I keep thinking that my life slows down when Summer rolls in and the kid gets out of school. No, I am a foolish man. Issues and projects pop up, and kid get sick, but through it all I kept watching matches, or watching highlights late at night on YouTube. Either way, this is what I saw…
Day 8
Slovakia v Ukraine
Nice flash of aggressiveness in Ukraine to fight back and win this one.
Poland v Austria
Austria was in control of this match, and I couldn’t help but feel bad for Poland.
Netherlands v France
Two heavy weights going at it. I couldn’t shake the thought that France doesn’t have the players to make up for Mbappe’s absence due to his broken nose.
Day 9
Georgia v Czechia
I wasn’t expecting much from these teams, but it was a fun match to watch.
Turkey v Portugal
Portugal was not messing around, and Ronaldo played like a team leader out there – unselfish play, pulling the defense away from the ball.
Belgium v Romania
Hey! Belgium showed up and played like the Red Devils.
Day 10
Switzerland v Germany
Germany was on autopilot for this – they could have played harder. That’s not to say that Switzerland wasn’t out to win, but Germany didn’t look dominate.
Scotland v Hungary
Poor Scotland. Poor, poor Scotland. This match broke my heart for the Scots, but you want drama in a tournament, and that’s what happened. Poor Scotland.
Day 11
Albania v Spain
Spain is here to win. Anything less than the Cup will be a failure to them.
Croatia v Italy
Another super dramatic heartbreaker. Croatia did everything right up until the last thirty seconds, and they let Italy take this from them. This is what makes the Group Stage so much fun; it’s not over until it’s over.
Day 12
France v Poland
With Mbappe not at 100%, he is still crazy dangerous out there on the pitch, but again I was left feeling that he doesn’t have the support behind him. And again, Poland played well, but just couldn’t get over the hill.
Netherlands v Austria
Wow! This was a match, and another reason why the Euro Cup is so completely exciting. I knew the Dutch were always contenders, but Austria (who I am not familiar with) who had some luck, skill, and played like the wanted it more.
England v Slovenia
Well… England won the group. The Three Lions played better, but they still don’t look like a solid team out there. Getting a little worried that they will be bounced in the first round of the knockout.
Denmark v Serbia
A pretty solid draw. Serbia fought for it, and Denmark wasn’t messing around either. Another really fun match in the tournament.
Day 13
Ukraine v Belgium
Belgium played to not lose, and Ukraine tried.
Slovakia v Romania
This is the only match I didn’t get a chance to see, nor catch the highlights. Sorry guys, no offense.
Czechia v Turkey
This Match was CRAZY! There should be a rule that when a match starts to spiral out of control, that the game takes a 15-minute timeout, and a new official is brought out on the field. I know the ref is getting the majority of the blame for this match being a dumpster fire, but what I saw was two desperate teams out there willing to do anything to win – they both had chips on their shoulders.
Georgia v Portugal
At least the Group Stage ended on a high note, with Georgia achieving a major upset. I will agree with Ronaldo that he was completely manhandled and fouled relentlessly, and never got a call. That was some bad officiating. Yet, I don’t want to take anything away from Georgia’s win, handedly, over a Portugal team that should have crushed them.
Overall Thoughts:
And we are now to the Knock Out Round. I still feel like Spain and Germany are playing the best, and there is a good chance they will meet on July 5th in the Quarterfinals. France and Belgium looks like a good match up, and I have no proof of this, but I have a hankerin’ that Switzerland and Italy could also be exciting. As for England, the team I am supporting, I have a feeling that they will be upset by Slovakia.
Matthew Groff 