Euro's:Day Six

• Portugal just got by a stingy Denmark team, winning 3-2 with the winner coming in the 87th minute from substitute Varela.
• Cristiano Ronaldo was poor, wasting a multitude of chances that would have seen his side comfortable out of reach.Varela bailed him out but he needs to be more clinical if he wants to take Portugal deep in this tournament.
• Nani was the bright spot for Portugal and could have had a hat trick of assists if his teammates were better in front of goal. The offense was ran through Ronaldo too much from my point of view, Nani needs more touches not only because he is a world class player and one of the best wide men at this tournament but simply because the Portuguese offense becomes very predictable when you're constantly just playing up one side.
• Denmark will be happy with their performances but the loss here leaves them in a horrible spot going against an irresistible German team on the last day of the group games. They've already surprised one of the pre tournament favorites in Holland so they'll believe anything is possible.
• The Netherlands left it too late and couldn't complete the comeback against a German team that has cemented itself as the favorite after two games.
• Mario Gomez has only touched the ball for 22 seconds all tournament long, but has 3 goals to his name. A stat that explains Gomez to a tee, a no nonsense fox in the box, all he does is score goals. Miroslav Klose might never break Gerd Muller's scoring record if Gomez stays in this kind of form.
• Robin Van Persie is finally on the score sheet and the second half performance from the Dutch was much better than anything we've seen from them in the tournament. These facts will give them hope going into the last day against a Portuguese team they will have to beat.

USA vs. Guatemala

• The US gave up a late goal to draw Guatemala 1-1. A result that isn't too bad, but the late goal is obviously hard to take but it goes back to the players being tired from all the work they're putting in during this camp. 
• Clint Dempsey scored the lone goal for the US, faking out a defender to make some space for a calm finish. Finishing of that quality from Dempsey is going to be a key very important for the US, with the striker situation still up in the air.
• Jermaine Jones managed to not get booked and got forward a lot more than against Antigua and Barbuda, both positives. His runs were often stopped before he could make anything meaningful happen though. I still favor a more offensive option alongside Michael Bradley, with Jones behind those two.
• The US needs to work on their free kick routines, especially with quality of referees in the region. Donovan has always provided quality delivery and the US has plenty of targets in Bocanegra, Goodson, Onyewu, and most of all Clint Dempsey. Jermaine Jones should never take a free kick for the US.
• Jose Torres was available today and was fantastic centrally for Klinsmann in his early games as coach and should have featured in a game that was begging for more quality in the middle of the field, one has to wonder why his role has been changed in recent games. Forced out wide where he is unsure and isolated. There is certainly a lack of wide options for the US now with Dempsey prospering in a more central role but Jose Torres is not the answer to the dilemma.
• Carlos Ruiz is infuriating if he isn't on your team. The former LA Galaxy player was a nuisance all night  with his theatrics, he'll be happy though because his theatrics created the free kick opportunity that Marco Pappa put past Tim Howard late on.

Euro's:Day Five

• The second round of games kicked off today in Group A, but everything is still up for grabs going into the final day of play.
• The Czech Republic defeated Greece, going up by two goals within the first 10 minutes of play. The final 2-1 scoreline flatters Greece, who were incredibly poor and got their goal from a Petr Cech error.
• Georgios Samaras was better in a central target man role, but still didn't do enough to warrant a starting job. He doesn't offer enough for a poor side like Greece playing in the tournament format where simple things like being lazy and not taking your chances can hurt you immensely. 
• Greece as a whole have been poor offensively though, creating virtually no clear goal scoring chances over 180 minutes of play. They looked like a team struggling to form a new identity under Fernando Santos. Former coach Otto Rehhagel preferred a more defensive shape taking advantage on set pieces and it brought them success which could explain their uneassiness with the new set up.
• The Czech republic weren't special though, mind you, they came out of the gates like a bat out of hell and took advantage of a Greek team that was woefully out of sorts to begin the game. I still don't think they make it out of the group playing Poland on the last day without captain Tomas Rosicky. 
• Russia and Poland drew 1-1, a tight affair with both teams doing their best to avoid defeat.
• Andrei Arshavin was quality and looks like the same player that surprised everyone at the last EURO tournament, perhaps the loan back to Zenit has rejuvenated the player who was getting very stale on the Arsenal bench.
• Alan Dzagoev scored again, taking his tally to 3 in 2 games. I doubt he'll be suiting up for his Moscow team much longer if his tournament continues to trend in this direction. He's really helping the Russian side make up for the most wasteful striker in the tournament. Aleksander Kerzhakov didn't have as many chances as he did against the Czech's but he still managed to waste all of them again which could be worrying once the elimination games come around.
• Kuba scored a stunner, the best goal yet, to bring Poland back into the game. Lewandowski at the top means you're only going to score if you get service into the box consistently for him. Poland were very defensive against a better Russian side and tried to counter which meant that they were always going to need some individual brilliance, Kuba was happy to provide that with a special goal in front of the Polish fans.

Euro's:Day Four

• England and France played out a 1-1 draw yesterday. A good and fair result for both teams who face much lesser opposition in their next two games.
• France dictated the play and had 60% of the possession, they also had many more shots on goal. Despite these stats they didn't create a whole lot of clear cut opportunities. Samir Nasri beat Joe Hart at his near post to level the game before half time when the English defenders dropped too deep. The biggest negative for France will be Karim Benzema's performance, he was sloppy with the ball and didn't do enough running off the ball as the lone striker. Blanc should have added another attacking player sooner though to help the French attack, Ben Arfa came on too late against an England side that was content with their lone goal.
• Mathieu Debuchy was the best player for France, motoring forward constantly and beating English players constantly. Top clubs, like Manchester United, have been linked with the right back and he showed why yesterday. He'll be a great asset for France in their two other games adding another offensive player to stretch the game.
• England will be happy with this result, they set out in a 4-4-1-1 in an attempt to not lose the game to give them a better chance at advancing out of the group against lesser opposition in Sweden and the Ukraine. They could have stolen all three points had James Milner put away the best chance of the game, missing an open net.
• Danny Wellbeck was England's best player, showing everyone why Sir Alex has preferred him to goal poacher Javier Hernandez all season. He utilized his limited service and ran the channels to great success against the slower French defenders, turning them on a couple of occasions. He'll be a great foil for Andy Carroll if Roy Hodgson opts for a more offensive 4-4-2 in the next games.
• The ref was incredibly poor though. The French team put in many poor challenges yet escaped any bookings, conversely he managed to book two English players for similar challenges. 
• Andriy Shevchenko bested Zlatan Ibrahimovic, helping co hosts Ukraine to a 2-1 win against Sweden. Shevchenko isn't getting any younger, but class is permanent and his two goals proved as much. He brought his team back from a goal deficit with two headed goals.
• It was a very open game as both teams realized that three points in this game was probably their only chance at getting out of this group with the heavily favored teams being France and England. The Ukrainian fans will love what they saw but the outlook is still bleak for them.

Euro's:Day Three

• Italy and Spain played to a 1-1 draw in the opening game for group C. The two favorites for the group will be happy with a point a piece and it was probably a fair result after 90 minutes.
• The standout Italian player for me was Antonio Cassano, who was dangerous throughout playing behind the central striker. His runs out into wide position were dangerous all game and allowed him to create chances for himself and others. These runs also made space for Claudio Marchisio to move into, who also had a good game getting forward from midfield for the Italians.
• The no striker ploy from Vicente Del Bosque failed massively despite Fabergas scoring the equalizer for Spain. They were much more dangerous once Del Bosque introduced Jesus Navas and Fernando Torres, a traditional winger and a traditional striker that brought much more balance to a Spanish attack full of play makers. 
• Torres should have won the game for Spain after coming on, fluffing two fantastic. Buffon stopped him on the first after he attempted to round him and the second one saw him try and chip Buffon when he had Navas through on an open net if he could have found the passing lane.
• Conversely Antonio Di Natale took one of his two decent chances after coming on for a frustrated Mario Balotelli, who blew the best chance of the game and was subbed shortly thereafter.
• Croatia dispatched of Ireland, with two goals from Mario Mandzukic. The 3-1 scoreline is flattering but it was still a must win game for Irish who now face a daunting task in two games against Italy and Spain needing four points to advance out of the group.
• The gulf in quality was evident from start to finish as the Irish struggled to create any meaningful chances. Robbie Keane's poor form for the LA Galaxy carried over into this game as he had very little impact.
• Trapattoni had to take a risk now in the coming games against Italy and Spain. Kevin Doyle did a good job earning free kicks for the Irish but he needs to be dropped in favor of more dangerous options in Jonathan Walters and Shane Long. 
• Glenn Whelan will be upset with himself, he had some good chances from distance and a free header but failed to test Stipe Peltikosa.
• The Irish crowd was fantastic and loud throughout, staying to the very end to cheer on their side regardless of the result. This pleased me very much as someone of Irish descent.
• What also dawned on me whilst listening to the Irish crowd was the lack of Vuvuzela's. It's so nice watching these games without the constant buzzing in the background. I can only imagine how happy the players are.

Euro's:Day Two

The group of death produced some entertaining action today, but the results have left the group up for grabs for any one of the four teams. Germany and Denmark beat Portugal and the Netherlands 1-0.

• Portugal will probably be the most happy of all the sides today as they will now believe they have they can decide their own fate with the Netherlands 1-0 loss to Denmark. Portugal will need to run up the score on the Danes though and hope the Netherlands don't recover from an embarrassing loss.
• The Portuguese performance against Germany was good despite the loss, a draw would have been a fair result. They will fancy themselves with Nani and Ronaldo attacking the young and inexperienced Dutch fullbacks. 
• Arjen Robben was woeful for the Dutch, predictable all game cutting in onto his left foot and firing pointless shots all game. Hes quickly becoming the Lebron James of European soccer, losing 2 Champions League Finals and a World Cup Final in a short amount of time. Perhaps he also lacks the "clutch gene" Taking Affelay off for him was a mistake but it was never going to happen under the circumstances. 
• Perhaps the biggest disappointment was Robin Van Persie though who fluffed a multitude of chances, very unexpected from a player in the form of his life. Huntelaar has to be preferred in the next game for his goal scoring ability. They have arguably the most attacking depth in the tournament but its all for not if someone can't put the ball in the net.
• Daniel Agger and Simon Kjaer proved that they are one of the best and most underrated defensive pairings at the tournament after they kept the Dutch attack at bay all game, the same attack that lead qualifying in goals scored. A deep run is feasible if they continue to play at such a high level.

Euro's:Day One

• The opening ceremony was painful. The random piano/soccer player looked like a talent show and techno/dubstep/whatever the fuck that was had no business being played in a soccer stadium. I was only half paying attention and it was still really rough.
• Robert Lewandowski got the tournament off on the right note, heading the hosts Poland in front of Greece in front of a raucous crowd at the National Stadium in Warsaw. The soon to be Manchester United player(?) is a great bet to win the scoring title if his Poland side can recover and make it out of their group.
• Dimitris Salpigidis was an unlikely hero for the Greeks, changing the tide of the game completely and almost single handedly propelling the Greeks to a win had it not been for Giorgios Karagounis missing a penalty kick.
• I've no idea how Georgios Samaras has managed a semi successful career at both the club and national level. I've yet to see a game from him in any jersey where he has been anything other than poor and on top of that his scoring record is atrocious having played over 330 games at various levels only scoring 77 goals. His scoring record at the international and top club level (as in the top 3 European leagues) is even worse at 15 goals in 110 appearances. His glazed over reaction after completely miss hitting a decent chances early on in the second half said a lot about his career, it was almost as if he realized at that moment that he has no business playing at this level or any level for that matter.
• The Polish chances greatly increased after Russia shook off some early nerves to dismantle the Czech Republic 4-1. It could have been more as Aleksandr Kerzhakov wasted some very good chances for the Russians.
• Poor Kerzhakov. He got into some great positions but he just couldn't find the net and it was clearly frustrating him throughout the match. Conversely Roman Pavlyuchenko came on late and scored a phenomenal solo goal. Kerzhakov will still be preferred though due to his Zenit St. Petersburg connections with Pav being the first offensive choice off the bench.
• The notion that Andrei Arshavin meant to play that pass to Roman Shirokov is hilarious. It was clearly meant for Kerzhakov and his reaction after the goal shows as much.
• Vaclav Pilar was the only bright spot for the Czech's. He was the only attacking player that provided any threat for the Czech's and was rewarded with a goal. Wolfsburg have already wrapped him up though which is good news for them should his tournament continue to trend upwards.
• Hearing announcers say Dick Advocaat will never not be funny, because it sounds like they're saying Dick advocate. I'm childish, yo.

USMNT vs. Antigua and Barbuda

The USMNT beat minnows Antigua and Barbuda 3-1 today to kick off world cup qualifying. A boring result to kick off head coach Jurgen Klinsmann's first real test as the boss. The stats were lopsided, they always were against such a poor team, but the US really should have won by more in such a competitive region. Unfortunately the play tonight was much closer to the 0-0 draw against Canada when fans were hoping for a repeat of the 5-1 trashing of Scotland.

• The US looked extremely tired towards the end and it almost allowed A&B to score even more goals. Those friendlies, whilst helpful and entertaining, could end up costing the US at the back end of this "mini tournament" as they will have finish off away in Guatemala.
• Jose Torres at left back was a neat selection but it didn't pay off in the end as it was clear that he isn't a wide player. He struggled to not only beat his man but also didn't link up effectively with any of the forwards and many of his crosses were poor. He is now injured though and Klinsmann will have to look elsewhere for the game in Guatemala.
• Geoff Cameron has to play in Guatemala. Klinsmann needs to give him the chance and expose him to the rough away atmosphere now. He's undoubtedly the most enticing defensive prospect for the US, especially with Tim Ream being played further forward by Bolton manager Owen Coyle and Omar Gonzalez going down long term, and needs to be treated as such.
• Jermaine Jones shouldn't play in an advanced role against such a poor team. He doesn't have the ability to unlock defenses with his passing and rarely does it with his runs forward. He's also way more mistake prone in this position which causes him to turn the ball over and pick up unnecessary bookings. He should be playing the role that Maurice Edu is currently occupying as the holding player in front of the back 4, a much more limited role that he would excel in with his work rate and rough play. Jose Torres and USMNT outsider Sacha Kljestan should both get looks alongside stalwart Michael Bradley, they would bring a more forward thinking attitude against these minnows that set out in very defensive set ups and would help break them down much faster. 
• Onyewu was burned again way too easily. It looks to be the end of his career has a first choice player on the team sheet after having his career derailed by injuries.
• Landon Donovan had a hand in all three goals, he had also created 7 more chances and completed more passes than any other player in the final third in the three previous games. Even with Clint Dempsey's goal haul for Fulham it is still Donovan who pulls the strings to the US attack.