Euro 2012 Group C: News & Analysis

gumbacicc · May 29, 2012

Sian said: ↑

Other than the fact that some of the players (such as Domenico Criscito or Stefano Mauri) have been forced off the team due to the case?
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Mauri was not really a factor. Criscito had a chance to start; however, Balzaretti, his competitor, is just as good.

I'm not sure the match-fixing scandal will have much influence.

Sempre · May 29, 2012

I think Spain could struggle at Euro 2012. A couple of key absences--Puyol and Villa. A couple of players in poor form --Silva, Valdes, Pique. The Barca and Madrid players are likely to be exhausted--Xavi said as much recently. And they just may not have the strikers to win this tournament.

oxladechamb15 · May 29, 2012

Do you think Torres will start? A lot of journalists are suggesting he may, including Sid Lowe (La Liga journalist, Guardian etc.) who believes he's a favourite of Del Bosque. http://blog.oddslife.com/2012/05/torres-torture-over-del-bosque-returns-to-tried-and-tested/

the one and only · May 29, 2012

Sempre said: ↑

I think Spain could struggle at Euro 2012. A couple of key absences--Puyol and Villa. A couple of players in poor form --Silva, Valdes, Pique. The Barca and Madrid players are likely to be exhausted--Xavi said as much recently. And they just may not have the strikers to win this tournament.
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I didn't know Silva was in poor form
And Valdes isn't going to play

oxladechamb15 · May 29, 2012

the one and only said: ↑

I didn't know Silva was in poor form
And Valdes isn't going to play
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Since xmas Silva has been off the pace. Looked a bit heavy-legged.

Sempre · May 29, 2012

oxladechamb15 said: ↑

Since xmas Silva has been off the pace. Looked a bit heavy-legged.
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Silva needs a break. He was so awful down the stretch for Man City -- I was shocked Mancini kept playing him in the last few games of the season. I don't think many of the top Spanish players will be fresh. Some have played 50-60 games this season.

the one and only · May 30, 2012

Sempre said: ↑

Silva needs a break. He was so awful down the stretch for Man City -- I was shocked Mancini kept playing him in the last few games of the season. I don't think many of the top Spanish players will be fresh. Some have played 50-60 games this season.
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That's a huge exageration, he wasn't as great as he was in the 1st half of the season but he was still playing better than most wingers/playmakers in europe imo

Sempre · May 30, 2012

the one and only said: ↑

That's a huge exageration, he wasn't as great as he was in the 1st half of the season but he was still playing better than most wingers/playmakers in europe imo
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Look back at Silva's games down the stretch for Manchester City. He stopped scoring goals and making assists. He was often subbed off by Mancini because he was not performing. He's a good player but he was spent. His last month or two of games for Man City were NOT on par with other top playmakers in Europe by any means.

the one and only · May 30, 2012

Sempre said: ↑

Look back at Silva's games down the stretch for Manchester City. He stopped scoring goals and making assists. He was often subbed off by Mancini because he was not performing. He's a good player but he was spent. His last month or two of games for Man City were NOT on par with other top playmakers in Europe by any means.
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I watched him in those games and like i agreed to an extent, his level of play went down but not to the extent you're making it seem and he still had assists in the last 2 months and also scored. I agree he was tired though.

Fabio Grosso 2006 · May 31, 2012

Yeah, Silva wont have much of an influence for Spain. Get real you morons.

Pichi · May 31, 2012

oxladechamb15 said: ↑

Since xmas Silva has been off the pace. Looked a bit heavy-legged.
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I am sure his value is much higher than El Ninho's right about now!

1800-WorldCup · May 31, 2012

I'd like to see Croatia and Ireland go through but they're going to have to be at the top of their game.

It's not uncommon for one big gun to fire blanks, but two - Italy and Spain - to not progress would be almost unthinkable.

But hey, didn't Greece and Denmark each win this competition?

Juanele · May 31, 2012

Silva looked quite good yesterday. I think he can shine in this Euro.

Sian · Jun 1, 2012

with Buffon being hung out to dry publicly, Italy might still get in more severe problems

Juanele · Jun 1, 2012

Just finished watching the russia - italy game. I know it was just a friendly but Italy looked pretty horrible.

Fabio Grosso 2006 · Jun 1, 2012

Juanele said: ↑

Just finished watching the russia - italy game. I know it was just a friendly but Italy looked pretty horrible.
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You're damn straight and you bet ya Silva will fire. I think Spain will win it all now and I wouldn't be surprised if they lose their first game also like they did in 2010 before going on to win it all. Silva, Fabregas, Mata, Xavi, Iniesta there's just so many attacking weapons where they can get their ammunition from if things dont go according to plan.

unclesox · Jun 1, 2012

The full squad of 23 players gathered together at Federation headquarters in Las Rozas for the first time following the arrival of players from Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao.

Also turning up were Carles Puyol and David Villa to lend moral support.

Afterwards the squad gathered to take the official team photo.

whill4 · Jun 3, 2012

Sempre said: ↑

I think Spain could struggle at Euro 2012. A couple of key absences--Puyol and Villa. A couple of players in poor form --Silva, Valdes, Pique. The Barca and Madrid players are likely to be exhausted--Xavi said as much recently. And they just may not have the strikers to win this tournament.
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Spain have so much quality on their bench alone though that the poor players will be weeded out of the first team by the end of the group stage. If Torres doesn't produce the first two games, Llorente will be the starter for the rest of the tournament. Just like what happened in South Africa.

I think Silva was way over played this year and is tired. He barely got any rest under Mancini because he was the pinnacle of City's attack. With some rest I think he could be the Villa of this tournament.

the one and only · Jun 4, 2012

whill4 said: ↑

Spain have so much quality on their bench alone though that the poor players will be weeded out of the first team by the end of the group stage. If Torres doesn't produce the first two games, Llorente will be the starter for the rest of the tournament. Just like what happened in South Africa.

I think Silva was way over played this year and is tired. He barely got any rest under Mancini because he was the pinnacle of City's attack. With some rest I think he could be the Villa of this tournament.
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Well he hasn't looked tired in the friendlies so far...

unclesox · Jun 4, 2012

Here's the team bus that will be transporting Spain throughout Poland/Ukraine.
Motto: “Un motivo para vivir, una razón para soñar ¡Viva España!”
("A motive for living, a reason to dream. Long Live Spain!")

Sempre · Jun 4, 2012

Reports out of Italy this morning say defender Andrea Barzagli has been ruled out of Euro 2012 with a calf strain. Forward Mario Balotelli complained of a muscle strain in practice, but has been given the all-clear to return to training tomorrow morning.

pmannion · Jun 6, 2012

I jotted down some brief thoughts from an Irish perspective:

I don’t think that many Irish supporters have unrealistic expectations in this tournament. Most of us are cautiously optimistic, but few truly believe that we will come out of the group. Equally, though, hardly any of us think we will be sent home with three defeats and our tails between our legs. This team has proven itself resilient and incredibly hard to beat. We go into the tournament unbeaten in 14 matches (with 11 clean sheets in that run), and haven’t conceded in our last 6 away from home. In fact, Ireland have only lost one match outside of Ireland in five years (vs Brazil in London). In Group C, we will be up against three technically superior opponents, but our rigid defensive organization will frustrate, and could well be worth more than a point or two.

Don’t expect any flashy, fluid, attacking football from Ireland. Organization and discipline have been the buzzwords under Trapattoni. Again and again, he has pointed to the 2004 Greek side as a model. In terms of tactics, up until now Trap has been almost theologically devoted to 4-4-2. We play with two holding central midfielders – usually West Brom’s Keith Andrews and Stoke’s Glenn Whelan, with Darron Gibson able to add a little more attacking flare if we are chasing a game. The midfielders sit in front of the back four, and, when possible, feed our skilful wingers (Damien Duff and Aiden McGeady), on whom we are almost totally reliant to create chances. On the occasions we don’t attack through the wingers, we tend to punt balls into the channels for hardworking strikers like Wolves’ Kevin Doyle to chase and hold up. This system has been quite effective against weaker opponents, but against top sides it’s our defensive organization, led by man-mountain Richard Dunne and Shay Given, which had tended to see us through.

We struggle against teams which play five in midfield, especially a fluid 4-2-3-1 system, as was the case last night in Budapest when we were bossed for long periods by a decent (but not spectacular) Hungarian side. Although teams like Croatia frequently deploy a 4-4-2 formation, I would be astonished (especially given the injury to Ivica Olic) if they didn’t opt for a five-man midfield vs Ireland. This would allow creative players like Modric to sit in the space between our back four and midfield four and, potentially, run the show. The five-man midfield can also cut off the supply to our wingers, reducing us to an even more agricultural long-ball approach. After the draw with Hungary, Trapattoni made some interesting comments about dropping Robbie Keane back into midfield against Croatia – so it will be interesting to see just how this plays out over the course of the tournament.

On the plus side, we are probably one of the few sides in the tournament who will more or less be at full strength. None of our key players are injured, and Trapattoni will start with his first-choice XI vs Croatia on Sunday.

To use an old Jack Charlton cliché: “it’s not going to be easy for us, but it’s not going to be easy for them either.” Ireland’s opponents at Euro 2012 will find us frustrating to play against, difficult to break down, and tough to beat. We will not score many goals – when we do they will tend to be from set pieces – but I would comfortably bet on a clean sheet or two. I can, in fact, see us coming home with three draws, which probably won’t be enough to see us through, but for a side who haven’t qualified for a major competition in ten years, would be far from a disgrace. And if Ireland manage to take the few chances that we create, then it could be a very good tournament for us!

cromagnum · Jun 6, 2012

Good post pmannion..Thanks for the info..As far as Croatia goes i think they are going to play 4-4-2 with Jelavic and Mandzukic upfront..They could go with Jelavic up front and play a 5 man midfield but Croatia play better in a 4-4-2 system..Croatia likes to play attacking football as they have good technical players..Of course the key man is Modric..When he is right he can be brilliant but he looked very tired the last 2 months of the season for Spurs..Just did not have that burst that you normally see from Modric..Hopefully not playing any football in a month will give him fresh legs..Our defense is slow and not that good..Losing Lovren was huge as he is our only centerback with pace and he is our best central defender by far..Our fullbacks have pace but are average defensively..The Irish wingers could cause problems on the counter as Duff and Mcgeady are pacy and skillfull..I really have no idea what to expect from Croatia..They have the better team but they are so unpredictable..With the defense being very shaky i can definitely see the Irish winning this game..In fact i predict a 1-0 Ireland win..Just a hunch that Croatia won't show up for this game..

Fabio Grosso 2006 · Jun 11, 2012

Told you the Cro's would bring it. That being said, 2nd cro goal was offside, deflected not played so was offside. Ireland denied a pk too.

cromagnum · Jun 11, 2012

Fabio Grosso 2006 said: ↑

Told you the Cro's would bring it. That being said, 2nd cro goal was offside, deflected not played so was offside. Ireland denied a pk too.
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It was not a deflection..The Irish player tried to kick it out but sliced his kick right to Jelavic..Happy the way Croatia played..They passed the ball well and looked good going foward..Defense is shaky and will have to improve against Italy..Bilic played a offensive lineup against the Irish and it paid off..I think Bilic will change it up and play more defensive against Italy..Italy looked very dangerous going foward..With Croatia defense being shaky i think he will play with one striker and try to counter Italy..