Arn Does Euro 2024 Day 7  

 

Hola amigos, here goes another day in the Euros. This is the final day of Match Day 2 fixtures. Tomorrow, we get serious. Final group match days.  

 

GEORGIA 1 CZECHIA 1 

The first half was a lesson in Georgia’s style. They go at defenders and run with the ball. But all that high tempo, aggressive running wore the team out. In the second half they were a shell of the team from the first 45 minutes. Czechia looked very dangerous from set pieces and scored from a corner.  

 

Czechia were all over Georgia second half and the last 30’ was all Czechia. Georgia hit one break, in stoppage time, where they could have just nicked it. It was a gutsy performance from the underdogs but they looked so gassed in the second half. It makes you worry about them against a team with a strong bench, like Portugal. Whatever happens, they’ve been fantastic to watch in this tournament.  

 

TURKEY 0 PORTUGAL 3 

Portugal’s first job was to silence the crowd and they did a poor job of it. Then Turkey did it for them with a suicidal own goal to make it 0-2. The Bernardo Silva goal was a fine example of how good this Portugal team can be if the passing and moving comes off. However, it only happened because Ronaldo fell over. In other good areas the likes of Ronaldo and Bruno blasted terrible shots miles off target.  

 

Turkey’s back line was so shambolic in this game that Cristiano Ronaldo breached their offside trap. It was a mess back there. A bad line filled with lots of individual errors. Portugal weren’t *that* good, they just took advantage of bad defending. Speaking of bad defending; there were four pitch invaders trying to get selfies with Ronaldo. FOUR. How crap are your stewards to let it happen four times?  

 

BELGIUM 2 ROMANIA 0 

Belgium switched the wide player on the right to accommodate Lukebakio. The natural width, combined with a direct style of play, using Lukaku as a target forward, and getting runners in and around all of those players was highly effective. Romania looked overrun at various times during the first half. Only to stay in it by countering the play and the whole game was stretched. It was a lot of fun to watch, and one of the better 8pm kick offs so far. 

 

The wide players causing problems, especially Doku as his decision making is better than Lukebakio, dragged players out of position. Sometimes the Romanian defence is so obsessed with doubling up on the wingers you get midfield runners in space like De Bruyne and Tielemans. Belgium benefitted from this a great deal. De Bruyne being smart enough to know when and where to run to cause overloads.  

 

In the closing spells of the game, Belgium should have rattled up another 3-4 goals. Lukaku was again unlucky with a marginal offside and some of the decision making, from Trossard in particular, cost Belgium on goal difference. Another goal here, making it 3-0 and they’d have topped the group.  

 

TOPS 

 

Giorgi Mamardashvili (Georgia). An incredible series of saves from the Georgia stopper. Probably the best goalkeeping performance of the tournament. Czechia had an xG over three and only netted when the ball bounced off the post into an unmarked forward. Nothing the keeper could do about it. Everything else, he got.  

 

Nuno Mendes (Portugal). Had a great first 30’ or so bombing on down the left side. If he’d played that well all game, he’d have been in my team of the tournament. However, Portugal took their foot off the gas, and he was left to defend.  

 

Pepe (Portugal). Seemed to be in the right place every time the ball got into the box. To the point where the fans were cheering every time he touched it.  

 

Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium). Ran his socks off and provided overloads with his movement, on top of his usual quality passing. Got a goal as a result of his willingness to run in behind. A winner.  

 

Jeremy Doku (Belgium). Tormented Romania’s back line, who would have been surpremely relieved when he was subbed off on 72’.  

 

FLOPS 

 

Turkey defence. I was going to single out the keeper for being at fault for the own goal but then the whole back line went to shit on the third goal, and they all got silly yellow cards too.  

 

Valentin Mihaila (Romania). Incredible pace, poor decisions. The Romanian Adama Traore.  

 

Team of the Tournament (Match Day 2)  

GK: Mamardashvili  

RB: Karnicnak  

LB: Cucurella 

CB: Van Dijk  

CB: Pepe  

MF: Ruiz  

MF: Gundogan  

MF: De Bruyne  

LW: Williams  

RW: Musiala/Yamal 

ST: Lukaku  

 

NEXT (MD3 begins!) 

 

SCOTLAND vs. HUNGARY 

Winner takes it all in the final Group A round. Both teams will come into this knowing anything other than a win will see them exit the competition. Scotland have never made it into the knockout stages before. I would have bet against them after their miserable capitulation to Germany, but they showed a lot more against Switzerland.  

 

Hungary were dubbed “dark horses” by some, coming into the tournament. I didn’t think they had a good enough squad. Nor Scotland, for that matter, to trouble the knockout stages but one of these is in a position to get into R16. Will they though? Personally, I think this is very tight and the two teams are hard to separate. Prediction: 1-1 (although, it could really go either way) 

 

SWITZERLAND vs. GERMANY 

This is another tough one to call. Switzerland are solid and organised and Germany won’t blow past them like they did Scotland. Nor are they likely to fade like Hungary did. Germany only need a point to win the group here and I’m sure they will want to win the group.  

 

With both teams aware that a draw is good enough for double progression, leaving Scotland and Hungary to fight over third, it’s likely we’ll see that outcome. Maybe it’s just me being a little cynical but a draw suits everyone and doesn’t really make much difference to anyone else. Prediction: 1-1