Russia has a lot to be thankful for, especially to Croatia, after they they were really qualified due to Croatia's epic win against England. I'm not saying this to be pompous but it is true. No wonder CEO's and presidents of russian companies tried to give Croatian players (especially Pletikosa--"Croatia's wall"--their goalkeeper that saved them from a tie or even a defeat at the hands of austria) a BMW--a prize that they did not accept because UEFA probably frowns on those kinds of rewards. Pletikosa plays for a Russian club so the Russians know him very well and are grateful. Russians in Astoria, Queens were even wearing the Coratian coat of arms on the days following the Croatia-England game. However, this time Russia does not have Croatia in their group to help them again, but they shouldn't need it--Dutch coach Guus Hiddink who I mentioned in a previous post is amazing and I feel confident that our fellow Slavic brothers will reach their goal. Yes, Croatian fans, I said Slavic. I know some of you don't like that word and I know that Croatian history shows that we really aren't Slavs. Political enemies with Russians, yes we are. Did they support Serbia during the war? Yes they did. But in sport, I root for out fellow Balkan and Eastern European rivals (even Serbia)--Here's to a Russia-Croatia final.....afterall, we have some unfinished business to take care of against the Russians: 0-0 ties in both of our Euro qualifiers against them--we cannot let that stand (but defeating them in a friendly will be fine. I'll take whatever I can get. anyway, i digress. here is a video I found on youtube on Russia Today. I thought I'd share it:
here's to all Eastern European fans! (Coratia;s more like Central Europe but whatever). Good luck to all of them, Czech Republic too. Not Poland though that would mean Croatia is out because it looks like Germany is going through.
National anthems and coverage starts at 11:50 ET on ESPN 2 or ESPN Classic. Good luck Russia! (I like Spain too but Russia deserves this as an underdog!). Stay tuned for the Greece-Sweden game at 2:45 pm. Go SWEDEN!!!!!
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Monday, June 9, 2008
Euro 2008: Group D Predictions and Overview
Most people say Group C is the "group of death" and it definitely is. This is fact and I do not protest it, but while Group C is the toughest, the teams in Group D (which will open tomorrow) is not an easy one either. This group contains an overrated but still very good Spanish side, a Sweden team that many people seem to look down on, a Russian side that qualified in the slimmest of margins while in qualifying group that included Croatia, England, and an Israel team that refused to go down without a fight to the bitter end even though there was no chance for them qualify; and who am i forgetting?????? oh yeah, Euro Cup defending champions Greece.
Even though the cup already started, I will still do my group analysis for this group.
Tuesday June 10
Spain 1
Russia 1
Most people don't see Russia winning this one but with Dutch coach Guus Hiddink on their side anything can happen. Arguably the best coach in the world atleast think so, Hindink coached his native Netherlands to a 4th place finish at the 1998 World Cup losing to Croatia in the third place match. He then moved on to South Korea taking the hosts of the 2002 World Cup to the same position. Hiddink once again moved to Australia for the 2006 World Cup coaching the Aussies into a World Cup for the first time in more than 20 years after breaking the Aussie curse by defeating Uruguay in an extremely tough intercontinental qualifying two-legged series that went to penalty kicks. As coach of Russia, Hiddink (who has admitted to the Russians that he has never taken a sip of alcohol in his life) made a promise to the Russian players that if they qualified he will take his first sip of vodka and stay with the team and coach them in their Road to Vienna for the Final. When he made this promise, he probably had doubts because this is exactly what happened as Croatia defeating England sending Russia in their place. Sorry I can't get any proof of this deal Hiddink made with his team because I just read it passing. Anyway, the Russians can definitely give the Spaniards some trouble and the tie it 1-1. They have the talent.
Greece 2
Sweden 2
Defending champions Greece were extremely lucky in 2004. They were complete underdogs and no body considered them as a threat, but this time, many teams will be ready for Greece and will be able to stop them from making a repeat performance despite ending with the best record in Europe during qualifying. However, Greece is still a very good team that can do some damage which is why I think that they will end in tight but a high scoring game against the underrated Swedes.
Based on these prediction, at the end of day 1 of Group D (the final group before we end the first round of the group stage), all four teams will be in a tie with 1 point. However, Sweden and Greece will be at the top because they both scored 2 goals (more than Spain and Russia's one goal. In order to break the tie between Sweden and Greece, fair play will probably be considered and therefore they will probably look at number of red and yellow cards. Greece plays rather dirty most of the time so I cannot see them do well against Sweden without playing rough. Therefore, I would say that Sweden will be left on top, with greece in second place, Spain will be third while Russia fourth (also due to fair play).
Saturday June 14
Sweden 0
Spain 0
Both teams a very good, but I tend to look at Spain as somewhat overrated while Sweden seems to be somewhat underrated and not given credit. They play very well in my opinion. I think that this one will also end in a stalemate. 0-0 is my prediction.
Greece 1
Russia 2
Something tells me that Russia will do very well in this match despite recent successes from the Greeks. Ever since Guus Hiddink has taken the helm, there have been nothing but positive results from the Russians. I don't think the Russians will escape without one goal conceded but I still think that can take three points out of this one to put themselves at the top of the group.
Wednesday June 18
Spain 3
Greece 1
This is wear Greece will get destroyed by at least two goals or more. While I can't see Greece not scoring at least one against Spain, I can't see them taking even a point out of this one. With the situation that I created for Spain in my predictions, the Spaniards will fear for their Euro Cup lives and will fight every 90 minutes to qualify for the quarterfinals. They will not allow a loss.
Russia 0
Sweden 0
This will be an important match for the Euro 2008 future of both of these teams. Both teams will need a desperate win especially Sweden, but I don't will be able to overcome the pressure. Hiddink's team will be more relaxed because they would be in a good position to progress. I say it will be a scoreless match.
Based on my prediction, this how the standings will look in Group D:
1. Spain 5 points (tiebreaker: +2 goal difference)
2. Russia 5 points (tiebreaker: +1 goal difference)
3. Sweden 3 points
4. Greece 1 point
While Sweden is a good team and will probably end up spoiling a straight out group topper for Russia and Spain forcing them to separate their tie with goal difference, I don't really think their good enough to qualify with the like of Russia. Howver, being a spoiler, they will tie every team and even Greek team that they probably should win against but will probably lose because I see the Swedes messing against a team like Greece.
Even though most of my predictions are not correct for the first round games so far, I think my prediction for those qualifying for the quarterfinals are more or less correct (so far) based on how the actual scores went so far. Since this will not spoil any of my qualifying prediction, I will still do quarterfinal predictions as well based on my own predictions (not the actual teams who qualify). I will make adjustments as I go along.
In addition, I will also post in the near future, my own top 16 rankings for Europe (in other words, who I really think is the best in Europe considering recent friendlies and this tournament as well as all qualifiers).
Even though the cup already started, I will still do my group analysis for this group.
Tuesday June 10
Spain 1
Russia 1
Most people don't see Russia winning this one but with Dutch coach Guus Hiddink on their side anything can happen. Arguably the best coach in the world atleast think so, Hindink coached his native Netherlands to a 4th place finish at the 1998 World Cup losing to Croatia in the third place match. He then moved on to South Korea taking the hosts of the 2002 World Cup to the same position. Hiddink once again moved to Australia for the 2006 World Cup coaching the Aussies into a World Cup for the first time in more than 20 years after breaking the Aussie curse by defeating Uruguay in an extremely tough intercontinental qualifying two-legged series that went to penalty kicks. As coach of Russia, Hiddink (who has admitted to the Russians that he has never taken a sip of alcohol in his life) made a promise to the Russian players that if they qualified he will take his first sip of vodka and stay with the team and coach them in their Road to Vienna for the Final. When he made this promise, he probably had doubts because this is exactly what happened as Croatia defeating England sending Russia in their place. Sorry I can't get any proof of this deal Hiddink made with his team because I just read it passing. Anyway, the Russians can definitely give the Spaniards some trouble and the tie it 1-1. They have the talent.
Greece 2
Sweden 2
Defending champions Greece were extremely lucky in 2004. They were complete underdogs and no body considered them as a threat, but this time, many teams will be ready for Greece and will be able to stop them from making a repeat performance despite ending with the best record in Europe during qualifying. However, Greece is still a very good team that can do some damage which is why I think that they will end in tight but a high scoring game against the underrated Swedes.
Based on these prediction, at the end of day 1 of Group D (the final group before we end the first round of the group stage), all four teams will be in a tie with 1 point. However, Sweden and Greece will be at the top because they both scored 2 goals (more than Spain and Russia's one goal. In order to break the tie between Sweden and Greece, fair play will probably be considered and therefore they will probably look at number of red and yellow cards. Greece plays rather dirty most of the time so I cannot see them do well against Sweden without playing rough. Therefore, I would say that Sweden will be left on top, with greece in second place, Spain will be third while Russia fourth (also due to fair play).
Saturday June 14
Sweden 0
Spain 0
Both teams a very good, but I tend to look at Spain as somewhat overrated while Sweden seems to be somewhat underrated and not given credit. They play very well in my opinion. I think that this one will also end in a stalemate. 0-0 is my prediction.
Greece 1
Russia 2
Something tells me that Russia will do very well in this match despite recent successes from the Greeks. Ever since Guus Hiddink has taken the helm, there have been nothing but positive results from the Russians. I don't think the Russians will escape without one goal conceded but I still think that can take three points out of this one to put themselves at the top of the group.
Wednesday June 18
Spain 3
Greece 1
This is wear Greece will get destroyed by at least two goals or more. While I can't see Greece not scoring at least one against Spain, I can't see them taking even a point out of this one. With the situation that I created for Spain in my predictions, the Spaniards will fear for their Euro Cup lives and will fight every 90 minutes to qualify for the quarterfinals. They will not allow a loss.
Russia 0
Sweden 0
This will be an important match for the Euro 2008 future of both of these teams. Both teams will need a desperate win especially Sweden, but I don't will be able to overcome the pressure. Hiddink's team will be more relaxed because they would be in a good position to progress. I say it will be a scoreless match.
Based on my prediction, this how the standings will look in Group D:
1. Spain 5 points (tiebreaker: +2 goal difference)
2. Russia 5 points (tiebreaker: +1 goal difference)
3. Sweden 3 points
4. Greece 1 point
While Sweden is a good team and will probably end up spoiling a straight out group topper for Russia and Spain forcing them to separate their tie with goal difference, I don't really think their good enough to qualify with the like of Russia. Howver, being a spoiler, they will tie every team and even Greek team that they probably should win against but will probably lose because I see the Swedes messing against a team like Greece.
Even though most of my predictions are not correct for the first round games so far, I think my prediction for those qualifying for the quarterfinals are more or less correct (so far) based on how the actual scores went so far. Since this will not spoil any of my qualifying prediction, I will still do quarterfinal predictions as well based on my own predictions (not the actual teams who qualify). I will make adjustments as I go along.
In addition, I will also post in the near future, my own top 16 rankings for Europe (in other words, who I really think is the best in Europe considering recent friendlies and this tournament as well as all qualifiers).
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Euro 2008 Predictions: Group C (The Group of Death)
Even thought he final stages of Euro 2008 have already begun, I am still going to give my predictions for the remaining groups I have not done yet (C and D) as well as the quarterfinals, semifinals, and final based on my predictions of the group stages. The predictions for one of the two group A matches played was wrong but the teams that will move forward I feel will still move forward so that should not affect anything.
With that said, Group C was very tough group to predict. The groups contains Romania, France, Italy, and Netherlands All of these teams (minus Romania are considered European powerhouses and have each won the Euro crown at least once already) and therefore I feel extremely sorry for Romania. They are in an absolutely rotten group. However, I think all of these powerhouses are overated especially France and Italy so this is going to be interesting.
Monday June 9
Romania 1
France 2
France should win this one with no contest, but Romania could cause a little trouble by keeping the score tight throughout the match. Not much else to say here.
Netherlands 2
Italy 3
This is going to be a close match since both are very good teams. However, the Dutch seemed to have been sleeping lately and I remain unconvinced that they are still a powerhouse. The Dutch should keep it tight throughout however. I hope I'm wrong because I never liked the Italian team and do not want them to win this Euro Cup. However, I would love it if italy was the team that Croatia faces should they make to the final. Italy has never won against Croatia. The best they have done was a tie.
At the end of the first round of Group C matches, Italy and France would be tied for 1st and 2nd with 3 points and a goal difference of +1. Italy wins the tiebreaker because Italy had scored 3 goals while France has scored 2 against their opponent. Netherlands and Romania would have no points and a -1 goal difference. The tie breaker would be won by Netherlands who had scored 2 goals versus Romania's 1 leaving Romania in last place.
Friday June 13
Italy 3
Romania 1
I don't think Italy should have any problems with this one. They will definitely win it but the score I just made up.
Netherlands 0
France 0
These two overrated teams seem to be lacking something lately. A scoreless tie seems to be the most likely result in a match against each other.
At the end of the second round of Group C matches, Italy will continue their streak and take 6 points making it clearer who will win the group. France will have 4 points in total while the Netherlands will have only 1. Romania will remain winless with no points at all.
Tuesday June 17
Netherlands 1
Romania 1
Netherlands seems to be the only team Romania can match with pretty well. They were in the same group for the qualifying stage and Romania actually the advantage over the Netherlands in the two matches coming out 4 points in total against Dutch (one 1-0 win and 1 scoreless tie. Based on my predictions, Romania will not be able to qualify for the quarterfinals but will be able to destroy any hopes Netherlands has of doing so.
France 2
Italy 2
It seems as if Italy and France cannot avoid each other. They played against each other in the 2006 World Cup final which Italy obviously won then they played each other two more times in Euro 2008 qualifying (their first match was a scoreless tie). However, I think this time both teams will be ready to do some damage in this bitter rivalry. France will most likely only need a point to qualify but they are definitely going to want more against Italy. This is going to be a good match for the UEFA history books.
When all is said and done, Italy would be the group winner with 7 points. france will qualify as runner-up with 5 while Netherlands (2 pts) and Romania (1 pt) would be eliminated.
This, in my opinion, will be the most interesting group at the Cup. I wish Romania and Netherlands would be the ones to move on as I hate Italy and France with a passion, but it just does not seem possible.
With that said, Group C was very tough group to predict. The groups contains Romania, France, Italy, and Netherlands All of these teams (minus Romania are considered European powerhouses and have each won the Euro crown at least once already) and therefore I feel extremely sorry for Romania. They are in an absolutely rotten group. However, I think all of these powerhouses are overated especially France and Italy so this is going to be interesting.
Monday June 9
Romania 1
France 2
France should win this one with no contest, but Romania could cause a little trouble by keeping the score tight throughout the match. Not much else to say here.
Netherlands 2
Italy 3
This is going to be a close match since both are very good teams. However, the Dutch seemed to have been sleeping lately and I remain unconvinced that they are still a powerhouse. The Dutch should keep it tight throughout however. I hope I'm wrong because I never liked the Italian team and do not want them to win this Euro Cup. However, I would love it if italy was the team that Croatia faces should they make to the final. Italy has never won against Croatia. The best they have done was a tie.
At the end of the first round of Group C matches, Italy and France would be tied for 1st and 2nd with 3 points and a goal difference of +1. Italy wins the tiebreaker because Italy had scored 3 goals while France has scored 2 against their opponent. Netherlands and Romania would have no points and a -1 goal difference. The tie breaker would be won by Netherlands who had scored 2 goals versus Romania's 1 leaving Romania in last place.
Friday June 13
Italy 3
Romania 1
I don't think Italy should have any problems with this one. They will definitely win it but the score I just made up.
Netherlands 0
France 0
These two overrated teams seem to be lacking something lately. A scoreless tie seems to be the most likely result in a match against each other.
At the end of the second round of Group C matches, Italy will continue their streak and take 6 points making it clearer who will win the group. France will have 4 points in total while the Netherlands will have only 1. Romania will remain winless with no points at all.
Tuesday June 17
Netherlands 1
Romania 1
Netherlands seems to be the only team Romania can match with pretty well. They were in the same group for the qualifying stage and Romania actually the advantage over the Netherlands in the two matches coming out 4 points in total against Dutch (one 1-0 win and 1 scoreless tie. Based on my predictions, Romania will not be able to qualify for the quarterfinals but will be able to destroy any hopes Netherlands has of doing so.
France 2
Italy 2
It seems as if Italy and France cannot avoid each other. They played against each other in the 2006 World Cup final which Italy obviously won then they played each other two more times in Euro 2008 qualifying (their first match was a scoreless tie). However, I think this time both teams will be ready to do some damage in this bitter rivalry. France will most likely only need a point to qualify but they are definitely going to want more against Italy. This is going to be a good match for the UEFA history books.
When all is said and done, Italy would be the group winner with 7 points. france will qualify as runner-up with 5 while Netherlands (2 pts) and Romania (1 pt) would be eliminated.
This, in my opinion, will be the most interesting group at the Cup. I wish Romania and Netherlands would be the ones to move on as I hate Italy and France with a passion, but it just does not seem possible.
Saturday, June 7, 2008
Euro 2008 Update: Round 1 of Group A Matches in the Books
Euro 2008 has finally begun and Group A has completed its first round of matches.
In this post, I'm just going to go through my predictions for Group A and see if they were correct in addition to analyzing the match a little bit and see what each team has to do correctly in order to progress throughout the rest of the group stage.
Switzerland vs Czech Republic: The co-host fought against the Czech Republic quite nicely despite the fact that they lost and kept the score low even though they did not score at all. I found it quite interesting that Switzerland actually had way more shots on goal that the Czech Republic who had only one shot on goal and that was the one that found the back of the net. Czech Republic was lucky but Switzerland deserved a tie and point in this match. If they can keep this up, they can cause Turkey and Portugal a few problems even though they will probably lose these matches.
My Prediction: 1-0 Czech Republic win
Actual result: 1-0 Czech republic win (man, do I wish I signed up for some kind of prediction contest, but my prediction for the next match in Group A was quite off)
The second of the day was between Turkey and Portugal. This match was actually quite boring and one sided and I didn't even pay attention. Portugal was much better the struggling Turkish sided losing to the Portuguese.
My Prediction: 1-1 tie
Actual result: 2-0 Portugal win
Here is how the group standings look so far after today's matches:
1. Portugal 3 pts (tiebreaker: +2 goal difference)
2. Czech Republic 3 pts (tiebreaker: +1 goal difference)
3. Switzerland 0 pts (tiebreaker: -1 goal difference)
4. Turkey 0 pts (tiebreaker: -2 goal difference)
It is rather unfortunate that Turkey ended up opening their Euro 2008 campaign with a loss that puts them at the bottom of the standings. I guess it is just unlucky that they got Portugal at the beginning. I still think they are a fairly good team though.
When comparing today's standings to my prediction, my predictions are somewhat off, but the Czech Republic and Portugal are still on track to qualifying for the quarterfinals, and my prediction that Czech Republic will go forward with a perfect 3-0-0 record could still stand true. Their match Portugal will be extremely important on confirming this.
For more information regarding Group A, click here.
Tomorrow Group B matches will begin. Croatia will face co-hosts Austria then Poland will face a tough German side. I was supposed to go to the Bohemian Hall Beer Garden (a Czech bar and resturaunt in Astoria with some friends but the screens will be outside in the garden and I think it will be way too hot to watch it outside and inside--it would be kind of stupid if they didn't have tv's--there is probably going to be way too many people so I'm going to pass on it. Check the website for times ( eastern time is 6 hours back) and all matches are live on ESPN 2 or ESPN Classic.
If Croatia loses against Austria, they might as well as pack up go home tomorrow, but they should be okay. The Austrians are so embarrassed about their team that they were requesting their football federation to withdraw their team from the tournament (and these are the hosts...lol). I heard that one Austrian man is so embarrassed that he locked his wife and children in the basement because he didn't want them to see the matches.
GO HRVATSKA/CROATIA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
In this post, I'm just going to go through my predictions for Group A and see if they were correct in addition to analyzing the match a little bit and see what each team has to do correctly in order to progress throughout the rest of the group stage.
Switzerland vs Czech Republic: The co-host fought against the Czech Republic quite nicely despite the fact that they lost and kept the score low even though they did not score at all. I found it quite interesting that Switzerland actually had way more shots on goal that the Czech Republic who had only one shot on goal and that was the one that found the back of the net. Czech Republic was lucky but Switzerland deserved a tie and point in this match. If they can keep this up, they can cause Turkey and Portugal a few problems even though they will probably lose these matches.
My Prediction: 1-0 Czech Republic win
Actual result: 1-0 Czech republic win (man, do I wish I signed up for some kind of prediction contest, but my prediction for the next match in Group A was quite off)
The second of the day was between Turkey and Portugal. This match was actually quite boring and one sided and I didn't even pay attention. Portugal was much better the struggling Turkish sided losing to the Portuguese.
My Prediction: 1-1 tie
Actual result: 2-0 Portugal win
Here is how the group standings look so far after today's matches:
1. Portugal 3 pts (tiebreaker: +2 goal difference)
2. Czech Republic 3 pts (tiebreaker: +1 goal difference)
3. Switzerland 0 pts (tiebreaker: -1 goal difference)
4. Turkey 0 pts (tiebreaker: -2 goal difference)
It is rather unfortunate that Turkey ended up opening their Euro 2008 campaign with a loss that puts them at the bottom of the standings. I guess it is just unlucky that they got Portugal at the beginning. I still think they are a fairly good team though.
When comparing today's standings to my prediction, my predictions are somewhat off, but the Czech Republic and Portugal are still on track to qualifying for the quarterfinals, and my prediction that Czech Republic will go forward with a perfect 3-0-0 record could still stand true. Their match Portugal will be extremely important on confirming this.
For more information regarding Group A, click here.
Tomorrow Group B matches will begin. Croatia will face co-hosts Austria then Poland will face a tough German side. I was supposed to go to the Bohemian Hall Beer Garden (a Czech bar and resturaunt in Astoria with some friends but the screens will be outside in the garden and I think it will be way too hot to watch it outside and inside--it would be kind of stupid if they didn't have tv's--there is probably going to be way too many people so I'm going to pass on it. Check the website for times ( eastern time is 6 hours back) and all matches are live on ESPN 2 or ESPN Classic.
If Croatia loses against Austria, they might as well as pack up go home tomorrow, but they should be okay. The Austrians are so embarrassed about their team that they were requesting their football federation to withdraw their team from the tournament (and these are the hosts...lol). I heard that one Austrian man is so embarrassed that he locked his wife and children in the basement because he didn't want them to see the matches.
GO HRVATSKA/CROATIA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Euro 2008 is finally here!!!
The Euro 2008 Finals are finally among us and one match is already in the books (a 1-0 Czech Republic win against co-host Switzerland). More about the match a little bit later. In this post, I want to talk a little bit about the opening ceremony.
The theme of this year's opening ceremony was that of co-hosts Switzerland and Austria's roots. It took place at St. Jakob-Park in Basel, Switzerland just before kickoff against the Czech republic. The display presented, according to UEFA's official Euro 2008 website, was meant to portray a combination of "various elements" which include the heritage of host countries, sport and culture, and the values of fair play, respect, and the "joy of football. The show was 13 minutes long and featured 1,000 performers of different nationalities and ranged from ages 14 to 70.
Many VIPs and "royal guests" were present at the ceremony including Prince Albert of Monaco and Prince Alois of Liechtenstein. The European Union was represented by Jose Manuel Barroso, the president of the European Commission.
President of the Swiss Confederation Pascal Couchepin was also in attendene with Czech Republic's Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs Alandr Vondra. The Austrian co-host was represented at the opener by President Heinz Fischer and Chancellor Alfred and Gusenbauer. Austria will have their own opener against Croatia tomorrow at noon (I will probably be going to the Bohemian Hall Beer Garden in Astoria for that game). GO HRVATSKA/CROATIA!!!!!
For more information regarding the opening ceremony, check out this article.
The theme of this year's opening ceremony was that of co-hosts Switzerland and Austria's roots. It took place at St. Jakob-Park in Basel, Switzerland just before kickoff against the Czech republic. The display presented, according to UEFA's official Euro 2008 website, was meant to portray a combination of "various elements" which include the heritage of host countries, sport and culture, and the values of fair play, respect, and the "joy of football. The show was 13 minutes long and featured 1,000 performers of different nationalities and ranged from ages 14 to 70.
Many VIPs and "royal guests" were present at the ceremony including Prince Albert of Monaco and Prince Alois of Liechtenstein. The European Union was represented by Jose Manuel Barroso, the president of the European Commission.
President of the Swiss Confederation Pascal Couchepin was also in attendene with Czech Republic's Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs Alandr Vondra. The Austrian co-host was represented at the opener by President Heinz Fischer and Chancellor Alfred and Gusenbauer. Austria will have their own opener against Croatia tomorrow at noon (I will probably be going to the Bohemian Hall Beer Garden in Astoria for that game). GO HRVATSKA/CROATIA!!!!!
For more information regarding the opening ceremony, check out this article.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Euro 2008 Predictions: Group A
In this post, I will talk a little bit about Group A of the Euro 2008 Finals which will start this Saturday. The teams in this group are Czech Republic, Portugal, Turkey, and Switzerland.
Here are my predictions for this group as well as the final standings should by predictions be correct.
Saturday June 7
Switzerland 0
Czech Republic 1
Czech Republic can definitely win this match for sure. Switzerland has made it to Euro 2004 but did not it make to the quarterfinals. However, they did play a part in spoiling Croatia's chances to advance tying them 0-0 so I don't think Czech Republic will embarrass Switzerland with multiple goals but I don't think Switzerland will be able to win this one either.
Portugal 1
Turkey 1
I don't care what anyone says about Turkey. They are not easy team. Yes, they have fallen behind a little bit since their 2002 World Cup third place finish, but I think they can give Portugal some trouble. I predict a 1-1 tie in this one.
Withe above results, day one will end with the Czech Republic at the top of the standings with 3 points. Portugal and Turkey will be tied with 1 point while Switzerland would be at the bottom.
Wednesday June 11
Czech Republic 3
Portugal 2
This will be a tough match for both teams, but recently the Czech Republic has been amazing after beating Germany in the qualifying round. Don't get me wrong, Portugal is no easy team either, but I think that the match will seem to end in a 2-2 tie, but as Portugal starts to let their guards down a little bit and settle for a tie, I think the Czechs will score a last minute game winner making 3-2
Switzerland 0
Turkey 0
Switzerland will spoil at least one team's chances and I think that team will be Turkey. Turkey will have several chances but I think it will end in a scoreless tie that would set the Turks back in their quest to qualify for the quarterfinals.
Sunday June 15
Switzerland 1
Portugal 3
I don't see Switzerland winning against Portugal at all and I don't home field advantage will help them either. Portugal (I think) will also win with at least a 2 goal difference.
Turkey 1
Czech Republic 2
According to my prediction, Czech Republic would have won two their three group matches and their match against Turkey will not be any different. Czech Republic is looking for a repeat performance of Euro 2004 in which they topped their group with a 3-0-0 record and I feel that they can do the same here. However, Turkey is not an easy team to defeat and they will not go down without a fight since they will fighting against elimination since it is this match that will make the difference. Turkey will definitely score at least one goal but Czech Republic will take the 3 points to continue their perfect record in the group stage.
Here is how the final standings will look according to my predictions.
1. Czech republic 9 pts (3 wins)
2. Portugal 4 pts (1 win, 1 tie, 1 loss)
3. Turkey 2 pts (2 ties, 1 loss)
4. Switzerland 1 pt (1 tie, 2 losses)
According to these prediction, Czech Republic will have to play my predicted Group B runner-up (Croatia) and Portugal will have to play my predicted Group B winner (Germany). These two quarterfinals will be extremely tough for both teams.
Here are my predictions for this group as well as the final standings should by predictions be correct.
Saturday June 7
Switzerland 0
Czech Republic 1
Czech Republic can definitely win this match for sure. Switzerland has made it to Euro 2004 but did not it make to the quarterfinals. However, they did play a part in spoiling Croatia's chances to advance tying them 0-0 so I don't think Czech Republic will embarrass Switzerland with multiple goals but I don't think Switzerland will be able to win this one either.
Portugal 1
Turkey 1
I don't care what anyone says about Turkey. They are not easy team. Yes, they have fallen behind a little bit since their 2002 World Cup third place finish, but I think they can give Portugal some trouble. I predict a 1-1 tie in this one.
Withe above results, day one will end with the Czech Republic at the top of the standings with 3 points. Portugal and Turkey will be tied with 1 point while Switzerland would be at the bottom.
Wednesday June 11
Czech Republic 3
Portugal 2
This will be a tough match for both teams, but recently the Czech Republic has been amazing after beating Germany in the qualifying round. Don't get me wrong, Portugal is no easy team either, but I think that the match will seem to end in a 2-2 tie, but as Portugal starts to let their guards down a little bit and settle for a tie, I think the Czechs will score a last minute game winner making 3-2
Switzerland 0
Turkey 0
Switzerland will spoil at least one team's chances and I think that team will be Turkey. Turkey will have several chances but I think it will end in a scoreless tie that would set the Turks back in their quest to qualify for the quarterfinals.
Sunday June 15
Switzerland 1
Portugal 3
I don't see Switzerland winning against Portugal at all and I don't home field advantage will help them either. Portugal (I think) will also win with at least a 2 goal difference.
Turkey 1
Czech Republic 2
According to my prediction, Czech Republic would have won two their three group matches and their match against Turkey will not be any different. Czech Republic is looking for a repeat performance of Euro 2004 in which they topped their group with a 3-0-0 record and I feel that they can do the same here. However, Turkey is not an easy team to defeat and they will not go down without a fight since they will fighting against elimination since it is this match that will make the difference. Turkey will definitely score at least one goal but Czech Republic will take the 3 points to continue their perfect record in the group stage.
Here is how the final standings will look according to my predictions.
1. Czech republic 9 pts (3 wins)
2. Portugal 4 pts (1 win, 1 tie, 1 loss)
3. Turkey 2 pts (2 ties, 1 loss)
4. Switzerland 1 pt (1 tie, 2 losses)
According to these prediction, Czech Republic will have to play my predicted Group B runner-up (Croatia) and Portugal will have to play my predicted Group B winner (Germany). These two quarterfinals will be extremely tough for both teams.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Euro 2008 Predictions: Group B (Croatia's group)
The final stages of the Euro 2008 tournament will begin on Saturday in Switzerland as co-host Switzerland opens the tournament in Group A.
Group B matches will begin on Sunday with Croatia and co-host Austria starting the day's matches off. The other group B match will be between Germany and Poland.
Being that Croatia is in Group B and will give my predictions for this group in this post:
Sunday June 8th
Austria 0
Croatia 2
I can't see Croatia having too many problems against Austria. This ones should be fairly easy despite Austria's home field advantage. Austria has been struggling lately and has not yet made it into a major tournament like Euro Cup. The only reason why they qualified for this tournament is because they are co-hosting with Switzerland. I see two problems here: 1) UEFA should not allow co-hosts; and 2) they should not allow weaker teams to host because this would give them automatic qualification while other good teams miss out. Luckily, Croatia has "cupcake" match to look forward to start things off after some pretty bad friendly warmups. They tied 1-1 against Hungary in there most recent friendly warmup--a match that should have been a 1-0 win but one Croatian player scored an own goal for Hungary tying it up. I don't think this will happen in the tournament, however, and Croatia should be able to pocket 3 points in this one.
Germany 2
Poland 1
I don't care what anyone says: Poland is not an easy team. However, Germany is even better. Poland does have the players that can stop this one from being an embarrassment though and the Polish should be able to score at least one goal against Germany.
With these results, day 1 for group B should end well for Croatia and will see Croatia at the top of the group with 3 points tied with Germany who loses the tiebreaker with a +1 goal difference vs Croatia +2
Thursday June 12
Croatia 1
Germany 1
Phew! One day away from Friday the 13th. haha. Anyway, this one should be tougher for Croatia, but I can't see them losing against Germany since the Germans were struggling against Serbia in their last friendly for a good portion of the first half. Germany did win it 2-1 but I can't see a stronger Croatian side allowing the same goals that Serbia did. Both teams should come away with a point in this one.
Austria 1
Poland 2
Again, I don't see Austria winning this one. Poland will win this one 2-1.
With these results, the second round of group b matches will end with Croatia at the top again tied with Germany at 4 points. Being that Croatia and Germany would have tied 1-1 according to my prediction, Croatia would have one the tiebreaker once again with a +2 goal difference vs Germany's +1. Poland would have won their first match and received 3 points while Austria has 0.
Monday June 16
This would be judgement day for the Group B teams. Let's see what the final standings will be according to my predictions.
Poland 1
Croatia 1
Croatia always messes up in at least one match and I think this will be that match. Croatia will underestimate Poland and will not getting anything more than a tie. Poland will need a win in order to progress and will come out ready. However, Croatia fearing elimination if Poland did win and Germany beats Austria (according to the situation I created) will also be ready. This will probably end a 1-1 tie that will qualify Croatia for the quarterfinals but will mess up there chance of winning of the group if Germany defeats Austria which I think they will.
Austria 1
Germany 3
This one shouldn't be too hard for Germany and not too be analysis to be given. This should be an automatic 3 points for the team from Deustchland!
With the above results, the group would have ended as follows:
1. Germany 7 points (2 win, 1 tie)
2. Croatia 5 points (1 win, 2 ties)
3. Poland 4 points (1 win, 1 tie, 1 loss)
4. Austria 0 points (3 losses)
Therefore, Germany and Croatia will qualify for the quarterfinals where Germany will play the second place team in Group A and Croatia will play the first place team in Group A.
Group A and other group predictions will be posted as soon as possible.
Check out the official Euro 2008 website for more information.
Group B matches will begin on Sunday with Croatia and co-host Austria starting the day's matches off. The other group B match will be between Germany and Poland.
Being that Croatia is in Group B and will give my predictions for this group in this post:
Sunday June 8th
Austria 0
Croatia 2
I can't see Croatia having too many problems against Austria. This ones should be fairly easy despite Austria's home field advantage. Austria has been struggling lately and has not yet made it into a major tournament like Euro Cup. The only reason why they qualified for this tournament is because they are co-hosting with Switzerland. I see two problems here: 1) UEFA should not allow co-hosts; and 2) they should not allow weaker teams to host because this would give them automatic qualification while other good teams miss out. Luckily, Croatia has "cupcake" match to look forward to start things off after some pretty bad friendly warmups. They tied 1-1 against Hungary in there most recent friendly warmup--a match that should have been a 1-0 win but one Croatian player scored an own goal for Hungary tying it up. I don't think this will happen in the tournament, however, and Croatia should be able to pocket 3 points in this one.
Germany 2
Poland 1
I don't care what anyone says: Poland is not an easy team. However, Germany is even better. Poland does have the players that can stop this one from being an embarrassment though and the Polish should be able to score at least one goal against Germany.
With these results, day 1 for group B should end well for Croatia and will see Croatia at the top of the group with 3 points tied with Germany who loses the tiebreaker with a +1 goal difference vs Croatia +2
Thursday June 12
Croatia 1
Germany 1
Phew! One day away from Friday the 13th. haha. Anyway, this one should be tougher for Croatia, but I can't see them losing against Germany since the Germans were struggling against Serbia in their last friendly for a good portion of the first half. Germany did win it 2-1 but I can't see a stronger Croatian side allowing the same goals that Serbia did. Both teams should come away with a point in this one.
Austria 1
Poland 2
Again, I don't see Austria winning this one. Poland will win this one 2-1.
With these results, the second round of group b matches will end with Croatia at the top again tied with Germany at 4 points. Being that Croatia and Germany would have tied 1-1 according to my prediction, Croatia would have one the tiebreaker once again with a +2 goal difference vs Germany's +1. Poland would have won their first match and received 3 points while Austria has 0.
Monday June 16
This would be judgement day for the Group B teams. Let's see what the final standings will be according to my predictions.
Poland 1
Croatia 1
Croatia always messes up in at least one match and I think this will be that match. Croatia will underestimate Poland and will not getting anything more than a tie. Poland will need a win in order to progress and will come out ready. However, Croatia fearing elimination if Poland did win and Germany beats Austria (according to the situation I created) will also be ready. This will probably end a 1-1 tie that will qualify Croatia for the quarterfinals but will mess up there chance of winning of the group if Germany defeats Austria which I think they will.
Austria 1
Germany 3
This one shouldn't be too hard for Germany and not too be analysis to be given. This should be an automatic 3 points for the team from Deustchland!
With the above results, the group would have ended as follows:
1. Germany 7 points (2 win, 1 tie)
2. Croatia 5 points (1 win, 2 ties)
3. Poland 4 points (1 win, 1 tie, 1 loss)
4. Austria 0 points (3 losses)
Therefore, Germany and Croatia will qualify for the quarterfinals where Germany will play the second place team in Group A and Croatia will play the first place team in Group A.
Group A and other group predictions will be posted as soon as possible.
Check out the official Euro 2008 website for more information.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)