Yes, Germany clearly the better team, but vulnerable in defence. I know Hummels didn’t play, but is he supposed to make all the difference? That said: other favorites like France and Belgium have defensive problems as well.
Maybe the game against Poland will be some kind of real test for the Germans, they’re old rivals and Poland has a couple of ecxellent strikers (Lewandowski, Milik).
Actually they had the same problems in the last 2 tournaments. Very offensive, but then vulnerable for counterattacks. Neuer (as sweeper) saved their butt often enough in Brazil before Lahm went back as right defender and they played a more controlled offensive with a now more stabilized defence.
But in 2012 they headed into their perdition by playing way too offensive against Italy.
But they have now no substitute for Lahm, and probably none for Klose, and otherwise they have not become better than in 2014.
But we’ll see if some of the younger ones make their break-through, and how far the team spirit will take them. I don’t expect Germany to win the title, but it is not impossible. Depends on how strong their usual opponents are this year.
I agree with all this. I remember Lahm was playing in midfield (where he wasn’t too impressive) and Löw brought him back to the defensive line (where his experience was sorely missed). Maybe the key is in midfield: there seemed to be something wrong with the balance, maybe Khedira should watch this balance a bit better instead of running forward all the time. Maybe Schweinsteiger could be of good use for this team with his experience.
Another problem is indeed the legacy of Klose. Götze is a good player, but he’s not a goal scorer by nature, not a natural ‘Mittelstürmer’.
Yes, the only scorer is Gomez, a player Löw was mostly not too happy with before, but has now returned to the team. He will get his chance, and then we will see if he’s a good alternative for scoring. He did not impress much in the 3 tournaments he played so far.
Löw did not nominate Gomez in 2014, despite having with Klose only one real goalgetter, but one who was at that time way beyond the age a goalgetter should have to be still good as a goalgetter. But Klose was a phenomena in that respect.
And of course another question will be if Schweinsteiger can find his form again, or if his time is over. After all he’s the captain.
This goal was at least something.
No surprises so far, the usual stronger teams with the exception of England (they were stronger than Russia), have all prove their credits and won.
I’m curious about what Spain can do, for a defending Champion they start with a lot of problems. Not sure if their usual problems until this generation of players arrived, the division between Barcelona and Real Madrid players, did return again, it seems so from an outsider perspective, players like Xavi or Casillas were symbols of union in the lockeroom, but Xavi is not there (Iniesta seems to be no leader), and Casillas has lost influence, their last tournament was of course to forget.
France and Germany looked good, both teams were lucky, but as usual Germany even when suffering seems that can win the game at any time, and their defence blunders were mostly individual ones, not from the system, actually I liked the way the cooled the game in the second part, only “smart” teams, their good of course but I never sense them as a “smart” team.
Haven’t seen all the games, but took notice Croatia good game, Modric is probably the last of the real nº10 a regista, the ball has eyes coming from his feet.
In the overall good games so far, can’t wait until tomorrow, we still don’t have a decent striker, and yes we need one, Ronaldo scores 50 goals for season in RM and does not play as pure striker like he as to play in the national side, had we a player like… any decent striker, and we could be a even more serious contender.
Glad for Dier scoring (in the right goal), just proves that Sporting youth academy still the best
Again 1-0, becoming the most popular result in the tournament …
Game looked like a handball game from time to time: ten Czech players in half a cirkle at the edge of the box, ten Spanish players looking for a small opening in the wall …
The Spanish combination football looks impressive, but they kept looking for combinations deep into the Czech penalty area, as if they wanted to combine the ball into the net.
But a well-deserved win, of course
Oh dear. Belgium are threatening to become one of those sides which ultimately flattered to deceive, a bit like England through the late 90s/00s with their so-called “Golden Generation” who achieved absolutely sod-all.
Italy on the other hand looked mightily impressive. Along with the French, best performance so far? From the matches I’ve seen, I’d say so.
Expectations were very high in Belgium, even though it was known that there were serious problems, first of all in defence: in Brasil they played with the duo Kompany-Van Buyten, who were very complementary, but Kompany is injured and Van Buyten stopped after the World Cup (he was 35 then and felt his career was over). Wilmots played with Vermaelen-Anderweirelt yesterday, two players who have hardly ever played together. Why not Verthongen-Anderweirelt? They played together in central defence at Ajax and also know each other from Tottenham. They’re probably not world class as a duo, but they know each other and there won’t be too many miscommunications.
An then there’s this thing with the two best players. Belgium has a lot of talented guys, but two of them are exceptional: Hazard and Debruyne. But it’s the old question: Can they play in one team? The Rivera-Mazzola or the Overath-Netzer question, @Jonathan and @stanton will know what I mean. If one of them plays central (what is the most logical thing), what to do with the other? Wilmots tried to solve this problem by playing with neither of the two central: Hazard on the left, Debruyne on the right. As a result, Belgium became a team without a central play maker, without a central man with ideas. Witsel, Naingolan and Fellaini are good players, but they have other qualities. Debruyne looked very unhappy (he must have the idea that the coach has little faith in him) and played the worst game in his career.
And, before i forget: Italy was brilliant, they deserved to win. Still I don’t see a possible winner in them. At least not yet.
Many people in Croatia (including me) are boycotting the national team and this tournament (if someone is interested I can go into detail why is that so).
So I had to pick a team to root for, and after year of antagonism, I have decided that the resistance is futile, I’ll root for Italians. The fact that this time they are sort of and underdogs makes it all the better. And the decisions was re-payed in the grand style in the very first match! Great game by Italians, very clever, passionate and both goals were beautiful (unfortunately for the Belgians on this site, but hey, it’s the Italy, the country which culture we love, right? ;)).
I’m interested, titoli. I’ve only got a vague interest in England but because of the Slaven Bilic connection to my domestic club I’m quite keen on the Croats this year.
I’m also interested
Some people in Belgium, especially in Flanders, have turned against the team as well, for political reasons. the two communities (French speaking versus Flemish speaking) don’t go well together, the coach is French speaking (although he speaks Flemish rather well) and he seems to have a preference for French speaking players, newspapers, TV stations, etc.
Another key factor is the behavior of most players, they behave like spoiled rich kids, show hardly any interest in fans or supporters, ask money for everything, etc. Kompany (who isn’t there at the moment) also seems the only one with some kind of charisma. Verthongen is now the one with the most charisma, but he lived and played in Holland for a while and many people think he’s ‘too Dutch’
Russia handed a “suspended disqualification” from Euro 2016, and fined 150,000€
In that case the next World Cup won’t take place, at least not in Russia.
And who will want to take over from them? England? the USA? I’m not sure.
Could be we’re watching the last of the great tournaments of our time.
Why? I mean, I don’t think Russia should host the World Cup as it is anyway, but why do you say that this suspended disqualification amounts to no Wold Cup in 2018? Or do you mean that that’s what may happen IF that suspended disqualification becomes an actual disqualification when Russia play next and their “fans” inevitably kick off again?
I believe that England could host a World Cup at two years notice, yes, as could several European nations. I’m absolutely positive the US could do it.
Of course if Brexit wins in just over a week’s time we’ll probably never get a major sporting tournament ever again, and we’ll have to go back to England v Scotland every Summer. 
Okay. The main reason is accumulated years of frustration with Croatian Football Federation, which is very corrupt organization. Most prominent figures in Croatian football are shady characters, and there is one person that personifies everything that is wrong, the big boss of Croatian football: Zdravko Mamić. He is the real boss of Dinamo Zagreb, Croatian champion of the last 15 or so years, although his function in the club (which is actually not a club, but a ‘public union’, which is off course just a clever way to avoid laws and taxes) is something like a ‘executive vice president’. He is the real boss of the Croatian Football Federation, although he is not the president. The president of CFF is famous ex player Davor Šuker, who’s activity outside the field is also very shady. Šuker is chosen because he is a famous name and has good connections in the international football, but he seems to be taking direct orders from Mamić and shows complete lack od interest in domestic football. Last year when CFF was in the biggest crisis since it begging (arrests, law suits, public protests), Šuker was on some irrelevant trip in Asia and gave no statement on the events. Mamić is also the real manager of most of the players who play for national team, although the owner of the agency that represents the players on the paper is not him, but his son. You got the picture.
People are frustrated because they are feeling more and more that they are not rooting for their national team, but for the private business of one man (and his family and friends). Situation was like that already in club football for years. Dinamo Zagreb is champion every year and every year they celebrate the title in front of few hundreds of people. Dinamo’s stadium is embarrassingly the emptiest stadium in the games of the Champions League. People were still supporting the national team, but the frustration was being felt even on the prior tournaments, and finally the drop that spilled the cup was when Mamić, despite the fact that the public was strongly against it, put Ante Čačić for the selector of national team, a guy who has no pedigree for such function, and was prior to that working for Lokomotiva club, which is actually just a Dinamo B.
While Croatia is playing games on the Euro, Mamić is having a trial for charges against corruption. He was brought before the court for various charges already before, most famously when Eduardo da Silva accused him for slavery kind of contract. Eduardo was minor (around 15 years old), poor and in the foreign country when he signed the contract which guaranteed Mamić a percentage of all the Eduardo’s future transfers and earnings. Which is something Mamić practice with all players he represents, which like I said is the majority of best Croatian players. On the Eduardo’s trial Luka Modrić (then already player for Real Madrid) even gave testimony as a witness against Mamić, but somehow everything was swept under the rug (or settled outside the court). The fact that no player - except Eduardo and one of our best defenders Lovren, who is not on the team because he got in the conflict with the selector, who off course cannot represent any kind of authority to our big-name players - shows any kind of resistance against this kind of grotesque and abnormal situation in federation and national team is making people frustrated with them too, and it makes them part of the system (many of them probably feel they do and de facto do own Mamić something).
There is also part of the story which is connected, north vs south (which is maybe similar to situation in Belgium) and the fact that our other most famous club, Hajduk Split, which unlike Dinamo still has huge following, is weaker and less successful every year, while Dinamo has seemingly limitless budget despite the fact that it has no audience.
Many people are still watching the games and supporting the team - it is hard to ignore that national euphoria, and many people simple watch just the big tournaments and don’t follow happenings in football that much - but the talk about boycott is everywhere, especially in the South, and especially among people who take football more to the heart.
Regarding charisma, this Croatian team is lacking in that department also. I have nothing against a guy like Luka Modrić, who seams like an ok, simple kind of guy, but he is not very charismatic person. Most beloved player was probably Ivica Olić because of his relentless style of play, but his is no longer on the team, so now the only candidate for supporters favorite is probably Mario Mandžukić (altough Čorluka earned some points with his bloody game against Turkey).
I mean there won’t be a World cup in Russia when the Russians will actually be disqualified.
I’m sure England and the USA are able to take over, but I’m not sure they will. A disqualification might add to already existing tensions in the world.
All square so far in the battle of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. More entertaining than I thought it would be, but the game could use a goal.
EDIT: Magyars have scored, Austrians are down to ten men.
ALLEZZZZZZZZZZ PORTUGAL
p.s. Sorry about the stadium