Euro 2008
PREMIER LEAGUE REVIEW - MATCHDAY TEN
Liverpool maintained their advantage with a slender 1 – 0 victory over Portsmouth. Tony Adams in his first game in charge after being confirmed as Harry Redknapp’s replacement looked as though his charges would suffocate their hosts before Diop handled in the area with fourteen minutes remaining, L’il Stevie Gerrard despatched the resultant penalty. Robbie Keane Watch: Well, he looked dapper in the stands and looked more likely to score with blondes around him than he does in the Premier League when he is on the pitch.
Chelsea acted tough before their defeat to Liverpool and were back to their party spoiling ways as they crushed Hull City 3 – 0 at the KC Stadium. Frank Lampard set them on their way with a third minute strike, the rout being completed by the French duo of Anelka and Malouda in the second half.
Arsenal stumbled into third place, recovering from an audacious David Bentley strike to subsequently drop a two-goal lead in their 4 – 4 draw with Tottenham Hotspur at The Emirates Stadium. A Mikael Silvestre header nine minutes before the interval cancelled out Bentley’s thirteenth minute opener, the former Gunner hammering a volley past the hapless Manuel Almunia from forty yards. William Gallas scored another header a minute into the second half before Emmanuel Adebayor added a third capitalising on Alan Hutton’s slow recovery to force the ball home. It set about a mad five minutes as Bent made it 3 – 2, scoring from Almunia’s fumble before Hutton gifted the ball to Adebayor who set Robin van Persie up for 4 – 2. It seemed that the match would fizzle out before Jermaine Jenas punished Gael Clichy’s slip to score from twenty yards. Harry Redknapp’s passionate affair with Lady Luck paid off as Aaron Lennon reacted first to Luca Modric’s shot that came back off the post in the 94th minute.
Manchester United closed in on the top four, comfortably beating West Ham United 2 – 0 at Old Trafford. Two Cristiano Ronaldo goals did the damage in the opening half-hour but it goes to fuel more flames in the fire that supports the theory he is a bit of a Johnny-Come-Lately who struggles to score away from home. Having won the FIFPro Player of the Year award, he needs to improve that aspect of his game if he is to be considered a true great of the world game.
As it was, Aston Villa came back from Stephen Warnock’s 30th minute opener to overcome Blackburn Rovers 3 – 2 at Villa Park. Luke Young equalised on the stroke of half-time, bundling the ball home with his knee after a bout of pinball in the Rovers area. The turn around came as Gareth Barry got his third in three games before Gabriel Agbonlahor scored Villa’s third from Ashley Young’s pass. A last minute Brett Emerton freekick for all its majesty was little more than a consolation.
At the other end of the table, Stoke City recorded a rare win, beating Sunderland 1 – 0 at The Britannia Stadium, Ricardo Fuller getting the games only goal. It meant that Bolton Wanderers dropped into the bottom two as they succumbed to a 90th minute Fellaini goal in their 0 - 1 defeat at home to Everton. The relegation places are completed with Wigan Athletic, their 0 – 2 reverse at Craven Cottage gave Fulham three much needed points. Andy Johnson got both, his first for the club since his move from Everton.
The North East had a ray rare of sunshine this week with both Newcastle United and Middlesbrough winning at home. The Magpies defeated West Bromwich Albion 2 – 1 at St James Park, Thug In Chief, Joey Barton gave a sickening display of chest thumping following his tenth minute penalty conversion, a lead doubled by Shola Ameobi just before the break. Although Albion pulled one back through Miller midway through the second half, the victory led Joe Kinnear to demand an end to the uncertainty and a more permanent contract. Not bad for the manager of a team who are fourth bottom. At The Cellnet Riverside Stadium, Manchester City and their money pitched up, leading to a comprehensive mugging at the hands of Middlesbrough. Robinho’s stated aim of thirty goals in a season took a battering as did the City defence with Afonso Alves with a penalty and Gary O’Neill in the last minute did the damage.
Villa To Stay At Valencia For Now
David Villa has dashed the dreams of supporters of Europe’s biggest clubs by stating his desire to remain at the Mestalla for the coming season. Having finished Euro2008 as top scorer, Villa has been heavily linked with a move away with the Premier League, Barcelona or Real Madrid favoured destinations in those reports.
However, in response to chants from supporters yesterday, Villa spoke at Valencia City Hall where the Spanish squad were celebrating their triumph, the striker said,
I am very grateful and I am very happy here. I hope to stay here. The president should be thanked for wanting to keep the best players and to make a great team
Had Villa left, it would have created a huge problem for Los Ches, still reeling from an indifferent 2007-08 campaign that saw them only pull clear of the relegation spots in the final weeks of the season. Villa maintained his excellent scoring record, a key reason for their survival.
Despite his proclamations, there is still no certainty that he will line-up at Valencia next season. The money that the club could raise from his sale would enable the squad to be strenghtened. That according to President, Agustin Morera, is not the key matter, keeping Villa is,
We had offers last year, we have had more this year and we continue to receive them. Our plan is to keep him and we will try and do this
For how much longer though remains to be seen. Having had his appetite for glory whetted with the national team, his desire for success at club level may yet overrride any sense of loyalty.
My Euro2008 Team
With the doors to Euro2008 now closed and Spain rightfully crowned champions, below is my team of the tournament. This is not linked to the UEFA technical committee who opted out and provided a twenty-three man squad rather than eleven whose performances in positions merited special recognition.
Goalkeeper: Casillas [Spain]
There was little consistency shown between the posts by the custodians but amid the average performances, Casillas stood out. Unflappable when dealing with crosses, he protected Spanish single goal leads when required, with a minimum of fuss and maximum efficiency
Right Back: Ramos [Spain]
Solid in defence, supportive in attack, unlucky not to score in the Final which would have been reward for his performances
Centre Back: Pepe [Portugal]
Commanding in the centre, holding together a defence that was unconvincing in their time in the competition. Provided some justification of the fee paid by Real Madrid for his services.
Centre Back: Marchena [Spain]
Sensible, no-nonsense defending. Read the game well and snuffed out a lot of the danger in the final third. Lead by example when Puyol left the field in the Sweden match.
Left Back: Zhirkov [Russia]
The most dynamic left back in the tournament, defended well but absolutely lethal when going forward. Symbolised everything good about Guus Hiddink’s tactics and the squad’s play.
Right Midfield: Modric [Croatia]
Inventive, creative and the fulcrum of the criminally underachieving Croats. Quick of thought and fleet of foot, Tottenham may have paid excessively for him but the Premier League will be enhanced by his presence next season
Centre Midfield: Senna [Spain]
Calm and authoratitive, allowing the creative players around him to shine
Centre Midfield: Xavi [Spain]
Player of the tournament. Quality passing and scored as well.
Left Midfield: Podolski [Germany]
Creative second highest scorer in the tournament behind Villa, provided as well and worked diligently on the flanks.
Attacking Midfield: Sneijder [Holland]
Eye catching range of passing that and able to get forward to score. Covered a considerable amount of ground in support of defence and attack.
Centre Forward: Villa [Spain]
Top scorer and total menace for the defences. Benefitted from having Torres work like a Trojan alongside him but was a class above most of the rest of the forwards in the tournament in front of goal.
Spain Sail To A Bright New Future With Torres Winner
GERMANY 0 - 1 SPAIN
FINAL, EURO2008
Fernando Torres’ 33rd minute goal is the difference that the history books will record in showing Spain emerged victorious in the Ernst Happel Stadion to win Euro2008. The reality was that a one-goal defeat flattered Germany. Ultimately, does that matter as the engravers etch Spain’s name on the Henri Delany Trophy for the second time, forty-four years after the first.
There was no answer from the Germans to Spain’s passing and movement, a performance that epitomised their tournament. Outthinking, outmuscling and outpassing their opponents. The absence of David Villa proved not to be an issue as Spain created chances throughout the game, causing the German defence continual problems with swift passes to feet.
Gerrmany enjoyed much of the pressure in the opening quarter of the game although it was the Spanish who twice came closest to breaking the deadlock, Fernando Torres outjumping the German defence but seeing his header strike the base of the post whilst Jens Lehmann rolled back the years when a shot from Xavi took a wicked deflection that the German ‘keeper did well to palm to safety.
Torres though provided the breakthrough with half-time on the horizon, Xavi sliding a ball between the defence and the Liverpool forward outpaced Lahm to lift the ball over the onrushing Lehmann. There was to be no German comeback nor was there to be one for Lahm as he was replaced by Jansen at the interval.
The second half continued the way the first had ended, Spain on the front foot, probing and creating. The best chances fell to Ramos who missed with a free header, Iniesta forced a good reaction save from Lehmann and Senna almost capped a fine passing move which he started, narrowly failing to connect with Guiza’s header across the face of goal.
Deserved winners, Spain are emerging from the football wilderness and should be a force to be reckoned with for years to come.
EURO2008 FINAL PREVIEW - TIME FOR SPAIN TO EMERGE FROM THE SHADOWS
Spain and Germany meet tomorrow night in the Final of a tournament that has been notable for the inconsistency shown by the competing nations as much as the stunning counter-attacking football on display. Perennial underachievers Spain have bucked the trend shown by other fancied nations to have won all of their matches. If they emerge victorious in the Ernst Happel Stadion, they will be the first team since France in 1984 to do so, the last time that Spain reached the final. Germany however know the finals well although this is their first European Championship appearance at this stage since 1996 when they beat the Czech Republic with an Oliver Beirhoff ‘Golden Goal’.
In reaching the Final, both teams paths could not have been more markedly different. The Germans were many people’s pre-tournament favourites but they have stumbled to get this far, failing to be convincing in any performance other than their Quarter-Final victory over Portugal and it is this inconsistency that Spain must be wary of. In defence, no-one has been commanding and the weakness at full-back has exposed a powder-puff central defensive pairing in Mertesacker and Metzelder. As much as their marking has been slack, the centre-backs’ distribution has been equally loose. Surrendering possession to Spain can mean waving goodbye to the ball for considerable lengths of time.
Getting this far has not been far of a three man show for them; Podolski, Ballack and Schweinsteiger have been involved in pretty much all of the German goals to now. It is this resilience that is their greatest strength, the ability to dig themselves out of a hole as their semi-final victory over Turkey proved; 0-1 down reversed to 2-1 lead and a late equaliser topped by an even later. It epitomised their tournament. Outplayed for huge chunks of a game but emerging victorious.
Spain meanwhile have made light work of most of their opposition. They cruised through the Group phase, their second string beating Greece in the final match of that stage summed it up. A convincing win over Italy was denied by Gianluigi Buffon but the Russians were brushed aside in the semi-final. The key worry for them will be the absence of David Villa, the leading scorer in Euro2008. He was replaced by Cesc Fabregas against the Russians as Spain adapted their 4-4-2 to 4-1-4-1 and it is this latter formation which may take the field in the Final.
They go into this match unbeaten in twenty-one matches so confidence will not be a problem. Defensively, they have not been entirely convincing but have yet to concede more than one goal in any game. Does it really matter though when Iker Casillas is behind them, determined to prove those who believe him to best in his position, totally right? The fullbacks have been impressive coming forward, Ramos is garnering praise for his raids on the right but Capdevilla has been supportive of Silva on the left.
It is the midfield passing which has been most impressive about their run to the final. Iniesta and Xavi have passed opponents to death with Fabregas coming on to join in the fun and add more bite to their forward movement, particularly in the knock-out stages. Valencia’s David Silva has been equally at home on either flank, rendering man-marking irrelevant.
The biggest test though is up front. Torres and Villa have worked in tandem all tournament; the latter has now succumbed to a thigh injury and is missing. Torres had plenty of chances in his hour on the pitch against the Russians but has not found scoring as ’simple’ as it was for Liverpool last season. He will need to buck that trend if Spain are to win their first tournament in forty-four years.
CESC STARS AS SPANISH SINK RUSSIANS
RUSSIA 0 - 3 SPAIN
EURO2008 SEMI-FINAL 2
Spain controlled and then crushed Guus Hiddink’s Russian Revolution to progress to the Final of Euro2008. The Russians were rarely allowed to get their flowing football moving as sweetly as in previous matches as the Spanish midfield and defence sought to cut off the supply lines to Pavlyuchenko and Arshavin. The victory came at a cost for David Villa as he was ruled out of Sunday’s meeting with Germany through what Luis Aragones described as a ‘leg muscle injury’.
The Spaniards opened the match more purposefully and Akinfeev was the busier of two goalkeepers, saving well from Torres with his feet in the early stages. Mobility was the key with Torres and Villa dragging the Russian defence out of position regularly, leaving spaces for Silva, Iniesta, Ramos and Capdevilla to exploit on the flanks.
Villa withdrew ten minutes before the interval with Cesc Fabregas coming on to change the complexion of the match. An additional body in midfield to stifle their opponents creativity, interchanging with Xavi, Silca and Iniesta to support Torres in attack.
Five minutes into the second half, the Spaniards made their deserved breakthrough. Iniesta made space on the left side of the area to drill the ball into the centre of the box where Xavi met its path with a crisp volley into the net. From there on, Russia were rarely able to get forward with any purpose as the Spanish snuffed out their breaks in midfield.
It was a matter of time before the second goal arrived and having prompted Torres, Fabregas did the same for Guiza. The Mallorquian forward made no mistake as Fabregas’ delightful flicked path was controlled and lobbed past the on-rushing Akinfeev to double Spain’s advantage. The icing on the cake came when Fabregas crossed from the left for Silva to deservedly apply the finishing touch with full-time and the Final of Euro2008 beckoning.
Barcelona Chastised By Cesc
Players are not normally openly critical of clubs in general terms. Any bitterness is reserved for how badly they have felt treated or about the deterioration of relationships with managers; never though about how they conduct their business.
Never Say Never is the new maxim as Cesc Fabregas took time out from Spain’s Euro2008 campaign to slap his former employers and long-time suitors, CF Barcelona, about how they conduct their business.
Speaking with Catalunya Radio, the Arsenal midfielder said
A club like Barcelona must respect a little more the intimacy of a club that never makes ‘noise’ and that tries to do things well like Arsenal. In the last few weeks it’s come out that Barcelona want at least 7 players from Arsenal and this is not necessary. These things cast doubts on our players and upsets them. Arsenal do things in a different way. Always in secret. This is much more normal.
The relationship between the Spanish clubs and the media is more developed than in England and it is this aspect that causes dissension in the ranks of supporters. Both Real and Barcelona have radio and newspaper outlets that are supportive of their objectives, more than willing to be the font of speculation in order to achieve them. In England, clubs rarely use the media in the same way, the domestication of those outlets never likely to happen either with journalists happy to bite the hands that feed at the first opportunity.
At Arsenal, it is rare for speculation to be officially commented on. In Wenger’s time and before then, the club would never speculate openly regarding potential targets, leaks coming from Agents and Selling clubs. It leads to a mass of unfounded rumour and places stress on those who want action and demand that the club sign everyone that they are linked to.
In openly criticising the Catalan’s, questions about his commitment to Arsenal are answered. It is clear that he is unhappy with the ongoing dramas surrounding Alexandr Hleb and Emmanuel Adebayor. Of those two, he has been more supportive of the latter albeit stopping short of telling him to stay. Adebayor is the more likely departure to the Camp Nou with a fee of €30m quoted by Marca yesterday. For Cesc, the team ethic is clearly important which marks him out as a potential Arsenal captain of the future.
GERMANY SCRAPE PAST TURKEY TO REACH FINAL
Germany 3 - 2 Turkey
Euro2008 Semi Final 1
A last-gasp Philipp Lahm strike sent Germany undeservedly through to Euro2008. Having been hailed before the match as the best German side since 1990, they promptly set about proving that they were the worst since 1958 by failing to defend properly and being unable to control or pass the ball with any degree of accuracy in the opening spell of the match.
Despite being patched up, Turkey pushed their opponents to the limit and could have been ahead before the opening quarter of the game had elapsed; Colin Kazim-Richards thundered a shot against Jens Lehmann’s crossbar. Minutes later that miss was irrelevant. Kazim-Richards effort looped over Lehmann’s head and span onto the crossbar with the German ‘keeper helpless and watching, Ugur was first to react and shot straight at the former Arsenal custodian. As Lehmann fumbled, the ball passed through his legs, tantalisingly evading his grasp as he desperately tried to retrieve the situation.
The lead was no more than Turkey deserved as they had outpassed and outclassed their opponents. It was the catalyst for a more open game and within four minutes, Germany were level. Podolski stretched the Turkish defence with a run down the left and centered for Schweinsteiger to add the deftest of touches to equalise.
The match developed into an end-to-end game with the Turks constantly exposing the soft centre of the German defence. Neither Mertesacker or Metzelder was comfortable in possession and their distribution was poor. It remained level until exploding back into life in the final fifteen minutes. Rustu was slow off his line to react to a cross, allowing Klose the chance to head the ball home with eleven minutes remaining. It was time for the Germans to revert to type and kill off the game.
Except no-one had told the Turks this. Amid a flurry of activity on the bench, Sabri made mincemeat of Lahm and reached the byeline where his low cross was met at the near post by Semih, who guided the ball once more through Lehmann’s legs for the equaliser. With extra time looming, Germany mustered their best attacking move of the game as Lahm played a one-two with Hitzelsperger and found himself free in the Turkish area, burying the chance past Rustu for the glory.
SPURS JOIN THE QUEUE TO BUY A VILLA IN THE SUN
Tottenham’s offer of £20m for David Villa seems more tongue-in-cheek than based in any serious reality. The player is being heavily linked with all of Europe’s major clubs and now some minor ones too and the Spanish club admit that offers have been received for the player but they have not given up on him staying.
The player has often been quoted as wanting to move to Real Madrid or Barcelona but has also drawn attention from at least two of the Premier League’s top two. A move to the Catalan giants seems to be the more stretched imagination of journalists with Joan Laporta closing the net on Emmanuel Adebayor although the chances of that succeeding are diminishing by the day. It seems that they have realised that Arsenal will not be negotiating a fee below €30m (£24m), a valuation that the azulgrana had previously baulked at paying.
Villa meanwhile has been subject to more interest that the media is aware of. Juan Sanchez, Les Ches technical secretary, spoke with Spanish daily AS,
A number of teams have come in with offers, more than are being spoken about, but both (coach Unai) Emery and I think that he’s going to stay
Were El Guaje to leave the Mestalla, it would be a big hole for them to fill. Scoring twenty one goals in thirty-five appearances in all competitions is a record comparable to any of Europe’s leading strikers. Considered in the context of Valencia’s dismal season in 2007-08, it becomes all the more remarkable.
FOR DOMENECH ITS WRITTEN IN THE STARS, THE MEDIA AND ON THE WALL
If the Italians feel that Euro2008 has been a failure, the French need to insert ‘abject’ into that sentence to sum up their tournament. Held by the Romanians in a dour match, hammered by the Dutch and hampered by the referee in their clash with Italy, anything that could go wrong did so for Les Bleus.
Missing Patrick Vieira and opting not to replace him with Mathieu Flamini proved a huge mistake by Domenech. Toulalan was not as active as either player and lacked their presence alongside the ageing Claude Makalele. Up front, little was better. Henry was out of sorts, clearly affected by injury when it mattered the most. Sidney Govou continued to display the profligacy in front of goal that has prevented him from playing for one of Europe’s premier clubs whilst in the central defence, the ageing duo of Thuram and Gallas were exposed by their youthful and more spritely opponents.
Of course, they could not legislate for the hapless Abidal’s red card against Italy, an incident that changed the outcome of the match. However, it should not be used as an excuse for the rebuilding that Domenech’s successor. Tactically, the coach must be called into question. He had an abundance of attacking talent in midfield and along the forward line yet they were subdued and inhibited in the opening group fixture with Romania. Like the Italians, they had ample opportunities against the Dutch and like the Azurri, they failed to take them and were savagely punished.
Next week the French Football Federation (FFF) will meet and discuss the future. It will be one in all likelihood that does not involve Domenech. Favourite to replacve him amongst former colleagues and the media is Didier Deschamps. Whomever the FFF chose will find that chief amongst his tasks are rebuilding the side and relations with club managers around Europe, particularly compatriot Arsene Wenger. During his time in charge, Domenech called upon Thierry Henry and William Gallas when rest would have served them better following spells of injury, causing friction between the club and national managers.
For the players, some soul-searching is required. Thuram has already retired from international football and others such as Henry and Gallas must look inwards and question whether their desire to play at this level is matched by the diminishment of their talents due to age and injury, especially with the next World Cup coming in two seasons. Perhaps a greater service to themselves and their country might be to step aside now to allow young blood to gain experience in the qualifying campaign, giving Les Bleus a better chance of winning in South Africa.
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