Saturday, 7 June 2008

Euro predictions 1

While the talk in the last few months in the UK has centrered on how empty Euro 2008 will be without any of the home nations involved, there is a lot to get excited about on the eve of the 13th European Championship.
During the next 23 days Europe's finest will battle it out before 31 games later on the 29th of June in Vienna, the new European champions will be crowned.

I am hoping this tournament will be as memorable as the last 2 European Championships, which for me have been more memorable than the last 2 World Cups. Who can forget the Greek suprise triumph with a string of fine victories over Europe's best or David Trezeguet's golden goal to beat Italy, who seconds before Sylvain Witord's dramatic equaliser 3 minutes into added time looked on the way to being deservedly crowned champions of Europe.

Here are my predictions for Group A which kicks off on Saturday with the first of two host nations Switzerland palying against the Czech Republic in Basel.

Group A

- Portugal

Finalists in the last European Championships thet they hosted, I am surprised that they are not right up there with Germany as favourites for the trophy this time round. With a very steady backline which is unlikely to concede many goals, if Ronaldo continues the form he has shown throughout the season for Manchester United, Portugal have a great chance of winning the tournament. The only problem is that without a star striker like Italy have with Toni, Germany with Klose and Spain with Torres, a lot depends on the perfomances and goals of Ronaldo and Quaresma and it will be very interesting to see how the Real Madrid target will perform.

- Switzerland

While in such tournaments the host team usually raises its game to another level, it will be very difficult for Switzerland to qualify from a group with Portugal and the Czech Republic, especially with their goal-scoring record. While their team includes Arsenal duo Johan Djourou and Philipe Senderos as well as veteran defender Partik Muller, their problem will be up front where they seriously lack fire power, especially if Alexander Frei does not perform. But overall, I cannot see hosts Switzerland progressing into the quarter finals.

Czech Republic

Pulled off a great 3-0 victory away to Germany in qualifying on their road to Euro 2008 and have the potential to be great. However, they have been regarded as the dark horses in both World Cup and European Championship since 2002 and have always failed to fulfil their promise. With Cech they have the best goalkeeper in the world, but I do not feel they have the quality up front and with the injury to influential Arsenal playmaker Rosicky, they are missing a key creative midfielder. I think that if they win what is a tricky first game against hosts Switzerland, they will qualify, but I would not be very surprised if they disappoint, as they do tend not to turn up for the very important matches in major championships despite the ease with which they qualify every time.

-Turkey

Despite at one stage looking like they would not qualify, after beating the defending champions and arch rivals Greece 4-1 in Athens they made their way to the Championships. With the surprise exclusion of Hakan Sukur from the squad, Turkey need to get themselves playing with passion and like a team eitherwise they will find themselves on the plane home quite soon. They will need their star men Emre and Hamit Altintop to perform at their best in order to add the creative spark needed to beat either Portugal or the Czech Republic, something that they will need to do if they are with any chance of qualifying. Even though I think they could give the Czechs a run for their money, I can see Turkey finishing third in the group.

- And just a final note before the official kick off tomorrow, I am definitely looking forward to a major championship without England in. With England there is alays a massive build up of what is - and has proved quite regularly in the last few years - a very tactically and technically inept team. The worst part of this is the English media, who time and time again prove their lack of understanding for the game, focusing instead on trying to find a scapegoat that will account for the nation's failure.

Let's focus on watching some good football this time round, something that England have consistently failed to produce.

- NS -
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Frogs and storks

Following an idea from some crazy cypriot called Nassos, this blogg has risen from the depths of the unknown in order to conquer your world and take over your desktop! Straight from the streets of London, we bring you the beautiful, the ugly and the random! Don't stop to blink, read on.

In these hard times of stressful examinations and successful procrastination, you may think that writing posts destined to an obscure,yet attractive, blogg is self-destructive idiocy or, if you are one of those, escapatory genius; but the truth of the matter is that it is destiny. Yes it is destiny, and destiny it is that has brought you here to partake in the ritual mingling of the minds in the world-wide web of creativity that is "only" a couple clicks away.

Do you feel that your opinions and ideas serve no purpose other than to wear off the letters painted on your keyboard buttons? Are your 'delete' and 'backspace' buttons the only ones you hit without miss, every time around? Has life served you its share of hardship, leaving you eager to get your own and bite back? Do you have a sudden urge to leap onto the desk and challenge the muhammad ali poster hanging on your wall to a fight to the death?

If so, then you are standing in the right place. Simply take a step back, make a left turn, and run straight out the door, down the stairs, up past the picket fence and accross the river down near the old paper mill until you hit Main Street. Once you make it to Green Street, follow the white rabbit to the post office and send in your article to afromonkey.productions@gmail.com

If not, then simply mail your article, poem, picture, song, video, cake(?), essay or love letters to the address in the blogg's profile and it will do just as well.

This is your last moment of delusional freedom; from here on out, I work for you as you worked so long for him, but it's the they that we must worry about now. And so I propose a toast... to her, and to us! The blogg is now up, let's give this a try!

As Martin Luther said so well: "The world is too wicked to deserve princes much wiser and more just than this. Frogs must have storks."

-APG-