Reflections on the Euros

[The Celtic View]

The best team won the competition. Spain had by far the hardest route to the final, and won every game.

In the second half they played without Rodri, Pedri, and Gavi, who missed the entire tournament, but the players who came in for them played superbly..

Fabian Ruiz and Dani Olmo were outstanding in midfield.

If I had one criticism of Spain, it's that they didn't take enough of the chances they created.

 

[kenada_blue]

Bit flat as a fart in all honesty. Top goalscorer has 3 goals. Best games were generally Georgia or Turkey as they went a bit gung ho. Teams were getting to the semi final barely winning games in 90mins or scoring from open play.

Southgate's England did what he does to progress but limitations tactically came home to roost.

Best team from beginning to end won it in Spain.

Think the format of having 3rd places going through doesn't work personally. Teams only have to win 1 game technically and defend the rest to get out the groups. Then it's a similar mindset in the knockouts

 

[Billy Dean]

Definitely thought the previous euros was better as a tournament on the whole

 

[Simon Buttle]

Seems to be lots of talk around Bellingham not getting on with others and falling out with Southgate.

 

[stipe]

The best team won the competition. Spain had by far the hardest route to the final, and won every game.

In the second half they played without Rodri, Pedri, and Gavi, who missed the entire tournament, but the players who came in for them played superbly..

Fabian Ruiz and Dani Olmo were outstanding in midfield.

If I had one criticism of Spain, it's that they didn't take enough of the chances they created.

Considering their striker was Morata that, thats not surprising.
Lack of class striker was their biggest weakness, if they had someone like David Villa of few years ago that would be a spectacle.

Spain and Germany were only big teams that played attacking football, everyone else defense first.

 

[Rita_Poon]

An awful spectacle, with a few flecks of entertainment. Boring do nothing possession for possessions sakes limited games holding on for draws.

Rubbish!

Had looked forward to it, wanted some good games, didn't happen. Had england not made the final, what would you remember about this tournament?

Seems most sides/countries/academies are focused on finding and developing athletes, the conveyor belt of talent is closer to the american sporting college graduate system. Players capacity as athlete then dictates where they are shoehorned into a side. We're at the tipping point where a Dimitar Berbatov type player wouldn't get a game for a side very soon. Imagination, creativity, daring, lazy moody so and so that'll turn up with a touch of magic. Over ruled because of stats.

Fans complain that var and new refereeing is destroying the last remains of the games soul, they're not even close, the metrics, the stats, the xG, is where the true antithesis is happening.

Football was analogue, natural, for every-person. Now it is a digital disaster. Homogenised, gentrified, unrecognisable.

 

[Drico]

Definitely thought the previous euros was better as a tournament on the whole

There hasn't been a good Euros since 2008. The format change since 2016 has made it even worse.

 

[Billy Dean]

There hasn't been a good Euros since 2008. The format change since 2016 has made it even worse.

True but I think the previous one was better than this one from memory

 

[Papa Shango]

Bit flat as a fart in all honesty. Top goalscorer has 3 goals. Best games were generally Georgia or Turkey as they went a bit gung ho. Teams were getting to the semi final barely winning games in 90mins or scoring from open play.

Southgate's England did what he does to progress but limitations tactically came home to roost.

Best team from beginning to end won it in Spain.

Think the format of having 3rd places going through doesn't work personally. Teams only have to win 1 game technically and defend the rest to get out the groups. Then it's a similar mindset in the knockouts

It worked fine in Mexico 86 and Italia 90. I think the overarching problem really is that modern football and everything that comes with it is generally just a bit boring.

 

[Amokachi1995]

I didn't get into it at all.

Maybe it's because of the covid delayed euros then the odd world cup timing - there hasn't been the usual gap between tournaments.

 

[kenada_blue]

It worked fine in Mexico 86 and Italia 90. I think the overarching problem really is that modern football and everything that comes with it is generally just a bit boring.

Last world cup final with France and Argentina was amazing though.

 

[LEONARD]

Much preferred watching us smash the West Indies all over the shop.

 

[Papa Shango]

Last world cup final with France and Argentina was amazing though.

It was, but overshadowed by Messi being forced to wear a nightie at the end and whatever a Salt Bae is.

Modern everything is rubbish actually!

 

[Drico]

True but I think the previous one was better than this one from memory

It had two classic matches on the same day: Spain-Croatia and Switzerland-France. This one had none.

Granted, everything about the last one was under a Covid cloud and felt utterly artificial.

 

[Drico]

It worked fine in Mexico 86 and Italia 90. I think the overarching problem really is that modern football and everything that comes with it is generally just a bit boring.

I don’t think it worked even then. Italia ‘90 was notoriously terrible, and Mexico ‘86 was saved by the knockouts.

Basically, 24 into 16 has never worked.

Euros will soon be 32 as they will use the obvious format issue to expand for more money.