by sports writer Michael Butterworth
BEIJING, June 24 (Xinhua) – After 13 days of uninterrupted football action in eleven cities, Euro 2020 is now taking a break for a few days before the knockout rounds begin on June 26. The dust has settled on the group Xinhua watching the performances of all 24 teams in the pan-European tournament so far.
Group A
Italy – An ominous good start for the Azzurri, with three wins out of three, no goals conceded, and a great sense of belonging and esprit du corps among the line. Maybe the team that will hit so far, although a tough knockout draw will probably see them face Belgium and France if they are to reach the final.
Wales – A good performance in the qualifiers for the knockout stage. Gareth Bale is in typically superfluous form, and his leadership and footballing skills are an important cog in the Welsh machine. Whether Wales can repeat the hero fashions of 2016 or not is likely to rest on how effectively opponents can hang on to the lost Real Madrid man.
Switzerland – After a slow start threatening to track their hopes, Switzerland scraped into knockouts thanks to a clinical victory over Turkey in their last group game. Their reward? A scary tie against reigning world champion France. As always, much will rest on the form of the strangely proportioned Xherdan Shaqiri, who always seems to save his best form for the national team.
Turkey – Oh dear. After being tipped off by many as dark horses for the tournament, Turkey never recovered from a 3-0 hammer to Italy, and unpleasant defeats against Wales and Switzerland followed quickly. A survey will surely follow how Senol Gunes failed to get the best of a site full of youthful talent.
Group B
Belgium – After Italy, perhaps the most impressive team in the group stage. Whispers that an aging squad may find it tough have so far proved unfounded, as the Red Devils blew into the 16-year-olds with a game to spare with Romelu Lukaku in particularly fine form. And with Kevin De Bruyne now fully in shape, they are a match for everyone.
Denmark – The shocking collapse between Christian Eriksen and Finland put the football game in perspective, but with the midfielder now thankfully on his way to recovery, his teammates began the task of getting into the knockout phases, which they achieved with an emphatic and emotional victory over Russia . A win-win draw against Wales awaits, and given what the Danes have already been through, who would bet that they would go any further?
Finland – A first victory in their first ever appearance at a major tournament should have been a moment to cherish for a lifetime, but was completely overshadowed by Eriksen’s collapse. Although the Finns’ desire and commitment could not go wrong, finally showed a lack of quality in the last third, and they were one of the two unfortunate third places that did not advance to the quarterfinals.
Russia – A rather uninspiring Russian side was brought back to earth with a shock after a disciplinary 4-1 defeat against a resurgent Danish side condemned them to fourth place in the group. Coach Stanislav Cherchesov’s contract runs until next year’s World Cup, but one wonders if he has taken this team as far as he can.
Group C
The Netherlands – Long-standing doubts about the head coach Frank de Boer’s caliber have been set aside when the Dutch qualified for the 16-year-old in a nice and fun way. Sterner tests await, however, and the Netherlands’ cavalier approach to defending may prove that they regret knockouts.
Austria – Win against Northern Macedonia and Ukraine Assured Austria of their first ever appearance in the knockout stages of a European Championship. However, a match in the eighth round against Italy will be another proposal, and Alaba, Sabitzer and co will have to dig deep to move on.
Ukraine – Sneaks into the knockout rounds of the teeth as the fourth and final third place qualifier, Ukraine is on the kinder side of the draw, and their last 16 match against Sweden is more winning than most. It is unlikely that they will do so much longer than that.
Northern Macedonia – The tournament’s lowest ranked team knew after two defeats that they would go home, but they did not disgrace themselves on the big stage, and veteran Goran Pandev will forever be remembered for scoring his first ever major tournament goal. A valuable experience for players and staff to learn from and build on.
Group D
England – Perhaps weighted by the importance of expectations generated by a promising connection of young people, England rather stuttered through the group stage but still topped Group D without conceding a goal. Although soundly sound, the three-legged attack of the three lions has not yet fully gelled, and better will be needed against old enemies Germany in the last 16. If they win against Die Mannschaft, confidence will be high and a nation expects to advance to a home final at Wembley.
Croatia – A slow start led many to suggest that Euro 2020 was a tournament too far for this aging side of Croatia, before the evergreen Luka Modric made a lavish performance to lead his team to victory over Scotland and a place in knockouts. Not quite at the same level as the 2018 vintage, but this Croatian side can still cause problems.
Czech Republic – The Czechs rather flew under the radar of Group D, with great attention focused on England and Croatia. However, Patrik Schick caught the eye with his wonderful goal against Scotland that put the Czech Republic on the road to knockouts, and his physique will be a tricky suggestion for the Dutch defense to manage in their 16th match.
Scotland – After an endless wait, Scotland’s first major tournament since 1998 ended in disappointment. Despite the highs of holding England to a 0-0 draw at Wembley, a lack of fronts in attack against them in defeats against Croatia and the Czech Republic was counted. An unbalanced squad contained many left-backs and midfielders, but was short on midfielders and strikers.
Group E
Sweden – A fairly laborious set of performances from Sweden, which topped Group E more through defensive solidity than attacking feeling. Alexander Isak and Dejan Kulusevski at least tried to get spectators from their seats, and a last 16 match against Ukraine is a very profitable reward for topping their group.
Spain – With most of the last decade’s Golden Generation now retired, this is something of a transitional Spanish side that does not include any Real Madrid players, although a five-goal walloping by Slovakia in the last group game indicated that a corners had turned after their tournament had started with two uninspiring draws. Hard to see them go past the quarterfinals, but weirder things have happened.
Slovakia – An undefeated Slovakian side managed to claim a victory against ten-man Poland in their first game and spent the rest of their Euro 2020 more preoccupied with keeping a clean sheet than trying to score. A lack of star quality finally told, and a 5-0 defeat in the hands of Spain saw them pack their bags after the group game.
Poland – A disappointing tournament for Poland when they finished at the bottom of Group E despite Robert Lewandowski’s best efforts, who scored three goals in three matches and sometimes seemed to pull alone through their competition. With coach Paulo Sousa who has not impressed and many key players now well into the 30s, it may be time for a rebuild.
Group F
France – The pre-tournament favorites advanced from Death of Group to the top spot, but they might have hoped in a more convincing way. A draw against Hungary and Portugal were reminders that Les Bleus do not always have it their own way, and it took two matches before Karim Benzema seemed to be on the same wavelength as his teammates. Still the strongest group on paper, and few would bet that they reached the final on July 11.
Germany – Jekyll and Hyde stuff from Germany, who were brilliant on the counterattack against Portugal but struggled to force themselves in their other two matches, and came within ten minutes of elimination before Leon Goretzka saved a 2-2 draw against Hungary. Despite their attacking skill, five conceded goals are mostly un-German, and improvements will be needed against England at Wembley in the 16-year-olds if outgoing coach Joachim Low is to leave at a height.
Portugal – looked remarkably weak defensively when Germany beat them in a 4-2 defeat, but made it to knockouts thanks to small scale thanks to the remarkable form of Cristiano Ronaldo, who leads the tournament’s leaderboards with five goals and has equaled the international record at all times with 109 goals for his country. The 36-year-old must continue to deliver if the reigning Euro champions are to move on, with a tough match against Belgium on the horizon.
Hungary – called out by a mass of capacity in Budapest in its first two matches, Hungary surprised many with its ability to go toe to toe with more famous opponents and came much closer to the 16-year-old than the final table suggests. Coach Marco Rossi deserves a lot of credit for pulling the maximum out of a limited group of players. Hungary will now try to use this positive momentum as a springboard to qualify for their first World Cup since 1986.
Source: sn.dk