Euro 2008 Review Part IV

It was a semifinal for both the romantics and the realist. Powerhouses Germany and Spain are both there along with the surprise packages of the tournament, Turkey and Russia respectively. While the Turks have been more than lucky still to be in the hunt, the same cannot be said of the Russians who took over the ownership of total football from its previous master, Holland.

Having seen the German teams disintegrate in the continental cup competitions, few would put their house on seeing the German advancing far in the Euro2008. Yet, once again their mental strength has prevailed. A mediocre team bar Ballack and maybe Lehman, the team spirit and superior tactics have lifted the team to this stage. On the basis of Turkey’s difficulty to even name a team for this match without trying to include some of their technical staff on the substitute bench; this should be a stroller for the Germans. The onus was on Germany to knock the second team of Turkey out of the competition. Yet the match itself threw the formbook right out of the window. The understrength Turks actually took the lead on the base of several enterprising forays into the German penalty box and kept Lehman busy throughout. Their ability to come back and equalized after the German took the lead was even more impressive. Alas it was not meant to be. They were sucker-punched at the end with a well-taken winner from Phillip Lahm. Brave till the end, Turkey deserved every applause that is thrown their way.

Hamit Altintop was a thorn for the Germans. Providing extra protection to his back four and dangerous when going forward as well. He packs a punch with his long-range shots from outside the box but just did not get it right in this match. He will be the man that Turkeys looks to build a new around, for World Cup qualification.

After the heroics against the mighty Dutch, Russia fell flat against a fascinating Spanish side. One would think that 20 or 30 odd minutes into the semifinal of a European Championship and the tournament’s top scorer and star striker, David Villa, limping off injured; this is surely Hiddink’s best chance to claim a final spot. No such problem for Spain. On came Cesc Fabregas, and the Russian defenders just could not cope. Playing with 5 across the midfield, 3 players were suddenly granted the license to roam and support Torres. In the end, Russia had no answer to the cleverness of Silva, Iniesta and Fabregas. Further prove to show that Xavi and Fabregas can indeed play in the same team, in part due to the latter’s versatility to adjust to an unaccustomed role of a roaming attacking midfielder.

For all the excitement produce during the 2 weeks of this championship, the finale itself was less than spectacular. Both sides virtually cancelling out each other in the midfield area, though it serve to highlight the wonderful efforts of Senna and Frings in the defensive part of the game. On the rare occasion of the miscommunication between Lahm and an advancing Lehman, Torres capitalized to nick in what was the only goal of the game. Lahm may be a foraging wing-back, but his general defensive awareness left much to be desired. Perhaps this is a reason why he is not coveted by top European sides other than those within the Bundesliga ranks. The German captain, Michael Ballack deserves special mention. This is a man unlucky enough to finish as bridesmaid in the World Cup, Champions League (twice) and now the European Championships. Tried as he might, his determination failed to filter through to the rest of his teammates. His pre-match injury might have hampered his movements but he did more than most to get something out of the match.

In the end, Spain broke their mould and emerged as champions of Europe. Finally a trophy to savour for the long-suffering Spanish fans. In a complete turnaround from the previous victors, this tournament and Spain in particular showed that playing an attractive brand of football is still the way to victory.