chriso's Blog

Yes, I saw those too, P. Very good writing indeed.

I can also recommend the article about 'Boring Boring Football TV':

http://www.the-onion-bag.com/index.php?story=750

I know the bloke who wrote it. Someone to watch out for, if you want my opinion...

I think what we've seen so far is that England clearly

weren't

good enough to reach this competition. I can't see them getting many points at all, unless they were in the same group as Austria or Switzerland, but then again you could probably say that about most countries.

Absolutely. They played it tactically spot-on against the Dutch. Much as I wanted the Netherlands to win, I had to hand it to Hiddink for the way he got his team playing.

Yes indeed. I'm very pleased with the eight teams through to the knock-out round. A good selection of sides that can play good football and hopefully provide a few fireworks.

Yes indeed. I'm very pleased with the eight teams through to the knock-out round. A good selection of sides that can play good football and hopefully provide a few fireworks.

Yes indeed. I'm very pleased with the eight teams through to the knock-out round. A good selection of sides that can play good football and hopefully provide a few fireworks.

So how would you answer the following:

Why have Italy struggled so much?
Who has been your team of the tournament so far?
Can Spain really win it this year?
Are France about to go out in the First Round?

Well it goes without saying that Bilic is a potential target for some clubs, including my team West Ham.

I could see Van Basten one day arriving at somewhere like Tottenham or Germany's Loew going to Portsmouth (for instance).

Allow me to save your modesty, Duffman - surely the best pull-out on the web at the moment has to be the one on The Onion Bag at:

http://www.the-onion-bag.com/euro2008/

Much fun to be had there! :-)

So we've now had a chance to see Switzerland, the Czechs, Turkey and Portugal. What did you make of them all?

I think Switzerland lacked anyone capable of scoring, although their defence was predictably pretty good. The Czechs looked better but made some basic errors in passing the ball around.

Portugal and Turkey were the stronger-looking teams to me. Both played well and seem capable of going through to the quarter finals. Portugal, frankly, looked like they were playing at another level to me. Definitely one of the favourites to win outright.

I keep seeing the name Huntelaar cropping up here and there. Who is he and what's he like?

Why the anti-German sentiment, P? The war was a long time ago, my friend... ;-)

So now we've heard the inevitable news that Sven's been shown the door at Man City, it seems Mark Hughes may be the man to replace him.

But do you think they'd be picking the right man for the job? Could he maintain the good work put in by the former England manager this season?

Do you think City should be looking for someone else with a more proven track record for successful management?

...but what a group!!!

What's slightly troubling for me - and this is a small point really - is that the Netherlands played Romania in qualifying and couldn't beat them. They drew the first match and lost the second. Is it

that

clear cut a two horse race in Group C?

I'd go along with all that Kedge (welcome to the forum, by the way!)

Without Eduardo, Croatia may struggle to find such a rich vein of goals and Germany have the pedigree to go all the way now with a number of decent players in all areas.

Portugal are in transition really so it's possible they may underachieve a bit. As for the Netherlands, I'd like to see them do well and they look like a well-organised outfit to me.

D'you know what - I'm not altogether sure!

Everytime I settle on my top tip to win, I hear something about them that suggests they're weaker than I thought. I suppose if I had to plump for someone, it'd be Italy, with Germany a close second. Without looking at the schedules to see who could end up playing who in the knock-out stages, I'd say France and Spain should be good enough to reach the semis.

Well that's certainly a decision that has huge ramifications for similar setups around the world. As you say, I hope this decision is putting the wind up the Premier League in no uncertain terms. To make openly available information usable only in exchange for exorbitant amounts of money is despicable in my opinion.

Thanks for the heads-up on that one!

Hey insideleft - your male insecurities are OK by us... thanks for being our first postee! Hope your own forum gets off the ground soon. There's enough room for all of us, I reckon... :)

I always want to see Spain put in a decent run, mate, but do they have the cahones to go all the way in a big tournament like this? I wonder...

Funny you mention Greece. I wouldn't mind a pound or two on Greece as a long shot to win. I think it's entirely possible, myself - they can't be written off so quickly.

Thanks weld-class... you'll always have a special place in our heart for that... ;-)

Yes, Germany or Italy are undoubtedly front-runners for me too. Why don't you rate France, out of interest?

The excitement's building... but which team do you think will ultimately rise to the occasion?

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