Tag: Portugal

  • Euro Cup 2024 – A Casual Fan’s Impressions – Round of 16 Day 3 and Day 4

    Euro ‘24 is behaving better than I thought it would. The Group Stage was highly entertaining, and on the whole, the Round of 16 has been the dramatic sporting event I was hoping for. Now, I recap:

    Day 3

    France v Belgium

    I will say, I am still not very impressed with France. The match was fine, and I enjoyed it, but honestly, I am still not seeing a reason why France will win the whole thing.

    Portugal v Slovenia

    This was Great! When I think about about Big Time, Large Marque International Football, this is the type of match I hope for. It seemed like no mater what Ronaldo tried, it just wouldn’t work. I’m not a huge fan of his, but I do admit that he is one of the best, ever. This is most likely his last dance, and I did feel like he was putting it all out there. But Slovenia had a defensive answer for everything that Portugal threw at them. Except when it came to the shoot out when Diogo Costa, the Portugal goal keeper, had three of the most impressive stops the world has even seen. Never, never, never has anyone ever stopped three shoot out shots in a row. It was simply amazing! This match was a classic.

    Day 4

    Romania v Netherlands

    The Dutch were all business and dispatched Romania. Not much drama here, and the Netherlands wants to make sure we haven’t forgot about them.

    Austria v Turkey

    Another fun match to watch. I did think going into this that Austria was going to win… But Turkey played a solid match.

    Thoughts:

    Well, I still think Germany Spain today will be the match of the tourament, and the winner will most likely win the whole thing. But, Portugal may just have elevated themselves into a contender. Looking forward to this weekend.

  • Euro Cup 2024 – Day 8 to Day 13 – A Casual Fan’s Impressions

    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.

  • Euro Cup 2024 – Day 5 to Day 7 – A Casual Fan’s Impressions

    I did the deed, and gave in and paid for FS1 on Wednesday. I’m not proud of it. I feel like I was pushed into a corner for FOX Corp. Yet it is bringing me joy being able to watch everything. SO what I have learned is that I am a very weak man who easily gives in to his passions.

    Day 5

    Turkey v Georgia

    I only got to see the highlights of this on YouTube. Turkey looks like a good team…

    Portugal v Czechia

    Let’s see if Ronaldo can win himself a Euro Cup. I don’t see why Portugal won’t make it out of the Group Stage, so I am looking forward to this being the main story for the rest of the tournament; Will Ronaldo win the Cup?

    Day 6

    Croatia v Albania

    Now this was the type of match I expect out of the Euro Cup. This was fun, dramatic, played well, with no one giving up. I didn’t think much of Albania, but they sure are determined to make the most of their tournament.

    Germany v Hungary

    Germany wants to win, and expects nothing less. If they don’t win the Cup, no matter how well they do, it will be viewed as a failure. Oh, and Hungary was there, too.

    Scotland v Switzerland

    Dear lord, this one was fun to watch. Scotland just won’t give up, and they held on for dear life. It seemed like Switzerland had their number, but time and time again, the Swiss couldn’t stay onside, and had goals disallowed. Great match!

    Day 7

    Slovenia v Serbia

    Underway currently, and tied at 0-0.

    Denmark v England

    Looking forward to this one. I hope England’s defense is better today.

    Spain v Italy

    Sadly, I think I will miss this one, as I have errands to run with my kid this afternoon. It should be an epic match. But I can also see Spain kicking the crap outta Italy.

    (There might be updates… We’ll see…)

  • Women’s World Cup: Team USA is Out

    First of all, we in the States have been spoiled by the legacy of this team. No one wins forever, and that expectation is untenable. It was bound to happen, and there will be a Cup where the USWNT will get bounced in the Group Stage. Maybe even a year when we don’t qualify. All of that is possible.

    The reality is that this is a team in transition. Maybe we were all to hyped up to notice. There was a gulf between the veterans and the rookies. As time goes on, that gap will disappear, and Team USA will return to its top caliber form.

    I was traveling at the time on Sunday, so I only caught the tail end of the match. What I can say with full honesty is that Team USA doesn’t suck: the world is now a more competitive place. They conceded a single goal in the Tournament, and none on Sunday, so defense isn’t the issue. This was a matter of scoring production which Team USA just couldn’t get going. Sweden was USA’s equal and when teams like that meet on big stages, the smallest mistake or opportunity makes all the difference.

    It was heartbreaking, and and all those other clichés, to watch this match. But the die had been cast for this team after the Portugal match, and sometimes in sports you just cannot change your stars no matter how hard you try. But try they did, and this was a good squad. They just met their match. And in sports, you want it be be a challenge. If not, then it becomes predictable, and that’s not fun.

    As for the rest of the Cup; I’m calling Japan v England in the final. Odds are I’ll be wrong about that call. But in my defense, I did get the Team USA one right.

  • Women’s World Cup: Day 13

    It was close to being very “Unlucky #13” today – Team USA was inches away from being eliminated from the Group Stage. Portugal almost had this match, and Team USA looks beatable. There is no sense dancing around it, that target on their backs is very big and very heavy. If it turns out that Sweden is the team that USA faces in the Round of 16, then this could be the end of the Tournament for America.

    I am often wrong when it comes to football, and my predictions are wildly off base. Yet, Team USA did a very slow, grinding slide in their Group Stage. The win against Vietnam was the best match that they played, and even in that, they didn’t seem very aggressive. Everyone knew the Netherlands was going to play them hard, so no one was surprised at the draw. But Portugal should have been a win, and if nothing else, they should have at least got one ball in the back of the net. I’ve watched many big teams in big tournament struggle in the group stage. From what I’ve seen, to be successful in the Knockout Stage, you needed to have corrected your issues in the Group Stage. Hoping that the Group Stage “sacred you straight” never materializes. You need to leave the Group confident, not wounded. Team USA is wounded. And they won’t have Rose Lavelle in the next match due to yellow cards, so that just makes it more challenging.

    That having been said… I’m keeping my eye on Japan and England. They are playing hard, take no prisoners football, and they want it. I’m not giving up on Team USA, but if they do get past Sweden, then they most likely will have to play Japan. So… If I can have a Plan B wish for this Cup; an England Japan final would be pretty cool. Just throwing that out there.

    Anyway, see you on Sunday at 5am.