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Ronaldo's performances this time certainly stood (apart from the first two). Had he scored the goal againt Spain it really would have been his tournament.

 

Although they were 2 unbelievable games (v Czech/Neth) I thought he was pretty poor against Spain and Germany. Did OK v Denmark despite the piss poor misses.

 

I think overall the Euro's have been fairly representative of world football in that there aren't that many stand out individuals. A lot of the good players (i.e. Spaniards) are just supreme team players.

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Ronaldo's performances this time certainly stood (apart from the first two). Had he scored the goal againt Spain it really would have been his tournament.

 

Although they were 2 unbelievable games (v Czech/Neth) I thought he was pretty poor against Spain and Germany. Did OK v Denmark despite the piss poor misses.

 

I think overall the Euro's have been fairly representative of world football in that there aren't that many stand out individuals. A lot of the good players (i.e. Spaniards) are just supreme team players.

 

Was MOTM against Spain imo. Been everywhere on the pitch, created chances and should have scored and won them the game.

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Ronaldo's performances this time certainly stood (apart from the first two). Had he scored the goal againt Spain it really would have been his tournament.

 

Although they were 2 unbelievable games (v Czech/Neth) I thought he was pretty poor against Spain and Germany. Did OK v Denmark despite the piss poor misses.

 

I think overall the Euro's have been fairly representative of world football in that there aren't that many stand out individuals. A lot of the good players (i.e. Spaniards) are just supreme team players.

 

That's definitely my (continued) takeaway from this tournament. Comparatively poor era of football IMO. Not many lesser-known talents emerging and taking the tournament by storm either.

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Tournament started off brilliantly I thought, lots of goals, lots of action. But the knockout stages have been disappointing - nothing especially memorable.

 

Been particularly like that since 06 imo. There was only a couple decent games in the knockouts of that tournament and every one has been similar ever since; aside from South Africa which was just awful from start to finish.

 

Euro 2004 in Portugal was class.

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Euro 2004 started off quite well but similarly to this one had poor knockouts. Greece gradually sucked the life out of the whole tournament, like a Boa constrictor slowly killing its prey.

 

Agreed, Greece absolutely killed that tournament for me.

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WC 2010 knockout stages were significantly better than that of Euro 2012. The quarterfinals especially, had goals even. Both teams scored in only 2 of the 6 knockout games in 2012, and the Czech match, both Spain matches, and the England match have been quite tedious. It really died after the group stages, but hopefully the Italy game on Wednesday has awoken it. The only extremely poor knockout matches in 2010 were the two involving Paraguay and the final. The group stages were the tedious part. I probably underrate the Euros, since I have no vested interest, but the last one was in 2008 definitely better.

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Really enjoyed Wenger's comments on Spain. Posted already?

 

http://www.espn.co.uk/football/sport/story/158313.html

 

"Throughout their years of success, they have tried to keep the same philosophy, which is based around wanting to have the ball.

 

"Although they have struggled to score goals, they are the masters of possession, they are the best in the world technically and I have big respect for what they have done... These guys are more than outstanding footballers: they are really intelligent and they are winners. I want to give them credit for that.

 

"However, they have betrayed their philosophy and turned it into something more negative. Originally they wanted possession in order to attack and win the game; now it seems to be first and foremost a way not to lose.

 

"They have become more conservative, and they don't want to give the ball up because they don't want to give you a chance to score. That's the impression you get from Euro 2012. Yes, it can be hard to break down defensive opponents, but this is a challenge that confronts every successful team. They are still absolutely outstanding, but they have less penetration than before."

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I've enjoyed it, yes goals stopped a bit after group stages but it's been less negative than the world cup and some interesting tactical battles. If Italy win tonight it may spell a shift away from defensive possession and counter attacking as the two types (with the latter being the majority) with more teams trying to bully around Spain further up the pitch. Negative tactics haven't really worked for anyone. Also lots of headers which is good.

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