EURO 2012

wasnt only navas' trailing leg onside

ha, not the most dignified of red cards

is this the best place for the fantasy league updates? 19 points clear, may never get this good again.

dynamo sad grebs is making me lol right now.

Gutted for Croatia, that Modric pass midway through the second half was beautiful. Someone should sign him.

chelsea will

Were Spain terrible today or just playing for a draw?

They weren't terrible, I don't think, it's just how they do things. They'll come to grief eventually if they don't get a bit more direct. They were so much better with Torres.

convinced england are gonna win this.

modric was laughably good wasn't he.

the weakness spain showed today was tactical/defensive

they can score with a 4-6-0, they played it vs scotland with silva as withdrawn cf and scored three times, they scored vs italy and they scored today (just about)

introducing navas into that formation was a bit strange but he does provide an outlet behind the defence and nobody else apart from torres (and sometimes pedro) can do that

the breaks that allowed croatia's best chances midway through the second half showed a serious lack of cohesion

xabi is obviously an estimable character and an excellent player and his presence presumably reassures casillas (a bit flaky) ramos (angry retard) and arbeloa (????) but he plays at a different pace to the rest of the midfield -- he is at his best receiving from the defence, taking a touch or two and hitting a throughball or a 20 yard pass out to the flanks

if they removed him and played a more orthodox 4-3-3 they could play a forward line reminiscent of pre-2009 barcelona, with torres making similar runs to eto'o, silva providing a playmaking cut-inside option and pedro or navas a touchline winger on the other flank

you're only active if the ball comes/is coming to you or is intended for you?

4-6-0 is the TMFD formation ne plus ultra

tmfd

team mother fuckin domination
Our team is so good we're tmfd
buy tmfd mugs & shirts
team mother fuckin domination tmfd
by Jesus Christo Jr. Sep 11, 2007 share this add a video

“We lost because we done too much fanny dangle,” Dave Bassett once fumed

hmmn i don't think it's a bad option to have -- del bosque started experimenting with it when villa was effectively ruled out and torres was might as well have been, leaving a load of strikers either unproven or not quite good enough (soldado) or unsuitable for the team

playing against a side with a lack of collective intelligence and difficulties tracking runners between the lines, it can be quite dangerous

torres presumably did enough vs ireland to start in the quarter final and he should remain first-choice

can't be arsed to scroll back to the discussion of the second worse refereeing of the tournament, but i doubt it wd've altered the outcome. linesman shd be sacked tho but

england have simply got to win this group, the fixtures will be dreary as shit otherwise

has eng-ita really not happened in a decade?

http://www.englandstats.com/matches.php?mid=787

Did anyone see a possession stat for the Spain game?

62/38 according to http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/18181161

Spain's unwillingness to go for direct penetration is frustrating. I've seen a lot of people, during last night's game, and two years ago at the World Cup, say they find Spain really boring and stifling, but I find real pleasure in watching their movement patterns, the deftness of touch. Xabi makes no sense in the team though; I'd have Fabregas in ahead of him, play Fab with Silva, just off Torres, and then Xavi, Iniesta, and Biscuits in a revolving triangle in the middle.

Spain are lucky they've got a keeper as good as Casillas; he made two extraordinary saves last night which effectively kept them in the competition.

If we meet them on Saturday, and I have a suspicion that we won't, I think they'll stifle and boss and outclass us, and win 1-0. But I think we might win the group...

we had a pool at work for dis btw, a $5 pool and a $2 pool

i drew netherlands for the $5 pool and denmark for the $2 pool

in summary, i no longer give a shit about this tournament

I thought the linesman's call looked right but I haven't looked at it again since the replay. Didn't make any difference anyway, Croatia needed a goal to put Spain out regardless of whether it finished 1-0 to them or 1-1 and they didn't get it.

Bilic very nearly got his tactics right but if anything Croatia were too disciplined towards the end, they weren't prepared to go for it until very late on, after the goal even.

Am I right in thinking that as long as France don't lose by more than one goal they are definitely through tonight?

Think so - the only way France could conceivably in trouble is if Sweden win convincingly and Ukraine win and top the group. England just need to not lose and they're through.

Jesus was definitely ahead of the last defender when Fabregas played the ball to Iniesta, and was level when Iniesta played the ball to him. Whether he was technically offside, due to being active or inactive or whatever, is one of those things that everyone's going to disagree on. My gut instrinct at the time was that Spain were VERY lucky to be allowed the goal, both for Iniesta's shoulder-control and Jesus being active when fabregas played the ball to Iniesta.

I think they can lose by one and go out on goals scored if England also lose by one, but otherwise I think that's right.

they have a better goal diff than england at the moment tho right? By +1?

this is handy

http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/3284/euro-2012/2012/06/19/3184870/euro-2012-group-d-permutations-england-france-close-in-on

thx mate

MINI-LEAGUE

i was convinced last night was going to be spain 2 - 2 croatia .. at 15-1 was worth a pop? or was i a fool?

i was deffo a fool when at 43 mins i put £2 on the same score thinking i was getting 240-1, then realised after betting it was for half-time score.

Wait, UEFA dropped the hammer on Bendy to the tune of £80,000! Didn't realize their fines went that high, or is that only when they're dealing with Associations rather than players?

fwiw my call for tonight

england draw with ukraine
france beat sweden.

(zzzz)

they reckon paddy power will foot the bill for n.b. anyway

240-1 for four goals in two minutes isn't very generous! You want to change bookies imo. That Victor seems like a smashing fellow, he'd see you right.

england draw with ukraine
france beat sweden.

that's how i'd call it

figure England would have a marginally better shout against Italy than against Spain if they get thru. wouldn't even be slightly shocked if Ukraine win tonight tho.

Italy were so bad last night

although i guess Spain weren't great either

this is all relative tho

i think England will beat Ukraine though

Goal of the tournament so far - the Balotelli one? Theo?

hoping he drops Carroll and plays Rooney off Wellbeck. Ukraine's backline looks pretty porous but our midfield is still o_O. tbf, having Young on the left and Milner on the right mightn't be as limiting with Rooney who won't rely on having proper wingers the way Carroll does.

definitely not Walcott. It was a deflection/fluke

gott - Ronaldo's second v Netherlands

Just trying to think of shots from outside the box that have actually gone in. xp

Mario's was v. nice, that second Gomez goal against the Netherlands was pretty tasty too.

I think i liked Di Natale against Spain the best. Or Ronaldo the other night