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EURO 2020 Championship

Discussion in 'Other Sports Forum' started by Claymore95, Jun 13, 2021.

  1. Galant

    Galant Love - Unity - Sacrifice - Eternity

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    Lack of English inspiration in the Danish area. I would have rather seen more shots and less passing around.
     
  2. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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  3. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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    I will agree with you that they'll need to play better vs Italy to beat them. Could be quite the match though if both teams are playing their best. I think you've got to stretch Italy vertically to beat them.
     
  4. Eop05

    Eop05 Junior Member Club Member

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    I think it’s time to put the narratives about Italy Portugal South Americans and whoever else about being notorious divers to bed.

    That was a dive by Sterling and an extremely soft penalty call. The EPL is filled with the same. As is Spain as is Italy. Let’s just let the narrative die please. Same with catennaccio or defensive soccer or whatever else you wanna call it. Italy hasn’t been that team in 15+ years. They’ve been one of the more exciting teams in the past 2 euros.

    with all that said, England is the deserved finalist. May the best team win
     
  5. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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    Well I hope after Sunday (and honestly before) we are talking about the game on the pitch rather than any history or any of that narrative. I think we could have some very good strategic discussions of what each team has to do to beat the other and vice versa. So I'll look forward to that. :yes:
     
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  6. Vertical Limit

    Vertical Limit Senior Member

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    The non call on Kane that would have given him a penalty kick was more aggressive and not called, even went for review.. in extra time you dont call that soft penalty..
     
  7. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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    sorry for your loss :lol:
     
  8. Lloyd Heilbrunn

    Lloyd Heilbrunn Season Ticket Holder Club Member

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    Yeah, but I'll take the penalty.

    Sterling was great with the exception of the one play where he hit the goalkeeper in the chest with 85% of the goal wide open.

    That was one of the worst penalties I've ever seen but Kane got lucky, he must've borrowed a 4 leaf clover from Grealish....:tongue2:
     
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  9. Lloyd Heilbrunn

    Lloyd Heilbrunn Season Ticket Holder Club Member

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    I think the Italian backline is fairly slow and Sterling and the young speedsters might make the difference.

    I think England will have more of an advantage on set pieces against Italy then they did against Denmark, and they were unlucky not to score against Denmark...
     
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  10. Tone_E

    Tone_E Season Ticket Holder Club Member

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    I think this is a fitting finals. Both teams considered top 5 going into the tournament, Italy England finals at Wembley, plenty of skill on display, could be a great game to end an exciting tournament. England speed on the flanks is dangerous, and a similar player we faced in Doku already gave us fits. I also think England's play style is favorable for Italy, whereas Spain completely forced us to play a different game.

    Should be exciting.
     
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  11. Tone_E

    Tone_E Season Ticket Holder Club Member

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    That's what I'm most concerned with - the speed.
     
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  12. Galant

    Galant Love - Unity - Sacrifice - Eternity

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    I think the non-call was due to the ref calling a foul on Kane just seconds before the potential penalty. The replay guys on ITV did very little to help us see that, but the ref had his hand downfield indicating a free kick for Dennark. So the reason for not giving the penalty was that he had already called a foul before that.
     
  13. Galant

    Galant Love - Unity - Sacrifice - Eternity

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    I agree, and that's what bothered me last night. There were plenty of times where England were on the attack but instead of acting fast and trying to get a ball through into space they slowed down and gave the Danish a chance to build that red wall.

    At which point it felt like England were either waiting for some perfect opportunity to present itself or else each one was waiting for someone else to make a move.

    Way too much running around inside a sea of red players.
     
  14. Claymore95

    Claymore95 Working on it... Club Member

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    Not that I need another reason for not wanting England to have won last night, but it's also cost me the chance to win a few hundred pounds in my work's Euro 2020 Predictor League!

    Out of 222 entries, I was one of only 3 people that had 3 of the semi-finalists correctly predicted (no-one had all 4). That, and correctly predicting Italy to reach the final had moved me up to 4th place and, as I had Eng-Den correct in the other semi-final, meant that Denmark winning last night would have put me top and guaranteed me of finishing equal 1st at a minimum.

    The annoying thing was that when I did the prediction, my head was saying England to beat Denmark, but my heart made me not want to see England in the final. I also went with my heart in earlier predictions in having Scotland qualify from their group, which cost me a few points too.

    Morale of the story is go with your head when betting/predicting, not your heart!
     
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  15. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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    Well for me, it was after England tied, to start the second half and for probably most of the 2nd half till about the 80th minute before Denmark really started to tire... they went away from what got them there. They played less risky passes out of the back, not building from Pickford thru the MF and on. Choosing to play long direct balls to Kane, looking for a knock down to gain possession and attack from there. It was a revert back to the days of old for England. And Kane up against their back three at the time was not a good match in the air. That had me most worried that Denmark would get a 2nd goal on a counter or something. It wasn't until Denmark made all those subs, England had only made 1 thru 90, that changed the possession. Did that just kind of happen organically or was that something Southgate planned for strategically? If he planned for it, it's brilliant. But I fear I'm giving him too much credit.
     
  16. Vertical Limit

    Vertical Limit Senior Member

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    After watching the euro cup and copa.. and not expecting much from the gold cup… though mexico and will try to say something about it.. its clear spain and england will be the favorites next year… i dont see brazil or argentina being much of a threat either..
     
  17. Lloyd Heilbrunn

    Lloyd Heilbrunn Season Ticket Holder Club Member

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    I originally thought he held his subs until too late, but then Denmark got little from theirs, and his fresh guys totally dominated the extra time...

    And for all the people that seem to be whining on Twitter about the penalty, I'm not a real analytics guy, but the xG was totally lopsided in favor of England!
     
  18. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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    Things can change quickly in a year with injuries etc.
     
  19. Tone_E

    Tone_E Season Ticket Holder Club Member

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    Kind of reminds me of Italy vs Australia in WC 2006, where the penalty was way more obvious but the entire world thought the game was gifted to Italy - of course. xG means nothing in this case aside from helping with confirmation bias. The game was minutes from going into PKs where anything can happen, and the soft penalty assured England the win. England were pressing and may well have scored, but it wasn't guaranteed.
     
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  20. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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    I just want to say good luck to my Italian friends on the other side of the pitch! May you have a good game, but not enough to beat us! :lol: The ref for the final is Bjorn Kuipers from Holland. The Dutch referees have treated England fairly well so far in the Euros. Danny Makkelie was in charge of the Ukraine match if memory serves correctly. Kuipers is probably the most well known international referee currently. I hope he calls a fair game and both teams can say he didn't effect the game in a negative way at the end of day.

    As for England, I suspect we'll come out with the same formation we used to face Germany. Probably even the same players... that was a 343 with Walker, Stones, Maguire at the back... Trippier, Phillips, Rice, Shaw in MF... and Sake, Kane, Sterling up top. It's very balanced and can easily become a 5-2-3... 5-4-1 as necessary. It's not preferential for me because I like the team to be more attack minded. But of course, we'll see what happens when we're in possession, that's all that matters. How committed we'll be pushing the wings forward etc.

    For the Italians, I expect their usual 4-3-3 lineup that they've been using the entire tournament. I also think they'll use the same players they used vs Spain. Which will be interesting.

    It'll come down to the MF and how possessive each team is. From there how attack minded you can be without giving too much up defensively. I feel that is where England could have an advantage because of Kyle Walker and his speed to get back and neutralize Insigne. I don't fear Immobile vs Stones/Maguire. But I do worry about Chiesa getting involved. And you could see Shaw helping out (he's had a great tournament, especially last few games). It's the ability of Rice/Phillips to control the ball... vs the Italians and their MF. Which is really just Jorginho. Veratti and Barella don't appear to carry the ball forward, but perhaps I'm being naive in my opinion there. IMO they seem to pass it more than carry it (dribble), if it makes sense.

    Like the Germany game for us, it could come down to who scores first, they likely could be the winner. That's why I think Southgate will start out being very defensive and conservative. I still say Italy are the favorites because they are cooler at this moment, not as much pressure on them. if it goes to PK's we know how that is going to end. My prediction is for England to win 2-0. A goal in the 60th plus minute, followed by a late counter (similar to Germany game). But I won't be sad if England loses. My first final in my lifetime. Going to enjoy every second no matter what.
     
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  21. Lloyd Heilbrunn

    Lloyd Heilbrunn Season Ticket Holder Club Member

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    I only watched the last 20 minutes of the Copa Final, because I didn't want to hear 2 solid hours of Messi talk.


    But they managed to jam 2 hours of Messi talk into 20 minutes...:2guns:
     
  22. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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    Messi finally got his copa. Now England can get their Euro.
     
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  23. Claymore95

    Claymore95 Working on it... Club Member

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    I didn't see the Copa final, but love watching Messi play, and glad he finally got his championship...even though I'd call myself more a Brazil fan than an Argentina one. Helps of course that I can't stand Neymar!
     
  24. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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    Not too surprised with the lineups and formations. Only off by one, Mount instead of Saka. That does give England a speed option off the bench. I do like our bench vs Italian side overall. So u might see the game decided by those players coming on late. Hoping of course.
     
  25. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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    Damnit!!! Was hoping for no Ian Darke. ESPN have pulled a rabbit out of the hat. Darke has not been with Twellman all tourney, now they do it. And its only to piss me off. :lol: He has already predicted penalties. What a ****ing nonce.
     
  26. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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    Al Michaels needs to be brought in immediately. He just talks about the game and lets Cris do the opinion stuff. Darke is a trolling self hating Brit.

    so much for me enjoying every second. :sidelol:
     
  27. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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    Shaw and Rice getting it done for me. Contenders for motm so far. Shaw has had an amazing tourney.
     
  28. Da 'Fins

    Da 'Fins Season Ticket Holder Staff Member Club Member

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    Would love it if this were Arlo White and Lee Dixon! Arlo is my man.

    But I'm not a big fan Twellman. Not bad, but not great.

    This match however is intriguing. I think Italy will break through in the 2nd half; likely twice. They are small, quick, and talented. England are powerful but will lose some quickness later on.

    England will have to score at least twice, maybe three times, if they want to win, imo.
     
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  29. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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    I do think England need a second. They cant play too deep and not get out. Thats what was happening at the end there before HT. Mount has been poor for me. Might pull him off and either Saka or Henderson.
     
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  30. Da 'Fins

    Da 'Fins Season Ticket Holder Staff Member Club Member

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    Why is it, except on rare occasion, does Raheem Sterling mostly flatter to deceive when it comes to playing for England? He has such great speed and quickness but he just struggles to finish given the chances he gets or even creates (esp. relative to when he is playing for Man City .. unfortunately on the latter! ;) ).
     
  31. Da 'Fins

    Da 'Fins Season Ticket Holder Staff Member Club Member

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    Yeah. Wish Foden were available. I'd go with Saka for Mount b/c he has some offense but is better on D, imo.

    Strange to me how little play Rashford and Sancho have gotten. Sancho is certainly driving his transfer price down, lol.

    EDIT: Love Henderson but I'd probably bring him in for Rice or Phillips if England have the lead in the last 15-20.
     
  32. Da 'Fins

    Da 'Fins Season Ticket Holder Staff Member Club Member

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    England are such a frustrating team. No matter the coach the culture is the same. They look good early, score, then go into a hole as if they can stop a world class nation like an Italy or Portugal or Argentina or whoever from scoring given 80 minutes! Why does every coach do that? Southgate epitomizes it.

    If they win, they will win in spite of Southgate, imo.
     
  33. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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    Not good. Up to Southgate to affect the game with positive changes and we need a goal. Pens wont do.
     
  34. Claymore95

    Claymore95 Working on it... Club Member

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    Great horse collar tackle by Chiellini in the last minute of normal time. He's some boy :laughy:
     
  35. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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    Well they can prove me wrong. I highly doubt it. Theyve left Sterling on for a reason I cannot think of. If he takes a pk there is no way he makes it. None.
     
  36. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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    Well
     
  37. Da 'Fins

    Da 'Fins Season Ticket Holder Staff Member Club Member

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    Rashford and Sancho. Brought in specifically to take penalties and miss. Lol.

    How England and how Southgate is that?

    Got to put that on Southgate bringing in two players who hardly played the entire tournament - with only two minutes to go - just for penalty kicks. SMH.
     
  38. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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    Why didnt Grealish take one?
     
  39. Paul 13

    Paul 13 Chaotic Neutral & Unstable Genius Staff Member

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    Dont need to talk about irony with me. But at least we take knees really well.
     
  40. Vertical Limit

    Vertical Limit Senior Member

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    It was a great game but wow.. those subs did them in.. donnarumma was special all tournament long
     
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