Portugal 2 – 3 Germany
Last night was a tale of missed-placed passes, missed-timed tackles and missed directed shots; a general lack of awareness, fitness and youth. I’m not talking about Deco, Simao, Gomes, Ferrreira, Carvalho you understand, this was the 5-a-side at Honywood School Sports Hall in Coggeshall that I struggled through for an hour and a bit, though it might also apply. I only mention it as this meant I was only able to see the second-half of what my 10 year-old said was a decent enough match, and it is on his opinion that some of this relies.
So last night’s game was “great”, the referee “doesn’t like Ronaldo, does he”, “likes his cards”, “it was a penalty to Portugal”, “a push on the Mr Man at the back for Portugal” and “how did the ref not see that stamp/push/foul?” Why didn’t “the goalie run faster for that/get in the box cos they need to score don’t they”. “Dad, today at school there was a fight and it took three of us to pull him off the other one and I don’t know why they were fighting cos he didn’t do anything and I still haven’t got my ball back that went over the fence into the hedge in the garden”. This last might not have been about the game but I had my head down scribbling notes as fast as he was talking so forgive me if some of this is jumbled.
From what I saw the Germans did what the Germans do when it comes down to the serious stages of a tournament. The Dutch may also rue the day they decided to be honest and reprieve Italy, as they too may not be pretty but can be effective in closing out games.
That’s not to say that Germany didn’t play football last night because they did, the first goal was the sort of pass and move attack that every youth coach tries to describe to his boys, made flesh. Two or three quick one-twos, a low hard bending cross and the striker cutting in front of defender and goalie to get anything on it and into the back of the net. The two free-kicks, poor-defending apart, were well executed and job done. Alan Green said that the game showed “only a fool writes Germany off” and I can only imagine therefore that he’d napped Portugal before the start.
The game was notable also for perhaps a poor career decision by Ballack. Having a good game in front of your new boss is not so bad, but knocking him out of his last international competition is bound to have you collecting balls, bibs and cones after training for a year I suspect.
So Germany got through to their first Euro semi-final since that tournament about which we do not speak, to meet the winner of tonight’s game between Croatia and Turkey.
In the main, hearts ruled minds as only two of you got any points last night, while Ann did herself no favours by predicting a 5 – 5 result!