Euro 2000 Redux
My friends cannot wake up in time to play, or at least most didn't intend to. So I won't get to see my half-German tak giu kaki strutting around in his Nationalmannschaft jersey... just yet. In the papers, Sumiko Tan and her tips on succeeding in the workplace gleaned from watching the World Cup. How insightful.So, we are left with four, in fixtures reminiscent of Euro 2000. Italy vs. the hosts, France vs. Portugal. The Azzurri may well douse home fire as they did six years ago, but Germany are unlikely to miss five penalties like the Dutch.
There have been complaints about dour stalemates and the general dearth of goal-mouth opportunities in the knockout stage. This is hardly surprising, given what's at stake. Also for some reason, World Cup Finals held on European soil tend to be more defence dominated. Personally, save for the lackadaisical England-Ecuador and Ukraine-Tunisia encounters (may have been others, but these were the worst offenders), I haven't been overly bored. Then again, I'm one of those 'football purists' who actually found the 2003 Champions League Final between Juventus and AC Milan a fascinating spectacle. Everyone appreciates a well-marshalled defence, not too many people enjoy viewing two opposing sets in action. But if you've ever had to hold the ground for most of the game against a technically superior team on a full-size pitch (and ultimately triumphed), perhaps you might develop a greater appreciation of solid defensive play. That said, stout defending is but means to an end, i.e. victory come the final whistle. Ultra-conservative tactics do little but alienate.
posted by KynTheMan @ 1:37 PM
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