Issue # 5.2.1 "Great Entrées with Some Swiss and Turkey" (After Round of 16)

 Archive

Wednesday, July 3, 2024
[Dailies: Jun 29-30 Jul 1-2 ]

QUARTERFINALS FEATURE BIG MATCHUPS
Disabling Below Jobs leads with 83 pts; Two get 7 QF teams correct

FALLBROOK, CA (smt)- The quarterfinals will feature some great soccer nations with 3-time Euro (3xEuro) and one-time World Cup (1xWC) champion 1B-Spain, 3xEuro and 4xWC champion 1A-Germany, 1xEuro champion 1F-Portugal, 1xEuro and 2xWC champion 2D-France, 1xEuro champion 3D-Netherlands, and 1xWC champion 1C-England.  Tossed in with these 6 in the quarterfinals are 2A-Switzerland and 2F-Türkiye.

Group D missed getting three teams in the quarters as 1D-Austria's rally came up short to TUR, 2-1, in a rain-filled back-and-forth match.  The other group winner who failed to advance was 1E-Romania who got trounced by NED 3-0.  GER and SUI picked up 2-0 wins while FRA got an own goal to beat 2E-Belgium 1-0, ending that golden generation.  FRA is in the QF having only getting 3 goals, 2 by own goal and 1 by PK.  Cinderella #74 3F-Georgia had an early 1-0 lead thanks to an own goal but finished with zero shots on goal in a 4-1 loss to ESP.

Save! Save! Save! (7/1)

For the win!

CYPRESS, CA - In the first big heavyweight fight of the knockout, #2 2D-France outlasted #3 2E-Belgium 1-0 on a late own goal in the 85', FRA's second win from an own goal this tournament.  This was predicted to be a quarterfinal matchup but happened in the Round of 16 because both teams fell to second in their groups.  BEL's generation is maybe officially extinguished as FRA outshot BEL 20-6 though FRA still hasn't scored from open play in 4 matches (2 own goals, 1 PK) and only made one sub in hopes of getting a cohesive starting 11 playing well.  

#6 1F-Portugal struggled against #57 3C-Slovenia with Ronaldo missing a penalty in the 105'.  The 0-0 match entered the penalty shootout and POR's GK Diogo Costa saved all three SVN attempts (a Euro record) in a 3-0 shootout win.  Ronaldo redeemed itself by making POR's first PSO attempt so he could stop crying.  SVN ended their Euros with four draws.

USA jersey with USA flag

50 picked POR to make the quarterfinals while 57 picked FRA.  49 went 2-0 while the other 9 went 1-1.  Disabling Below Jobs moves into 1st with 79 points while Germany Minus One and Rainman move up one spot to a tie for 2nd (78).  Previous leader Toast falls to 4th (76).  Overall, Disabling Below Jobs, Rainman, and BluesIsTheColour I (8th-Tied, 74) have gotten all 6 quarterfinal teams while three have gotten just 3 of 6.  Danglish moves into last with 57 pts.

With the FRAvBEL happening early, many had both BEL and FRA in the quarters (43 picked BEL) adn thus were guaranteed 3 points.

For the first time, I'm able to let folks know which entries can win the pool, finish in the top 4 money spots, or are eliminated.  Of the 58 entries, just 15 are eliminated leaving 43 entries with a chance to win money.  22 have a chance to win the pool.  Germany Minus One has the best chance to win the pool (15.2%) and win money (26.6%) with the GER champion pick.  Four others have 12.5-13.5% chance to win the pool and five entries have a 21.3-24.4% chance to win money so it's still way too early to feel confident.

21goals is tied for 5th but can't win the pool (has the same remaining picks as Germany Minus One) while BigRedMessi 2 (NED as champ) and JBueno (ESP over ENG in final and NED in semis) are tied for 50th but can still win the pool.  Soccer Guru and Soccerbix are tied for 23rd and are eliminated while BigRedMessi 2 (1st), I Say Old Chap (3rd), and JBueno (1st) are tied for 50th and can still win money.

I wore my Alexi Lalas USA home 1994 denim jersey and paired it with the Stars and Stripes flag at the Boys & Girls Club of America in Cypress while my son did his scout meeting.  Did not do any good as USA flamed out losing a must-win to Uruguay 1-0.  

While Gregg Berhalter supporters said the USMNT came out with energy and played well in the first half despite the horrible ref, in the end, the results showed USA had just one shot (a harmless header that the GK grabbed with two hands for a "save").  So what is the difference if they just bunkered down and had one shot?  You can have all the energy but it's not like they peppered the URU GK with 6-8 shots to keep him busy.  They generated nothing.  If Gregg is such a nice guy and allegedly has a united locker room, then hire him as the team psychologist... we need a good coach.  Sigh.

Assists (6/22)

From goal kick to goal

WHITTIER, CA - When was the last time a GK got an assist in the Euros?  E4-Belgium GK kicked his goal kick long past the halfway line and bounced to Kevin De Bruyne who slotted it home in the 80' for the nail in the coffin in the 2-0 win over E2-Romania.  BEL's Romelu Lukaku had another goal taken away via VAR (his 3rd), this time by inches.  BEL's win means all four teams in Group E have 3 points and leaves the possibility of a 4-way 4-point tie after next Wednesday meaning one 4-point team will not make the Round of 16 (it's the top 4 3rd place teams, not the four best teams not in the top 2).  E4-Ukraine would be the odd man out in that scenario.

F3-Portugal won Group F with a 3-0 romp over F1-Türkiye that was aided by a no-look assist from Ronaldo of all people and an assist by the TUR defense who scored into their own goal.  I do not understand why defenders pass ON GOAL because of this risk of miscommunication.  Risk the errant corner kick instead.  F4-Czechia rallied to tie F2-Georgia 1-1 to keep both teams alive.  Czechia had 26 shots and forced the GEO GK to make 9 saves on 10 shots on goal.

$3.70 per taco; used to be <$2

5 got the GEOvCZE tie, 42 got POR, and 57 got BEL.  Disabling Below Jobs and Matt's Mostly Wrong went 3-0 with the former now tied with 21goals for first place with 17 points.  Rainman went 0-3 to fall from a tie for 27th to a tie for 50th (11 pts).  BlueIsTheColour 3 is still last with 9 pts.  Starting tomorrow, anywhere from 8-11 points per group (depending if a 3rd place team qualified that day) could be awarded as teams qualify for the Round of 16.  Again, the 57 who have GER making the Round of 16 will get those points tomorrow.

For an evening treat, ventured out to Whittier for the famous Arturo's Puffy Taco.  I still have not had a restaurant make the "puffy" tacos the same way Arturo does, and that is why it is special.  Also, their Strips Texanas is better than I remembered it.  I wore my authentic 2022 home BEL jersey and like how the red jumps out against the gold in the crest.

Empty Netter (6/18)

Just a bit offside

WATTS TOWER, LOS ANGELES, CA - Like in the E1-Belgium match, the favorite had a late goal taken away via VAR on the slightest of infractions (shoulder in 87'), but unlike BEL, F3-Portugal still recovered to score the game-winner in stoppage time to finish the comeback, 2-1, over F4-Czechia (was Czech Republic, well it's still Czech Rep but the government prefers Czechia so FIFA/UEFA obliged).  The match featured the first 0-0 halftime score line, first game-winner in stoppage time (90'+2), a record sixth Euros appearance by POR's Ronaldo, and the oldest player to play in the Euros (POR's Pepe).  POR and Ronaldo created some havoc in the box with their first goal coming on an own goal deflection and CZE's GK making 7 saves.  

This was the F1-Turkey (or now Türkiye) we expected in 2021.  TUR got off to a strong start (would've been stronger but they had a goal taken away by a toe offside in the 27') beating F2-Georgia, 3-1, with the last goal an empty netter as it was in the 7th minute of stoppage time and the GEO GK was in the attack.  The worst-ranked team (#75), GEO felt trying for a tie against TUR was worth a -2 goal differential with POR up next.  GEO managed 15 shots with one going off the left post, one off the crossbar, and one saved going off the right post.

So this is Watts Towers

53 picked TUR and 56 picked POR.  51 got both correct while the other 7 went 1-1.  5 are tied for first with 10 points with 24 tied for 6th with 9 pts.  BlueIsTheColour 3 is last with 5 pts.

All these years, I never stopped by Watts Towers because, it's in Watts.  But after sitting is traffic for so long, I realized I never got a picture and so I pulled off and it's a nice park.  I wore my 2023 Al Nassr Ronaldo home jersey that I picked up in Porto, Portugal last year.  

Hand the Ball (6/27)

If I just grab it...

1C-Netherlands, which did not qualify for the 2016 Euros or the 2018 World Cup, disappointed yet again committing a bad handball on a breakaway for a red card as 2D-Czech Republic took full advantage in their 2-0 win.  NED had scored the most goals in the group stage (8) but had zero shots on goal today.  NED had just two shots and no corners in the second half while Patrik Schick put the nail in the coffin in the 80' with his 4th goal.  A panic move, the attempted scoop of the ball by NED's Matthijs de Ligt as he fell at the top of the penalty box with no other Dutch defender close by in the 52' was initially a yellow until VAR gave the red three minutes later.

We will have a new Euro champion as 1B-Belgium outlasted reigning champ 3F-Portugal, 1-0, on their only shot on goal on yet another golazo from outside the box... so many great goals outside the box (can't remember the last LA Galaxy match that had one).  In yet another heavyweight match (can you believe we have already seen FRA-POR, FRA-GER, GER-POR, and now BEL-POR already?  ENG-GER is next!), POR took 16 shots in the second half after falling behind with four of those on goal.  Ronaldo had just a couple of semi-dangerous free kicks (kind of weird we haven't had a direct free kick goal yet).

CZE, ranked #40 in the world, will now face 2B-Denmark and another big showdown will feature BEL and 1A-Italy in the Quarters.

I Kante Lose was the only one to pick CZE into the Quarters to move from a tie for 19th to a tie for 9th.  Two lost NED in their Final.  46 got BEL while 4 lost POR as their champ (14 had them in the Final).  I Kante Lose went 2-0 (but can't win the pool) while 3 went 0-2.  29 have 3 Quarterfinalists while 20 have two.  

7 more can't win money (leaving 40) while 13 more can't win the pool (leaving 26) and losing NED and POR hurt quite a few entries.  FrankfromSeattle has the best chance at winning the pool (14.4%) and money (36.9%) but Slyelf still leads by two (82 pts).  Wolverine1 is now alone in last (63) but can still win 2nd.  Rainman and Rocket Ronaldo are tied for 20th (72) but are eliminated.

Last Day Drama (6/23)

Blame it on the sun

ROSEMEAD, CA -- This day had a lot of drama.  18 goals in 4 matches.  Two big GK gaffes.  First game-winning extra time goal.  A rally from two goals down to tie.  Two more own goals - in the same match.  First subs to score since Match # 16.  Four players scoring two goals each.  Four PKs, three in the same match.  Wow.

Group E saw E4-Slovakia's GK made a couple of great saves including one off a soft PK (E1-Spain's second missed PK this tourney) but it was a high ball into the sun/shadow that he accidentally knocked into his own net that opened the floodgates for ESP.  ESP scored four more times to rout SVK 5-0 (the last goal also an own goal) to finish 2nd and knock SVK out of the tourney with a very bad GD.  E3-Poland needed a win but E2-Sweden scored 82 seconds into the match (first of 2 goals for Emil Forsberg) to put POL on their heels.  Down 2-0 with 30 minutes left, POL's Robert Lewandowski scored twice (earlier he had to the crossbar on back-to-back sequence) to give POL hope but SWE scored four minutes into stoppage time (just the 3rd stoppage time goal this tourney) to win 3-2.  SWE wins Group E and SVK's GD meant C2-Ukraine made the Round of 16 as a 3rd place team. Could B2-Finland sneak in as well?

Group F.  Okay.  Ten minutes in, F1-Hungary, playing in Munich (GER), stunned F4-Germany (FRA 1st/POR 2nd/HUN 3rd (GER out)) with an early goal in a must-win match for HUN.  Twenty minutes later, a soft PK call is converted by F2-Portugal's Ronaldo (POR/FRA/HUN).  After tying with PK, two minutes into the 2nd half FRA scores again (after VAR negates the offsides) for a 2-1 lead (FRA/HUN/POR with FIN hoping FRA scores three more).  Another PK for Ronaldo in the 60' (to tie 2-2) essentially seals FIN's hopes (FRA/POR/HUN).  GER finally breaks through in the 66' off a missed GK punch that leads to an easy head-in (FRA/GER/POR).  About 18 seconds after kickoff, HUN scores again! (FRA/POR/HUN).  Pressure gets awarded as a GER sub scores in the 84' to tie it at 2 (FRA/GER/POR).  Both matches end in 2-2 draws eliminating HUN and FIN.

Two days to rest before the Round of 16 begins.  Breathe.

45 picked ESP, 23 SWE, 19 the POR-FRA tie, and Fantasy picked the GER-HUN tie.  All 49 got ESP into the R16, 48 FRA, 47 SWE, 46 POR, 44 GER, and 42 UKR.  Pretty clear majorities.  Today, 9 got 3 right while two got none (Rainman, Big Blue).  33 got all 6 R16 teams correct (impressive!) while two still got 4 of 6 (MK, Fabio).  Five got 21 points today while Fabio only got 14.

Amazingly, six entries got 15 of the 16 R16 correct and 23 got 14 correct.  Even MK still got 11 right.  Overall, Slyelf got 25 of the 36 round robin matches correct while Wolverine1 only got 13 (but he did 14 R16 teams correct but not enough to get out of a tie for last with 55 pts with MK).  After the Group Stage, Slyelf is first with 70 points with FrankfromSeattle second with 68 pts.

Groups E & F Scrambled (6/19)

Another loud sold-out, full-capacity crowd in Budapest, Hungary (side note: can't wait to see tonight's first full Galaxy crowd since last March), saw F1-HUN go up 1-0 right before halftime and then held on to a surprising 1-1 draw with F3-France to keep their hopes alive.  Four F4-Germany crosses resulted in goals, two on own goals four minutes apart, to lift them to a 4-2 win over F2-Portugal.  The 4th goal was on a typical German header, reminding me of all of Miraslav Klose's headers in the World Cups (who Ronaldo tied with most goals in Euros & World Cups with his 19th which put POR ahead 1-0).

E1-Spain again dominated possession and even scored, but E3-Poland tied it to keep their hopes alive (they would've been eliminated with a loss) in the 1-1 draw.  ESP had a chance to go back ahead but missed a PK, their first non-PSO PK miss in Euro history as the shot went off the left post.

So raise your hand if you had E2-Sweden and E4-Slovakia in 1st and 2nd after two matches in Group E.  Another draw for ESP would have them dependent on others so they need a win to guarantee a spot.  Group F may still see the top 3 teams in FRA, POR, and GER advance, but the FRA-HUN tie complicates things for POR and GER.  Also, since head-to-head is the first tiebreaker, GER would jump POR if tied in points, regardless of GF.

Footballsack was the only one to get the HUN-FRA tie, 12 picked GER, and 7 picked the ESP-POL tie.  Footballsack (16 pts) is our new leader as the only one to go 2-1 for the day to push Club Med to 2nd place.  There is a 3-way tie for last now (9 pts).

Issue # 2.1.1 "No Home Sweet Home" (6/15)

Archive

[Dailies: 11-12-13-14-15]

TITLE CONTENDERS PICK UP KEY WINS
A record 49 entries sees Club Med take the early lead

EL SEGUNDO, CA (smt) - Top favorites picked to win it all picked up wins as A2-Italy, B3-Belgium, and F2-Portugal each won 3-0 while D1-England and F3-France secured 1-0 victories.  The other teams picked to win all were F4-Germany (who lost to FRA) and E1-Spain (who dominated with 75% possession and didn't allow an official shot on goal but settled for a scoreless draw with E2-Sweden). 

C2-Ukraine scored twice in four minutes to pull even with C1-Netherlands, but the Dutch got the final goal to win 3-2, C3-Austria scored twice late to break a 1-1 tie with debutant C4-North Macedonia, and E4-Slovika got a man-advantage goal in the 69' to win 2-1.  A3-Wales and A4-Switzerland tied 1-1 (one of just 2 ties), an opportunistic 54-yard golazo secured a 2-0 win for D4-Czech Rep, and in the why-did-they-finish-the-match-right-away, B4-Finland upset B3-Denmark 1-0 in a match that saw DEN player Christian Ericksen resuscitated after collapsing.

With Ericksen conscious and communicating with teammates,

Full Capacity & Ronaldo (6/15)

Playing in front of the tourney's first full-capacity crowd (55,662), F1-Hungary held tight against heavy favorites F2-Portugal only to see the visitors score three times after the 84' to lose 3-0.  Ronaldo scored the last two goals, on a PK, and then a great effort to get around the GK in stoppage time (first goal past 90' in this tourney).  That broke a tie and his 11 goals is the new Euro record.  HUN also had a goal taken away by offsides, which rocked the stadium.  

F3-France had two goals called back by offsides (1 by VAR) so it was an own goal in the first half that gave the 1-0 margin over home side F4-Germany.  The 3-time Euro champion GER lost an opening match for the first time.

The first stage is done!  12 matches down, 24 to go in the Group Stage.  47 picked POR and 32 picked FRA.  Club Med remains in 1st with 9 pts.  31 went 2-0 while Dagger went 0-2.  There's a 3-way tie for last with 4 pts.

FFB-5.1 "CONTENDERS, PRETENDERS, and DARK HORSES: EURO 2020" (6/4)

 

June 4, 2021 
FFB-5.1 "CONTENDERS, PRETENDERS, and DARK HORSES: EURO 2020"

by Eric Foster

CONTENDERS, PRETENDERS, and DARK HORSES:  EURO 2020

 Who Will Exceed and Fall Short of Expectations?

Readers be warned, the views I’m about to inflict upon you are skewed, formulated by a huge soccer fan who cancelled his cable plan in 2020, almost exclusively following top European players in the English Premier League thru Barclay’s Fantasy Football.  Furthermore, the rest of the insight expressed herein originate from dated impressions made during World Cup 2018!

When I compared the odds (based on betMGM) for teams to win the Euro 2020 (oddly not renamed Euro 2021) with FIFA rankings and Power Rankings (The Athletes Hub), I scratched my head.  Recent team playing form aside, there are definitely some underrated and overrated teams.  These disparities made me rethink which of the top teams in the Euro 2020 are Contenders, just Pretenders, or Dark Horses that may surprise us!  I’ve listed these teams in descending order of my own personal rankings of their chances to win the tournament.

1) BELGIUM

Power Ranking:  3^rd

FIFA Europe Ranking:  1^st 

Odds to Win: +550

Verdict:  CONTENDER! 

Some bookmakers had Belgium level with France, or at least better than England…and they may have slipped after Kevin De Bruyne broke his face in the UEFA Championship game.  The Phantom of the EurOpera should be ready to make an appearance with a protective face mask.  He won’t let down his teammates!

Post mortem

Euro 2016 Champions

3F-Portugal (3-0-4) A Seleção 1st Title F2: Tied ISL 1-1 F4: Tied AUT 0-0 F6: Tied HUN 3-3 R16: Beat CRO 1-0 (aet) QF: Tied POL 1-1 (Won PSO 5-3) SF: Beat WAL 2-0 F: Beat FRA 1-0 (aet)

(Published 7/10/19) In the pool, Ford R's Rainman rose and won the pool eliminating Game of Two Halves.  Eric F's BigRedMessi2 finished 2nd, Michael W's Big Blue 3rd (winning tiebreaker), and Tuan L's The Eleven 4th.  

Winners (Tie = 5)…
	Rainman	100	1st Place $120
	BigRedMessi2	94	2nd Place $75
	Big Blue	92	3rd Place $50 (Tie: 7.5, Diff = 2.5)
	The Eleven	92	4th Place $25 (Tie: 9.0 Diff = 4.0)

Stats:   Goals: 108 (2.12/match) (3 OG, 8 PK, 9 90'+, 2 ET)... Scoring 1st (32-5-10, 4 0-0 ties): 16-WAL, 32-ESP, 40-IRL, 44-ENG, 46-BEL.... Lead at the Half (18-2-5, 26 ties (22 0-0)): 16-WAL, 40-IRL... Shutouts (34): 02-ALB, 05-TUR, 06-NIR, 07-UKR, 08-CZE, 10-BEL, 11-AUT, 15-ALB, 17-UKR, 18GER, 18-POL, 19-SWE, 21-TUR, 22- IRL, 24-POR, 24-AUT, 25-ROU, 26-SUI, 26-FRA, 27-RUS, 28-SVK, 28-ENG, 29-UKR, 30-NIR, 31-CZE, 35-ITA, 36-SWE, 38-NIR, 9-CRO, 41-SVK, 42-HUN, 43-ESP, 48-WAL, 50-GER, 51-FRA... PK (8/12): 01-ROU (G), 14-ROU (G), 20-CZE (G), 23-ISL (G), 24-POR (X), 32-ESP (X), 33-AUT (X), 40-IRL (G), 41-GER (X), 44-ENG (G), 47-ITA (G), 50-FRA (G)... ET (5): 37-SUIvPOL (0:0), 39-CROvPOR (0:1), 45-POLvPOR (0:0), 47-GERvITA (0:0), 51-PORvFRA (1:0)... PSO (3, 28/37): 37-SUIvPOL (4:5, 5.0), 45-PORvPOL (5:3, 4.5), 47-ITAvGER (5:6, 9.0).... Hat Tricks (0)... Red Cards (GF:GA) (3, 0:1): 02-ALB 36' (0:0), 11-AUT 66' (0:1), 40-IRL 66' (0:0).... Own Goals (3): 09-IRLtoSWE, 23-ISLtoHUN, 38-NIRtoWAL... All five teams making their first appearance finished 3rd or higher and four – Iceland, Northern Ireland, Slovakia and Wales – qualified for the round of 16 (Albania came up just short)... FRA's Antoine Griezmann won the Player of the Tournament and the Golden Boot (6 goals)... POR and SUI were the only teams not to officially lose (SUI lost in PSO)...

After Round Robin (36 matches):  Scoring 1st (23-2-7, 4 0-0 ties): 16-WAL, 32-ESP.... Lead at the Half (12-1-4, 19 ties): 16-WAL... Shutouts (26): 02-ALB, 05-TUR, 06-NIR, 07-UKR, 08-CZE, 10-BEL, 11-AUT, 15-ALB, 17-UKR, 18GER, 18-POL, 19-SWE, 21-TUR, 22- IRL, 24-POR, 24-AUT, 25-ROU, 26-SUI, 26-FRA, 27-RUS, 28-SVK, 28-ENG, 29-UKR, 30-NIR, 31-CZE, 35-ITA, 36-SWE... PK (4/7): 01-ROU (G), 14-ROU (G), 20-CZE (G), 23-ISL (G), 24-POR (X), 32-ESP (X), 33-AUT (X)... Hat Tricks (0)... Red Cards (GF/GA) (2, 0/1): 02-ALB 36' (0:0), 11-AUT 66' (0/1).... Own Goals (2): 09-IRLtoSWE, 23-ISLtoHUN... UKR was just the third team ever to not score a goal (TUR '96, DEN '00)... GER did not allow a goal, just the 3rd team to do so (GER '96, ITA '80)...

Final standings:

Rnk Team W-L-D PT GD GF-GA GRP

--- ---- ----- -- -- ----- ---

 1. POR  3-0-4 13 +4  9-5  3F 

 2. FRA  5-1-1 16 +8 13-5  1A

---

 3. WAL  4-2-0 12 +4 10-6  1B

 4. GER  3-1-2 11 +4  7-3  1C

---

 5. ITA  3-1-1 10 +4  6-2  1E

 6. BEL  3-2-0  9 +4  9-5  2E

 7. POL  2-0-3  9 +2  4-2  2C

 8. ISL  2-1-2  8 -1  8-9  2F

---

 9. CRO  2-1-1  7 +1  5-4  1D

10. ESP  2-2-0  6 +1  5-4  2D

11. SUI  1-0-3  6 +1  3-2  2A

12. ENG  1-1-2  5  0  4-4  2B

13. HUN  1-1-2  5 -2  6-8  1F

14. IRL  1-2-1  4 -3  3-6  3E

    SVK  1-2-1  4 -3  3-6  2B

16. NIR  1-3-0  3 -1  2-3  3C

---

17. TUR  1-2-0  3 -2  2-4  3D

18. ALB  1-2-0  3 -2  1-3  3A

19. ROM  0-2-1  1 -2  2-4  4A

20. SWE  0-2-1  1 -2  1-3  4E

21. CZE  0-2-1  1 -3  2-5  4D

22. AUT  0-2-1  1 -3  1-4  4F

23. RUS  0-2-1  1 -4  2-6  4B

24. UKR  0-3-0  0 -5  0-5  4C

         Tie: PT, GD, GF

Emotional night for Ronaldo

Sub Eder on top of the world

In a Euro tournament that saw 21 of the 50 matches go into halftime scoreless (3F-Portugal participating in three of them), why would the final be any different?  For a 3F-Portugal team that tied five of their six matches after 90 minutes, why would the final be any different?  For a 1A-France team that has hosted two major tournaments in the past 32 years and won both, why would the final be any different?  Uh, on that last one... A scoreless first half and a 0-0 tie after regulation were par for the course for the Portuguese (though France's Andre-Pierre Gignac late stoppage time twirl just hit inside the left post and ricocheted out) who had to play without captain Cristiano Ronaldo who left in the 25' due to a knee injury.  France had the better of the few opportunities but after the 1st half of extra time, ran out of gas.  A minute after POR's Raphael Guerreiro hit the cross bar on a direct free kick that shouldn't have been theirs (one of the few blown calls by the ref - handball on the wrong team), POR's Eder takes it in and hits a two-bouncer 25-yard shot that just beats the keeper for the only score of the night.

Moths had more fun than the fans

Ronaldo went on a roller-coaster ride by starting the match with high anticipation and pressure, in tears after being knocked down hard in the 8' and eventually having to call for his own sub in the 25' (a la moth), and in tears again after Portugal won its first major trophy.  France started off the match well but it seems the Ronaldo injury sucked the energy

Heading to the final

In meantime, catch up on kick-ass anime
with awesome music, Macross Delta!

3F-Portugal (2-0-4) will try to snap a 10-match losing streak to 1A-France (5-0-1) when the two national teams meet up for the final in Paris, France.  In the new expanding Euro (24 teams from 16), a third-place team has reached the final.  It has happened twice in the World Cup when they had 24 teams with Argentina losing 1-0 to Germany in the '90 final and Italy losing in PKs (0-0 (3-2)) to Brazil in the '94 final.

Both teams struggled to being the tournament with France needed a late second-half goal to edge Romania while Portugal blew a 1-0 lead to tie, at the time, lowly Iceland.  After settling for a tie in their 3rd match, France has won each knockout stage scoring 9 goals.  Portugal has played even in the first 90 minutes in each of their first

Ronaldo on a roll

Ronaldo's 9th Euro goal (ties record)

Sometimes, things just line up.  A late stoppage time goal by 2F-Iceland knocked 3F-Portugal to third and put the Portuguese in the upper bracket with no giants (e.g., ENG, ESP, FRA, GER).  They even avoided BEL thanks to 1B-Wales.  After needing a late OT goal to beat 1D-Croatia and a PSO to beat 2C-Poland, POR could've settled for another regulation tie.  But after a listless first half, Ronaldo struck with a brilliant header off a corner kick and less than three minutes later, a Ronaldo shot was re-directed in by Nani and Portugal controlled the rest of the match winning 2-0 over the Welsh.  Will Ronaldo do what Messi couldn't do and win a title for home and country at the world stage?  Will Ronaldo quit the national team if he loses in the final like Messi?  Will Portugal finally go back to their traditional red and not the green glow/night shade jersey?  It was a nice run by Wales and with Iceland out, only traditional powers 1A-France, 1C-Germany, and Portugal remain.

Portugal's win was picked by 5 entries and this also meant we won't know who will win the pool until after the final on Sunday!  Travel Bug (who was 26th before the Round of 16 matches) moved into 1st (89 pts) while

Clearing the path for Ronaldo

Run little man, run

About the only exciting thing in the later stages of the 2C-Poland-3F-Portugal match was a wave of blue shirts chasing an un-shirted fan on the pitch.  Portugal tied the match in the 33' but both teams played it safe in overtime.  About the only thing that went right for Ronaldo was his PSO goal as he was blatantly taken down in the box early with no call and flubbed two settling chances, that for a mere man would be hard, but for elite players would be gimmes.  POR hit all five PSOs to POL's three.  But the Portuguese hopefully won't be looking to the final as they will get to play 1B-Wales and not 2E-Belgium in the semis.

After going up a goal, BEL took the foot off the pedal and the Welsh took full advantage,

Issue # 7.3.1 "Azzurri vs La Furia Roja..."

Well, the end is near.  The penultimate issue!

Spain (3-0-2) Real Federación Española de Fútbol	vs.	Italy (2-0-3) Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio

LAST TWO WORLD CUP CHAMPS TO MEET
It'll be SalsaKing vs Adivinanza for the inaugural title
"All or nothing, huh? That's how I roll!" -- Advinanza
"Let's do this!! I won't be able to watch the game in peace now" -- SalsaKing

Ronaldo Doesn't Miss PK- That's Bad

As the stakes get raised, the matches turn defensive and this was reminiscent of the World Cup 2010 final where Spain and Holland should've been a great match turned chippy with 13 yellow cards.  This was was just as chippy, with brief moments of flair, and 9 yellow cards and ended 0-0.  How bad?  Spain had just 2 shots on goal after 90 minutes.  Portugal none (like CZE in the quarters).  Spain did turn it up in the last 20 minutes of overtime and as things opened up and POR tired, Spain got 3 more shots on goal while Portugal managed two.  In the PSO, once again, the team who misses the first PK wins.  A great save on ESP's Xabi Alonso's attempt gave POR the advantage but ESP GK Iker Casillas came up big.  In fact, both GKs guessed correctly on five straight kicks (though the last three snuck by for goals).  It was a crossbar that doomed POR and Cesc Fábregas won it for ESP, 4-2, with Cristiano Ronaldo on the sidelines having not taken a kick (he would've been next).  It was a risky tactic that failed as taking it 1st (give team momentum and confidence) or 4th (almost always taken and likely a decider) seems like the sweet spot and as we saw here, you may not get to 5th.  Of course this didn't work for the LA Galaxy in the 2009 MLS Cup when goal scorers Landon Donovan (5th) and Edson Buddle (6th) both missed their kicks.  But I digress.  ESP will have a chance to be the first team to win 3 straight major titles.

Three were eliminated

Back in Action, Both on the Field and in the Pool

Currently overseeing the stat team work the Charlotte Eagles - Chivas USA match here at Titan Stadium in Fullerton, CA.  Not much to report in this U.S. Open Cup Quarterfinal.  But there will be lots to report tomorrow when the EURO 2012 resumes with Portugal-Spain.  In talking with Ilmigliore (Warner L), Blue Panther (Eduard C), and SalsaKing (Ricardo A), no one seems to give Portugal (or Italy for that matter) a chance.  But that's why they play the game.  Hopefully, it won't be snoozers like the France-Spain or England-Italy matches.  But watching with interest regardless will be Charles D (Sisyphus) and Ricardo A (SalsaKing) as one will be eliminated from winning the pool after the match.  Good luck!

Issue # 6.2.1 "Best Four Teams In..."

It'll be nice to have a 2-day break.  Of course, why Portugal and Spain each get an extra two days rest seems illogical for UEFA.  We'll see how it plays out.  Very nice that 13 are still alive and 4 each have an equal chance of winning the pool.


EACH QUARTERFINAL FEATURED ONE DOMINANT TEAM
Flying Elvi leads by a point, but four can win title

With Ronaldo, Czech-Mate!

Don't awake the sleeping giant, but Cristiano Ronaldo is playing like a superstar and his third goal of the tourney, a 79' header where he just ran around a listless defender, sends a revived Portugal team into the Semis with a dominant 1-0 win over the Czech Republic.  If not for the woodwork, Ronaldo could have a half-dozen goals this tournament.  Portugal outshot CZE 20 to 2... 2!  And none of the two were on goal.

Only three picked POR to advance to the Semis with Flying Elvi jumping to a 7-point lead atop the standings, Sisyphus moving from 27th-Tied to 12th-Tied, and Blue Panther moving out of last place to 34th.  Although all 19 entries remain alive after today, three now have no chance for 1st, reducing the pool of pool winners to just six.  Walleye (3rd, 57), Absolutely Clueless (4th-T, 56), and BigRedMessi2 (4th-T, 56) can only win 2nd now.  As for possibilities, Flying Elvi has a 32.8% chance to win the pool and a whopping 93.8% chance to win money.