All eyes on Euro final

BERLIN/MADRID: Life in Germany and Spain is expected to come to a virtual standstill tonight when most of the combined population of 128 million in the two countries turn their attention to the Euro 2008 final.

Aside from the occasional eruptions of joy and exploding fireworks when goals are scored, there will be precious little going on in either Germany or Spain for the 90 minutes.

No single event in recent memory will draw as many people to their television sets – or to the increasingly popular fan miles – than the final in Vienna. It caps a thrilling tournament that has already brought record-breaking TV ratings.

Today evening will be pure stress for the public water works in both countries as they brace for those famous surges of flushing right after the halftime and final whistles.

Main avenues in Berlin and Madrid have already appeared virtually deserted when matches leading to today’s final at the Ernst Happel stadium were being played. Any pub or restaurant without a big screen showing the games was almost as empty. Today, Germany and Spain will feel even emptier for anyone not near a TV set.

Source: gulf-daily-news.com

Ballack doubtful for Euro 2008 final

Germany could go into Sunday’s UEFA Euro 2008 final against Spain without Michael Ballack as their captain is receiving treatment for a calf injury.

The 31-year-old was a notable absentee on Saturday as the team were practicing at the Ernst-Happel-Stadion on the eve of the final showdown.

“The muscles has tightened and we’ll have to wait and see how things develop,” explained coach Joachim Loew.

“Our medical people are working around the clock to give him a chance to play.”

According to the German soccer federation, Ballack hurt his right calf Friday and also sat out the team’s training session that day.

Loew also said that should the midfielder not recover, then either Tim Borowski or Bastian Schweinsteiger will assume his place.

“He’s team captain and an extremely important player, but if he is not fit then someone else will take his position,” the 48-year-old added.

“Having a squad of 23 means those who haven’t played much are highly motivated. We’ll have to cope, we will find a solution. I’ve not counted Michael Ballack out yet though. There is still a chance.”

Source: Xinhua

The EURO is almost finished. Only Final match is pending. Here Is some best of Euro championship.

Player of the tournament – To be decided

At this stage of proceedings, no player has yet grabbed the competition by the scruff of its neck and bent it to his will.

Wesley Sneijder was the undisputed star of the group stage, conducting the Netherlands to sensational victories over Italy and France, while Andrei Arshavin sparkled brilliantly before fading completely in Russia’s semi-final defeat to Spain.

The tournament’s top strikers – David Villa, Roman Pavlyuchenko and Lukas Podolski – have impressed only fleetingly, while Spain’s super substitute Cesc Fabregas is yet to start a meaningful game.

Michael Ballack has led the German charge to the final, ably assisted by goalscoring winger Bastian Schweinsteiger, but any one of about six or seven players could land the player of the tournament gong with a match-winning performance in the final.

Goal of the tournament – Wesley Sneijder v Italy

There has been a dearth of quality long-range goals in the tournament, with players struggling to get to grips with a ball that’s displayed the flyaway qualities of one of those 50p balls you find in motorway service stations.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s thunderbolt against Greece, Ballack’s net-busting free-kick against Austria and Sneijder’s stunning coup de grace for the Netherlands in the 4-1 trouncing of France are the obvious exceptions, but there have also been some sublime team goals.

Arshavin’s goal in Russia’s 2-0 win over Sweden was a fine thing to behold, but it’s the Dutch who mastered the art of the counter-attack most effortlessly, and Sneijder’s beautifully struck half-volley after a flowing team move in the 3-0 win over Italy was the best of the lot.

Miss of the tournament – Mario Gomez v Austria

19:49 BST, Monday 16 June, Ernst Happel Stadium, Vienna. Germany are playing Austria and need a win to progress to the next round.

With just four minutes on the clock, out-of-form striker Mario Gomez is presented with an open goal by team-mate Miroslav Klose, but from barely four yards out and with the goal at his mercy he spoons the ball into the air and Austrian defender Gyorgy Garics is able to head it off the line.

Hakan Yakin was guilty of a similarly glaring miss in Switzerland’s 2-1 defeat to Turkey, but for the glimpse into a very private hell that Gomez’s miss provided, the Stuttgart striker gets the nod.

Game of the tournament – Turkey 3-2 Czech Republic

There have been some tremendous games in the tournament, with the Netherlands’ thumping victories over Italy and France catching the eye before they were eliminated in stunning fashion at the quarter-final stage by Russia.

Germany edged a thrilling quarter-final against Portugal 3-2 thanks to some appallingly slack defending from Luis Felipe Scolari’s men, but for pure edge-of-the-seat excitement, it has to be Turkey’s incredible comeback victory over the Czech Republic in Group A.

Needing to win to go through, Turkey trailed 2-0 with just 15 minutes to play, but after Arda Turan had halved the deficit Nihat Kahveci took advantage of a howler from Petr Cech to level before curling a superb injury-time winner in off the crossbar to send the Turks into the last eight.

Save of the tournament – Gianluigi Buffon v Romania

With nine minutes remaining of the Group C match between Italy and Romania, Azzurri defender Christian Panucci conceded a penalty that could have knocked the world champions out of the tournament.

Romania captain Adrian Mutu stepped up and drilled the ball firmly down the centre of the goal but, despite having already dived down to his left, Italy keeper Gianluigi Buffon shot out his right hand to claw the ball away and keep his side in the competition.

Gaffe of the tournament – Petr Cech v Turkey

Turkey goalkeeper Rustu Recber produced a horrendous flap which enabled Klose to head Germany into a 2-1 lead in the semi-final between the sides, but Cech’s error against the Turks – when he let a high right-wing cross squirm out of his grasp and into the path of Nihat – was probably the worst of the tournament, even more so because it was so completely out of character.

Coach of the tournament – Fatih Terim, Turkey

Dutchmen Marco van Basten and Guus Hiddink oversaw some fine performances from the Netherlands and Russia, but both sides choked when it mattered most.

Croatia coach Slaven Bilic had his side playing some similarly eye-catching stuff, and somehow managed to ally breathless touchline enthusiasm with effortless cool, but for taking a decidedly unfancied Turkey side to the brink of the final – whilst all the while throwing his arms around like an epileptic orang-utan – Fatih Terim is our top boss.

Biggest disappointment – France

How a squad containing the attacking talents of Thierry Henry, Franck Ribery, Karim Benzema and Nicolas Anelka could exit the tournament with just a single goal to their name is something of a mystery, but in the end they were undone by too many ageing legs and a collective loss of form.

Insipid against Romania, they were then trounced by the Dutch and didn’t even look like scoring in the 2-0 defeat to Italy.

Still, every cloud has a silver lining, and in Ribery, Benzema, Samir Nasri and Hatem Ben Arfa – not to mention the likely departure of coach Raymond Domenech – there is hope for the future.

Worst match – France v Romania

Sweden’s 2-0 win over Greece in Group D was an absolute stinker, but it did at least boast some goals.

France’s goalless draw with Romania, on the other hand, had no redeeming features whatsoever, with the sides registering just one shot on target between them in the whole game, and that a side-footed pea-roller from Benzema that might not have made it into the net even if Romanian goalkeeper Bogdan Lobont hadn’t been there to get in the way.

Best WAG – Sarah Brandner

A difficult category to judge, seeing as none of the WAGs have actually done anything, but a top three of Noemie Lenoir (Claude Makelele), Sarah Brandner (Bastian Schweinsteiger) and Sylvie Meis (Rafael van der Vaart) provides plenty of food for thought.

Lenoir and Meis both score highly in the glamour stakes, but for sheer commitment (she turned up to every Germany match, quaffed pints of lager and she’s dating a footballer who looks like a pimply adolescent), it has to be Fraulein Brandner (pictured).

Best fans – Netherlands

It’s a massive cliche, but once again the Dutch fans illuminated the tournament with their crazy orange-clad antics and unstinting commitment to wacky fancy-dress.

So impressed was the mayor of Berne with the behaviour of the Oranje fans during their group-stage sojourn in the city that he presented the squad with turf from the Stade de Suisse Wankdorf where they had played.

Source-http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com

FORMATIONS

Germany coach Joachim Loew has to decide whether to stick with the 4-5-1 formation that worked well against Portugal but not so well against Turkey, or revert to his favoured 4-4-2. Spain’s Luis Aragones stayed solidly with 4-4-2 all tournament but admitted that the switch to 4-5-1 after David Villa’s injury turned the semi-final and it seems likely he will run with it and give a rare start to Cesc Fabregas.

STRENGTHS

Germany’s mindset should be an advantage. Their players grew up watching their compatriots competing in finals and should not be fazed by the occasion. As they showed in the last-gasp semi-final win, they always play to the final whistle. Spain’s main strength is their technical quality, their familiarity and confidence in each other and a system that has taken them on a 21-match unbeaten run.

WEAKNESSES

Germany were unusually ragged and defensively vulnerable for long spells against Turkey. Goalkeeper Jens Lehmann, 38, also looked past his sell-by date. Spain have little aerial power either in attack or defence, though it has not troubled them unduly so far.

DEFENCE

Germany’s keeper and back four are vastly experienced yet there were some worried looks between them as they struggled to plug the holes against Turkey. Central defenders Per Mertesacker and Christoph Metzelder love a big centre forward to take on but will be less happy trying to track Fabregas and Andres Iniesta pushing up from midfield. The Spanish defence has not attracted the headlines but has been resilient and efficient. Goalkeeper Iker Casillas and centre back Carles Puyol have barely put a foot wrong while right back Sergio Ramos has a huge appetite for work with his overlapping forays.

MIDFIELD

Michael Ballack had a game to forget against Turkey but he is a man who revels in the big occasion and will take it as a personal challenge to dominate the key area of Sunday’s battle. Wide men Bastian Schweinsteiger (pictured in hat) and Lukas Podolski are both having great tournaments and look a constant goal threat while Torsten Frings will add some power if, as expected, he returns to the starting line-up. Spain’s midfield eventually wore Russia down with their accurate passing and hard work and the addition of Fabregas brings guile and also freed Xavi to become more adventurous. The whole unit played at a much crisper pace against Russia than they did in the goalless quarter-final against Italy.

ATTACK

With a goal in each of the last two games Miroslav Klose is beginning to regain the confidence that made him the 2006 World Cup’s top scorer and his spring-heeled heading ability will be something Germany will look to exploit. As a sole striker Fernando Torres will spend most of his time as a running outlet for his midfielders rather than hovering menacingly in the box. As in the semi, the fresh legs of Spanish league top scorer Daniel Guiza will probably take over during the second half.

Source-http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com

But that doesn’t mean the Spanish are any less confident of beating the Germans and claiming their first European Championship since winning the tournament on home soil in 1964.

“I don’t think it will be a big problem for us,” said midfielder Xabi Alonso, who was a second-half substitute in Spain’s 3-0 semifinal win over Russia on Thursday. “Whoever is coming from the bench is doing a great job and that is as important as who is starting.”

Spain’s win over Russia came at a cost – Villa, the tournament’s top scorer with four goals, pulled a hamstring muscle in the first half while taking a free kick and immediately came out of the game.

His injury means he won’t play against Germany, but Villa has accepted his fate with good grace.

“I’m a little sad that I won’t be there to take part, but it’s better that a teammate who is fit plays instead of me, particularly as my injury has left me limping quite badly,” Villa said.

Against the Russians, Spanish coach Luis Aragones replaced Villa with playmaking midfielder Cesc Fabregas, effectively switching from a 4-4-2 to a 4-5-1 formation with forward Fernando Torres playing alone up front.

The change in tactics paid off, as Spain exploded for three second-half goals, two of them set up by Fabregas.

“We are delighted and pleased with the performance,” Alonso said. “The result was brilliant. Hopefully on Sunday, we will repeat another performance like that. Let’s hope we can play a good match and lift the cup, which would be historic.”

Torres is coming off a sensational season with Liverpool, his first campaign in the English Premiership, but the former Atletico Madrid star has been underwhelming at this tournament, scoring just one goal.

Torres was ineffective against the Russians and was substituted in the second half by Aragones. Torres’s replacement Dani Guiza scored Spain’s second goal a mere four minutes after coming into the game, leading to speculation he will start against Germany instead of Torres.

“It would be a dream to play the final with the national team,” Guiza said. “But it’s the coach who makes the decisions.”

All the goals – from Xavi Hernandes, Daniel Guiza and David Silva – came in the second half and give Spain the chance to shrug off their tag as the biggest international underachievers in world football.

Villa, who had scored four goals in this tournament, including a hat-trick against Guus Hiddink’s team in the group stages, limped off in the first half to be replaced by Cesc Fabregas, the Arsenal midfielder.

Russia came close to grabbing the lead in the first half when a shot from Roman Pavlyuchenko forced Iker Casillas into a diving fingertip save to his left.

Fabregas created the second for Guiza with a lovely first-time pass over the top of the static Russia defence, which the midfielder finished with aplomb. The Arsenal player also created the third, crossing from the left for the unmarked Silva to slide home.

Full Teamsheets for Spain v Russia in their EURO 2008 Semi-Final Match:

Spain Team: Iker Casillas, Carlos Marchena, Carles Puyol, David Villa (Cesc Fàbregas, 34), Xavi Hernández (Xabi Alonso, 69), Fernando Torres (Daniel Güiza, 69), Joan Capdevila, Andrés Iniesta, Sergio Ramos, Marcos Senna, David Silva.

Spain Substitutes: Pepe Reina, Andrés Palop, Raúl Albiol, Fernando Navarro, Sergio García, Santi Cazorla, Álvaro Arbeloa, Juanito, Rubén de la Red.

Spain Head Coach: Luis Aragonés.

Russia Team: Igor Akinfeev, Sergei Ignashevich, Vasili Berezutski, Ivan Saenko (Dmitri Sychev, 57), Andrei Arshavin, Sergei Semak (captain), Konstantin Zyryanov, Yuri Zhirkov, Roman Pavlyuchenko, Igor Semshov (Diniyar Bilyaletdinov, 56), Aleksandr Anyukov.

Russia Substitutes: Vladimir Gabulov, Vyacheslav Malafeev, Dmitri Torbinski, Renat Yanbaev, Aleksai Berezutski, Roman Adamov, Oleg Ivanov, Roman Shirokov, Vladimir Bystrov.

Russia Head Coach: Guus Hiddink

Germany v Spain

UEFA EURO 2008 FINAL

Date: Sun 29 June Kick-off: 1945 BST Venue: Ernst Happel Stadion, Vienna

Russia are out of Euro-2008 after losing 3-0 to Spain in the semi-final in Austria. The Spaniards were supreme in front of goal, scoring three times in the second half. Despite the disappointment of losing, Russian fans have been encouraged by their team’s performance in the tournament.

Xavi scored Spain’s first goal just a few minutes into the second half, deflecting the ball into the net from six yards.

The game looked all over when Danny Guiza got the second, chesting the ball down before lofting it over goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev.

David Silva’s third made sure Spain would meet Germany in Sunday’s final.

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One could argue that Europe’s continental finals have never been so wide open. Indeed, all 16 qualifiers will enter UEFA EURO 2008 with genuine hopes of emerging victorious, with even the underdogs mindful of Greece’s remarkable victory in 2004. The question is: which nation will triumph?

Sunday’s draw in Paris certainly complicated the task for a quartet of sides. Former champions Netherlands, Italy and France, all positioned in the top ten on the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking, were grouped together along with in-form Romania, who sit in 13th place.

Holders Greece, meanwhile, must contend with Sweden, Spain and Russia in Group D, while Portugal and Czech Republic, finalists and semi-finalists respectively at UEFA EURO 2004, are joined by co-hosts Switzerland and Turkey in the first section. Finally, Austria will be hoping to convert home advantage into progression to the knockout phase when they meet Croatia, Germany and Poland in Group B.

So it’s over to you. FIFA.com is looking forward to reading your views, although as in football, some rules do apply: play fair, keep it clean and sensible, and please post in English.

Have your say

Throughout UEFA EURO 2008™, we’ll be asking for your opinions on the issues of the day. Where better to start than with the biggest question of all: who do you think will win the tournament? Use the comment field below to send us your views and they’ll be published here on the site.

Spain’s Euro 2008 campaign was kicked off in style, a 4-1 thumping of semifinal opponents Russia courtesy of a David Villa hattrick announcing their title credentials. The remaining two games were more cagey and somewhat lacking in excitement, but Spain completed their clean sweep and progressed to the quarters as group winners.

Russia’s campaign kicked off four days later in a tough game against Greece, where Hiddink’s men won 1-0 and that (coupled with Sweden’s defeat to Spain) kept them in the tournament. It’s fair to say that since then, Russia have improved as the tournament has progressed, taking apart both Sweden and then hot favourites Netherlands with ease.

The Russia Spain will meet is quite different from that of 2 weeks ago. Hiddink’s men have momentum and more importantly a confidence that they can win the Euros as long as they can keep playing to their potential.

Spain failed to impress much against Italy, although to be fair they were they better side throughout normal time. Against Spain all teams so far have sat back and closed ranks – which has led to two hard-fought 2-1 wins in the group stages and a penalties win over Italy. Russia will, like they did in the opening game, have a go at Spain and for that reason alone you might see an open and entertaining game.

Russia are a changed side (as teams become when infused with confidence) and their win over Netherlands – when they nullified the Dutch counter-attacking threat and poked holes in defence – was an education in football style. Spain are overall a better team than the Dutch and it will be interesting to see whether Hiddink modifies his team’s playing style to adapt to Spain’s pace threat or if he’ll push up regardless with a view to disturbing Spain’s passing rhythm.

The Russians have a weakness against the long-ball but when allowed space on the pitch the same players can pass, pass, pass and then smash a goal past you. It’ll be interesting to see if Spain will resort to hitting long balls and whether the Spanish midfield will be able to retain possession against Russia – because barring mistakes, everything comes down to Spain’s ability to play keep-ball and stay in control.

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