25 yard curler that flew into the corner of the net.  The less said about the subsequent 75 minutes the better.

5.  Pavlychenko v Czech Rep - Roman only came on for the last 20 minutes, but still provided an assist and a goal. His goal saw him take a couple of touches on the edge of the area before unleashing a rocket into the top corner.  We all thought Russia were destined for great things...one week later they were out.


Top 5 Teams

1. Spain - Not at their best for much of the competition, but still in a league of their own.  Rounded it off with a stunning destruction of Italy in the final.

2.  Italy - Exceeded all expectations with brilliant performances against Spain, England and Germany. In Pirlo, they had one of the stars of the tournament. Whilst younger players like Marcissio, Montelivo, Bonucci and Balotelli showed that this team could be around for a few years.  A world away from some of the negative Italian sides of the past.

3. Germany - This was their time....or at least it was until Italy came along.  They waltzed through a tough Group and the destruction of Greece in the Quarter Final was one of the highlights of the competition. 4 semi finals in a row for this young side, and there's no sign of them going away any time soon.

4.  Portugal - Gave Spain their toughest night. Yes, Ronaldo was excellent, but there's so much more to this side.  Pepe, Alves, Coentrao, Moutinho, Pereira and Patricio all had superb tournaments.  The display against Holland was a pleasure to watch and Ronaldo could have had about 6 goals!

5.  Croatia - Pity poor Ireland, not only did they have the 2 finalists in their Group but they also had this lot from the Baltics.  After brushing the Irish aside, Croatia claimed a deserved draw with Italy and if Rapatic had converted his header against Spain we could have been looking at a different winner.  Had a terrible draw, and on this evidence they would have walked Groups A or D.

So that was Euro 2012.  I wouldn't quite put it in the league of Euro 200, but it was certainly a memorable event and showed why 16 teams is the perfect amount for a tournament. I've thoroughly enjoyed writing about it and am already looking forward to overdosing on coffee in 2 years time!

Italy v Germany - A Tale of 2 Marios

This is going to be more interesting than anticipated. Comparing the performances of 2 of the strikers on show in the Germany-Italy Semi final - Messrs Balotelli and Gomez.  As it turned out, it was a completely one sided battle won by the Italian, something not many people would have predicted.

On the face of it, this should have been a walkover.  One man is the leading scorer in for Bayern Munich and has 3 goals from 3 starts in this competition.  The other is an occasional starter for Man City and has scored twice in 12 international appearances.
The Battles of the Marios seemed certain to end in a Gomez victory.  But as is often the case, Mr Balotelli had other ideas.

In the build up to the game, there was some doubt over who would start up front for either side.  Balotelli had worked hard against England, but hadn’t taken advantage of the chances that fell his way.  DiNatele was waiting in the wings, and there were rumours he would be chosen to partner Antonio Cassano up front. For Germany, Miroslav Klose had started against Greece and scored his (approx) 235th International goal, so it was no guarantee that Gomez would get his place back for the Semi Final.  As it turned out, both Balotelli and Gomez started, but it was only one coach who saw his decision vindicated.

Germany came out of the blocks the stronger and they had a few early chances.  However, Gomez was peripheral to the whole thing and barely got a kick. That’s not uncommon for Gomez and he often looks like passenger, before coming up with a goal. Big Mario sometimes reminds me of Jason Bourne at an airport! All around him is a hub of activity and people rushing round, but he just stands still in the middle, in his own little calm world. Meanwhile at the other end of the field, Balotelli spent the first 20 minutes chasing lost causes and struggling to get involved. His struggles were epitomised by a chase with Hummels, in which the young German defender out-muscled him and strode off with the ball, whilst Balotelli was left sitting on the ground looking confused.  To Mario’s credit, he didn’t get overly annoyed by this embarrassment and just trotted back up the field.


After 20 minutes, Balotelli gave Italy the lead, although the goal was as much done to the craft of Cassano.  The Italian forward made an exquisite turn on the corner of the area, took out 2 German defenders and planted a perfect cross onto Balotelli's head.  It was a relatively simple finish, but Balotelli showwed a good strikers instinct by being in the right place at the right time.  Suddenly, Balotelli was energized and for the rest of the first half he terrorized the Germans with his pace and movement.  The previously unruffled centre back pairing of Badstuber and Hummels were chasing shadows as Mario was at the forefront of countless Italian attacks.  This version of Balotelli was a world away from the stroppy, disinterested Balotelli that often wears a Man City shirt.  This was highlighted by his second goal after 36 minutes - a hopeful through ball from Montelivo was pounced on by Balotelli who took a couple of touches before unleashing a 20 yard rocket into the corner of the net.  Manuel Neuer barely moved and when he did it was merely to retrieve the ball.  Balotelli took his shirt off and did his trademark arrogant pose.  A yellow card followed and you wondered if this would come back to haunt him later in the match, but this was an in-control Balotelli.  There was no arguing or needless challenges, he was just getting on with his job of leading the Italian attack.


Meanwhile, Mario G was continuing his statuesque performance leading the German line.  One moment in particular summed up his evening.  An intricate move ended up with Toni Kroos playing a ball into Gomez's feet.  Gomez had his back to the goal, but was in the penalty area in a central position.  The pass took a slight deflection, but rather than move to receive the pass, Gomez just watched as the ball passed a couple of feet from him.  Cue lots of " double teapots" from the German side and it may have been at that moment that Joachim Loew decided to cut short Mario's evening.  It was no surprise when Miroslav Klose emerged for the second half.  Whilst Klose didn't get on the score sheet, his movement and effort was a vast improvement on Gomez's effort.  Gomez's display was more fuel for the doubters who question whether he can do it on the biggest stages.  Certainly his display wasn't up to the standards of a "world class" strikers and whilst you can't argue with his goalscoring record, he doesn't have the movement and presence of the really great forwards in the world game.

As for Balotelli, he carried on where he left off in the second half.  Chasing and harrying defenders, plus using the ball wisely when in possession.  In fact, it was due to this massive effort that Balotelli's evening ended prematurely.  Halfway through the second half he pulled up with cramp in his leg, after lengthy treatment the physio decided that it would take too long for him to recover.  Mario spent the rest of the game on the Italian bench and the rare smile he gave at the final whistle was of a job well done.  Even at this early stage of his career, this was a defining moment for Balotelli and the moment he announced himself as a world class striker.

Spain v Portugal - Player Ratings

It's fair to say that my pre match excitement levels for this game weren't met by the entertainment on show.  That's not to say that I didn't enjoy the game.  It was 2 teams playing at a very high level and the tactical battle was fascinating.  However, a few more near misses and memorable moments would have been nice.  I don't subscribe to the "Spain are boring" theory, but I think the way they play often leads to the opposition employing boring tactics to try and combat them.  To Portugal's credit, this approach worked very well.  It wasn't until Extra Time that the tiki taka masterclass started, and even then Portugal dug in and took the game to penalties.

I didn't pick the easiest game in which to rate the players out of ten.  After all, how do you score Iker Casillias? He didn't save a save to make in 120 minutes! But them's the rules so, I'll have to give it a go..

Let's set out a few parameters first - 5/10 is the average, 1/10 means he played, but didn't touch the ball and 10/10 means he won the game all on his own.

Portugal

Rui Patricio 6.5/10  Solid handling throughout, but it wasn't until Extra Time that he had to make any serious saves.  His close range block from Iniesta was outstanding, as was his save from Alonso's penalty.  Patricio has enhanced his reputation over the last 3 weeks.

Joao Pereira 7/10  Rock solid throughout the competition and last night was no different.  Didn't get forward as much as usual but put in numerous tackles and blocks.  Good distribution.

Pepe 8/10  One of the stars of the tournament and a MOTM contender last night.  Barely put a foot wrong in defence, but also intelligent with the ball.  Kept it simple but rarely misplaced a pass.

Bruno Alves 5.5/10  Outshone by Pepe, but he still did his bit to protect the Portuguese goal.  Not such an accomplished passer and guilty of a few aimless hoofs, but every team needs a no nonsense man at the back.  Looked nervous during shoot out and not a big surprise he missed.

Fabio Coentrao 6.5/10 A class act and surely one of the first names on the team sheet.  Gave nothing away in defence, but his link up play with Ronaldo wasn't as effective as in previous games.  A contender for best left back in the competition.

Miguel Veloso 5/10  Worked extremely hard and helped nullify the Spanish midfield.  Barely a factor in Portuguese attacks.  Ran out of steam and no surprise he was replaced in Extra Time.

Raul Meireles 4.5/10  Very similar to Veloso, ran himself into the ground but offered very little with the ball. A bit of a disappointment as he a better attacking player than he showed here.  Not a great tournament for the Chelsea man.

Joao Moutinho 7.5/10  Perpetual motion.  Seemed to be following the entire Spanish midfield around the pitch.  Won the ball on countless occasions and very good distribution.  Was the instigator for most of the Portuguese attacks.  Hit his penalty well, but denied by a great save.

Nani - 4.5/10  Wonderful penalty, but the proceeding 120 mnutes were largely frustrating.  Made a couple of trademark runs in the first half but was up against a superb full back and struggled to make much impact.

Cristiano Ronaldo - 5/10  Didn't get many chances to run at the Spanish defence and well shackled by Arbeloa.  Never the less there were still flashes of Ronaldo's brilliance.  One run and cross in the first half was particularly brilliant.  Very poor from free kicks and wasted at least 5 good opportunities.  Also, blazed over the chance to score a last minute winner.

Hugo Almeida - 2.5/10 Anonymous, aside forma couple of good defensive headers.  Contributed almost nothing to the Portuguese attack.  It's hard to see them winning a tournament until they find a world class front man.  Substitute din normal time.

Subs:  Nelson Oliveira - 3/10  Carried on where Almeida left off!  Slightly better movement, but he failed to have much impact.

Custodio - 4/10 Carried on where Veloso left off, but was mainly chasing shadows as Spain took hold of midfield.

Varela - Only had 6 minutes so unfair to mark him.


Spain

Iker Casillias 5.5/10  Caught a few crosses but that was about it.  Portugal didn't manage a shot on target.  Made a great save form Moutinho's penalty.  More long kicks than usual, as Portugal closed down the space effectively.

Alvaro Arbeloa - 6/10  Supposedly the weak link, but didn't play that way.  Kept Ronaldo quiet and passed the ball sensibly.  Provided some width to Spanish attacks and had a decent early chance, but decided to take it with his left foot , when a blast with the right may have been a better idea.

Gerald Pique 6/10  Doubled up on Roanldo on occasion and distributed the ball well.  Not a very taxing night, but Pique looked as accomplished as usual.  Also took a lovely penalty.

Sergio Ramos 7/10  Handling Almeida was a formality, and Ramos was solid throughout.  Not as good coming forward as Pique, but gets an extra point for his outrageous penalty.

Jordi Alba 6.5/10  Boundless energy for 120 minutes and was always available for a pass.  Beaten by Nani a couple of times, but always covered by his centre halves.  Great tournament for Alba.

Sergio Busquets 4.5/10  Not a great night for the Barcelona man, distribution was patchy and this wasn't the Spanish midfield at it's finest.  Broke up a few Portuguese attacks but we've come to expect a bit more from Busquets.

Xabi Alonso 4.5/10 Hard to criticize his penalty, as it was a wonderful save.  During normal time, Alonso struggled to have much influence and was a peripheral figure.  Came into it more in Extra Time as Spain took control of midfield.

Xavi 4/10  A rare, poor game from the world's best central midfielder.  He never got into his usual rhythm as Portugal disrupted the Spanish passing game. The message is clear for whoever faces them in the final - stop Xavi and Spain are are nowhere near their best.

David Silva - 3.5/10  Another off player who had an off night.  Drifted inside to try and get into the game but it was no surprise when he was taken off.  Not helped by a lack of movement from Negredo up front.

Andrea Iniesta 6.5/10  As usual, Iniesta was a joy to watch. Lovely flicks and tricks as he tried manfully to get something going for the Spanish.  If there's one criticism of Iniesta it's that he didn't get any of his shots on target.  Had a couple of decent chances.  Buried his penalty confidently.

Alvaro Negredo 3/10  Excellent hold up play to create a chance for Iniesta, but that was about it.  Did nothing to justify his inclusion and I can only assume that Llorente is terrible in training or carrying an injury.  Highly unlikely that Negredo will start the Final.

Cesc Fabregas 4/10  Not a great contribution from Fabregas as he struggled to get into the game.  Scored the winning penalty with an inch perfect shot.

Jesus Navas - 5.5/10  Passed it efficiently and got into the game well, even forced a good low save form Patricio.  Provided more of a spark than Silva.

Pedro 6/10  Offered a much needed injection of energy.  Made a number of incisive runs, although his end product wasn't great.

That was definitely one of the more enjoyable methods of reporting I've done this month.  Not easy to decide the score for some players, but I think I've got it spot on by awarding Pepe, Moutinho and Ramos the highest scores.  The lack of high scores from the "superstars" on each team goes a long way to explaining the lack of goals in this game.  None the less, I found it an interesting game to watch and Spain just about deserved their spot in the final.

Tonight I'll be compiling a head to head report of the strikers on show during the Germany v Italy game.  That should be interesting, as I'm expecting a lot more goalmouth action, and a hard fought Germany victory.

England v Italy - Twitter Watch

Contrary to what Mark “Lawro” Lawrenson thinks, Twitter is a great invention and a lot of good comes out of it. There’s a fair chance that you’re reading this article because of a Twitter link (OK, maybe that’s not a good thing!), a lot of the best sports articles I read are via Twitter links. It also allows people to communicate with like minded souls and chat about what interests them. I’ve “met” plenty of football, NFL and cricket fans via Twitter and had lots of interesting conversations. It’s also simple to use, which is great for an IT ignoramus such as myself.

Naturally enough, Twitter has been a hive of activity during Euro 2012. This is both a good and bad thing. On the plus side, you get some genuinely interesting comments from knowledgeable fans and, if you’re lucky, a few thing to make you laugh. The downside is that you also get a multitude of inane comments and ignorant thoughts.  My “favourite” during the last 2 weeks has been the utterly pointless tweets that occur when a major incident happens – “Goal”, “Rooney”, “Good save”, “That was close” etc – I‘m not entirely sure what these add to the piece, or why the tweeter feels the need to tell the world what is painfully obvious.  

The build up to the England - Italy game was full of positive tweets from England fans.  Seemingly the fortunate victories over Sweden and Ukraine had given people a surge of optimism.  "#believe" was a popular hashtag and my pre match timeline was full of "This is our time" and "We can do this".  There was the usual abuse of the BBC coverage, but that's been the case throughout the competition, the overwhelmingly feeling as of optimism and even confidence that England would win.

Anthems are a popular source of Tweets at present and this game was no different. The Twitter world seems to love the fact that the England squad "sing" God Save The Queen.  Personally, I couldn't give a toss.  Ronaldo remains tight lipped during the Portuguese anthem and it doesn't seem to do him much harm.  I can't see how singing a Royalist song can improve your performance or your team spirit.

Danielle De Rossi's early blast against the woodwork, drew the usual array of "stating the obvious" tweets.  "What a hit", "that was close" and "great strike" were all on my timeline.  Surely if I'm watching the game I know it was a great strike and if I'm not watching the game then I don't care! The first 20 minutes were largely controlled by England and the tweets were full of praise - "Best spell of the tournament", "Deserve a goal for this" - and I was in full agreement, it was as impressive as England had looked at a major tournament since 2004.

Unfortunately, the dominance was short lived and Italy soon wrestled control away.  There were signs of worry on Twitter as well as some negative comments about a couple of the players. "What is the point of Milner?", "Rooney looks unfit" and "Ashley Young is terrible" were some of the more perceptive comments.   Still, people were keeping the faith at half time and the majority of tweeters still believed England could go on and win.

That hope rapidly dwindled during the second half as Italy missed a string of decent chances.  The first tweets of "Same old England" occurred around the hour mark and there were numerous calls for Theo Walcott to come on.  I could see where they were coming from, both Milner and Young were struggling to get into the game, but I wasn't convinced Walcott was the answer.  England's problem was ball retention and closing down the space in midfield.  Neither of those things are Walcott's forte.  Odd as it seems, Stewart Downing may have been a better bet in the circumstances.  Downing is no world beater (or even full back beater!), but he does work hard and can play simple passes.  No doubt Twitter would have gone into meltdown had Downing made an appearance! Instead, Walcott appeared and did a great impression of a 65 year old man trapped in a twentysomethings body.

As the game entered Extra Time and England sat deeper and deeper, Twitter was a mix of fair minded resignation -  "No complaints when we go out", "Italy far the better team" -  and a realisation that England could hang on for penalties.  There wasn't a huge amount of annoyance or anger at the situation, just a realisation that England were a long way away from being a top international side.

Of course, there was some optimism that England would prevail in the shootout.  Indeed, I thought that would be the case, after all the outplayed team often wins on penalties.  Chelsea in the Champions League final and England against Spain at Euro 1996 being 2 prime examples.  Unfortunately for England, this time the best team won, and tweeters had no complaints about the result.  "Italy deserved it", "Best team won, but Germany will beat them", "got what we deserved" were some of the more generous comments.  Others looked for scapegoats, Messrs Rooney and Young coming in for the most abuse.  Rooney in particular was singled out for his lacklustre performance - "Why is he an automatic pick?", "drop him for the qualifiers", "looks unfit and overweight".

I had to agree with most of the comments, Rooney was left on, whilst the more impressive Danny Welbeck was sacrificed.  The thinking is that Rooney is capable of a moment of inspiration, he can turn the game in an instant.  But the reality is that he hasn't done any such thing in a major tournament since Euro 2004.  The problem with dropping Rooney is the lack of depth England have up front.  Who do you bring in to replace him? Sturridge, Bent, Defoe?  It's hardly a glittering array of talent.  Besides Rooney is still relatively young.  I'd keep him in the side, but he's on a short leash.  A strong season for the likes of Welback, Andy Carroll and/or Sturridge and Rooney will see his place under threat.

As for England overall, I think they actually overachieved at Euro2012.  If you look at the quality of the 4 performances, then a penalty defeat in a quarter final was better than what they deserved.  Some players emerged with credit - Cole, Hart, Lescott - whilst others continued to frustrate - Rooney, Young, Walcott.  Hodgson did well with what he had at his disposal, but his tactics in the quarter final were far too negative and just invited pressure.

Overall, the quarter finals didn't quite live up to the high standards of the Group stages and each game had a team employing very negative tactics. Still, it's left us with the best 4 teams in the competition to contest the semi finals. The final word from Twitter is a tweet I posted about half an hour after the final whistle: "Fantastic semi final line up.  Should be 2 cracking games.  Can't wait!"

Germany v Greece - Crowd Watch!

Easy task today, I just had to look at the crowd during the Germany Greece game!  Simple.  Luckily for me, the TV directors at Euro 2012 seem intent on showing as many crowd shots as possible, so writing about the crowd is a relatively easy task.  Admittedly, 90% of the crowd shots are of pretty ladies
wearing very little, but hey I can't argue with the directors.

Pre match, there were 2 gigantic flags on display behind the goals.  I've been to 3 international tournaments, but never been under the flag  It's on my football fan "to do list", which may seem slightly odd, but then again so are most of the items on my list (That's for another blog!).  The Greek flag was upside down but I guess that's a bit hard to a) notice and b) rectify, when you're one of the 2,000 people underneath it.  The slightly bigger German flag looked like it was made of some kind of waterproof material, a useful thing to have should a storm occur during the match. I scored the flag contest as a small victory for the German fans.

Fancy dress is another common occurrence at major tournaments, and this game was no different.  The Greek fans were leading the way on this front with a number of supporters wearing gladiatorial attire.  I'm always amazed that some of the items of clothing are allowed into the ground, given the extensive list of prohibited items, it seems odd that helmets are allowed in.  See also the trumpet that a German fan was carrying. Surely you can do more harm (and not just to ears) with a trumpet then a plastic bottle of water?

The exception that proves
the rule!

Like most fans, I'm not endeared by the Countdown to Kick Off.   It's another of the artificial, crowd rousing methods that are creeping into the sport.  Football fans don't need to be told when to cheer or when to get excited.  We don't need to hear Tom Harks after a goals has been scored and we certainly don't need to be told when kick off is approaching!  Having said that, a fair few fans seem to think it's fun to join in with the kick off countdown, so maybe I'm in the minority.


Not surprisingly, the German fans were larger in number and volume, as their team dominated throughout.  There were plenty of shots of attractive German fans  - often wearing face paint - whenever there was a goal, but equally there were many shots of sad looking attractive Greek women with tears running down their flag.  In fact, it wouldn't surprise me if the cameras miss a goal at some point in the competition for this reason.

Overall, though it was a great atmosphere and a fun game of football.  Crowds are an important element of football and the wonderful atmosphere at the majority of games over the last 2 weeks has helped make it a memorable tournament.

Czech Rep v Portugal - Pilar Watch

The purpose of today's match report is to focus on an individual player's performance during a game.  Whilst there was a temptation to just pick Ronaldo for the exercise, in the interests of fairness, I decided to randomly pick from the 20 outfield players on show...so here is my report on the performance of Vaclav Pilar in last night's Czech Republic v Portugal Quarter Final:

For those of you unfamiliar with Vaclav Pilar, he is a 23 year old left midfielder, who plays for Wolfsburg. He has only been playing for the senior national team over the last year, but has made a big impact. He scored in the play off win over Montenegro and netted twice in the Group stages. I’d been impressed with Pilar prior to the Portugal game; he was a bit of an old school winger – short, fast, tricky, but liable to disappear completely for long periods of play! He reminded me a bit of ex Gillingham winger John Hodge (apologies to non Gills fans), who was one of my favourite players growing up.

Following an individual’s performance is rather distracting. It certainly affected my enjoyment of the game as I was continually looking for Mr Pilar and not really concentrating on the match. I don’t think I could ever be one of these Opta types who spend entire matches tracking a player.

"I'm playing with Milan Baros"

Against Portugal, Pilar lined up on the left of midfield, he was supported by full back David Limbersky. Limbersky was given the task of keeping Nani quiet and it was clear from an early stage that Pilar’s main duty was to help out in his department. As an attacking threat he was severely limited, but he did well in covering Limbersky and tracking Portuguese right back Pereira. Limbersky was often following Nani all over the field, so it was up to Pilar to cover at full back. For a player more adept at coming forward, he did an admirable job defensively. He also looked comfortable on the ball and played a number of neat passes in midfield. Unfortunately, he was unable to get much chance to run at Pereira or join in with the rare Czech attacks.

This pattern continued in the second half, although Portugal were mainly focusing on the other side of the field where Ronaldo and Coentrao were causing problems. Pilar did get one chance to run at the defence and he showcased his skills with a brilliant run that beat 3 defenders and took him into the penalty area, sadly his low cross was cut out by Pepe and the move broke down. That was about it as far as Pilar’s attacking threat went. In fact, during the final 30 minutes he barely got a kick!

In fairness to Pilar, he was a bit of a victim of the Czech game plan- Men behind the ball and play for penalties. It didn’t deserve to work and thankfully it didn’t work. For Pilar, it was a disappointing end to an excellent tournament. His goal against Russia was a lovely run and finish, whilst he made a clever run across the area for his goal against Greece. Add to that, a few incisive runs, sharp passing and some solid defensive work, and you’ve got the makings of a very effective, if slightly lightweight player. He’s sure to be a regular for club and country for years to come.

Hope that wasn’t too dull to read. Not one of my favourite reports as it was pretty restrictive and didn’t really give much of a flavour of the overall game. For what it’s worth, I was greatly impressed by Portugal. They’ve got one of the best back fours in the competition, an excellent player maker in Moutinho and an in-form superstar in Ronaldo. The expected semi final clash with Spain could be a classic.

The Czechs are limited but game, they will see this as a successful tournament, having seen Ronaldo destroy Holland, they decided to play very defensively and it killed the game as much of a spectacle.

Talking of which, it’s Germany v Greece tonight. The Greek bus is reversing into the goalmouth as I speak!