The official Euro 2008 thread!

Let's discuss everything about Euro 2008 here. I anyone has objections with creating this new thread instead of the Football Channel thread (*www.thinkdigit.com/forum/showthread.php?t=44414), then mods, please delete this thread.

Alright!!!! Here are the groups and the countries involved in Euro 2008 (we'll miss u, England):

GROUP A

Switzerland
Czech Republic
Portugal
Turkey

GROUP B

Austria
Croatia
Germany
Poland

GROUP C

Netherlands
Romania
Italy
France

GROUP D

Greece
Sweden
Spain
Russia

The official site: *www.euro2008.uefa.com

England..

gerrard,lampard..we will miss you..

I think netherlands can be the dark house...with greece winning last time..anything is possible..esp with van persie playing..

cannavaro out from the Italy tam due to ankle injury...

^^Yup RVP will win the golden boot :))

Looking forward to a Holland vs. Portugal match like last WC

Go France(Arsenal) W000000T

Ill bet for Germany and Spain.

England out why?They do not have good strikers.
Rooney is good but he is not a goal scorer and he is bad in air.
You see the England squads and would agree with me.

^^i agreee...
but i feel walcott and lennon are not given enough oppurtunitites to prove themselves..

england's midfield is the best in Europe..but it harly clicks..

beckham,lampard,gerrard,joe cole

defense-terry,cole also pack a punch..

But they need potent strikers...

France is not much without Zidane though..Ribery is too inconsistent..

yes some say walcott is not that good and not Wenger choice but i feel this is not the time to comment negative on Walcott as he is/was having no chance in the club.

who is the most consistent players?i need to think.

Benzema is the man to watched.He would be my choice to pair with Henry.

amd64_man2005 said:
but i feel walcott and lennon are not given enough oppurtunitites to prove themselves..

england's midfield is the best in Europe..but it harly clicks..

beckham,lampard,gerrard,joe cole

defense-terry,cole also pack a punch..

But they need potent strikers...

I rooted for them during the World Cup too, they have one of the best line ups on paper but they hardly matter when they have to.

Clichy and Sagna not in French squad *votefortheworst.com/forum/images/smilies/zrobbed.png

Even Trezeguet is not included for France. Flamini just made it due to Patrick Vieira's injury. Their manager is playing a dangerous game, leaving out so many players .

Trezeguet has become too old..now most managers are voching for "youth"..lol

i would have liked a Euro-America cup... cooll...

hey i was thinking of starting this thread... but decide against it becuz of the football channel thread..

anyway i'll be supporting Netherlands, Portugal & maybe France..

@arsenal_gunners
RVP for golden boot !! u must be jokin he will be injured half the time
i want the dutch to win... but RVP for golden boot is a dream..

u do have a case for arsenal defenders not being in the squad... but france does have equally good defenders in the team..& the team can only have a certain no. of defs.

The coach seems to go for experience rather than youth...

amd64_man2005 said:
Trezeguet has become too old..now most managers are voching for "youth"..lol

Trezeguet, Henry and Anelka are of the same age (29-31 sumthing) group. While both Anelka and Henry have had less than outstanding seasons, TrezaGOL has been banging them in for fun in the Serie-A. Still, the other two make it and he doesn't. As for youth, Ben Arfa, Sagna, Flamini were all culled from the squad, while Thuram wasn't, despite being almost twice their age. Raymond Domenech has a certain ill-feeling against some players and he's not afraid to show it.

Which channel is showing Euro?

^ ^ ^ ESPN/Star Sports.

Flammini had a good season for Arsenal..Henry well..but henry is like a sachin tendulkar in France..you cant chuck him out just like that...someone had to pay..Trezeguet seemed to be the option..more so because he hadn't played in the 2006 world cup..they more or less retained their squad of the world cup finals...

Now that Vieira is injured, Flamini IS in the squad. But he should have been there from the start. I was thinking of posting the entire squads for each nation, but it'll stretch the page to a great length

Here are the Indian timings for the Euro 2008 games.

Arsenal_Gunners said:
^^Yup RVP will win the golden boot
Looking forward to a Holland vs. Portugal match like last WC
Go France(Arsenal) W000000T

Arsenal is actually an English team not French...

escape7 said:
Arsenal is actually an English team not French...

Darn it!!! You didn't get it!!!! *gigasmilies.googlepages.com/24.gif

Um he is not wrong either

Arsenal_Gunners said:
Um he is not wrong either

Theoretically, he's 100% correct. But u know why I busted my gut laughing!!! FRANCE(nal) anyone? Nudge-nudge, wink-wink!! *gigasmilies.googlepages.com/3.gif

LOLzzzz....

WOOOOOOOOOOOOT ARSENAL!!!!

but no france...

i vouch for netherlands...

My personal vote goes to Germany.

In terms of Group of death, I would very well go with Group C.

Viva Portugala!!!!

*en.fantasy.euro2008.uefa.com/

play fantasy football...

This should be merged

I'm rooting for Germany! They never fail to turn up at major tournaments, no matter how poor they might be playing before that!!

Glory Hunter,no wonder you are supporting Chelsea too

Arsenal_Gunners said:
Glory Hunter,no wonder you are supporting Chelsea too

*gigasmilies.googlepages.com/24.gif

FYI, I'm a big fan of Michael Ballack, Miroslav Klose and Oliver Kahn (he has retired though). I reckon I don't need to prove my fanhood to anyone. I don't want to get drawn into an endless debate about the reasons for supporting a club, otherwise I hv a LOT to say about 'fans' of the other big clubs. *gigasmilies.googlepages.com/10.gif

zOMG,
the swiss are quite heavily attacking, and r well spirited too

1st yellow card of the tour to magnin

w000t

against the play of the game,
the czechs scored
by Sverkos

FINAL SCORE:

Switzerland 0-1 Czech Republic

man..the swiss missed a sitter..jarkovic i guess..should be hanged for missing that one..

It was Johan Vonlanthen who hit the bar!! He should have scored. Oh well, that's called fate!!

Czech Republic defeat Switzerland 1-0 in first Euro 2008 match…
The first match of the Euro 2008 tournament went Live at 9:30 today, and Czech Republic managed to scoop one in to win the first match against Switzerland.

It didn’t look this way in the beginning however as just five minutes into the game, Alexander Frei picked up the ball in midfield off a Czech mistake and hammered a low shot just inches off the post. picks up the ball in midfield off a Czech mistake. He hammers a shot low which is just inches off the post....Full writeup

GROUP A (GAME 2) FINAL SCORE:

Turkey 0-2 Portugal (Pepe, Mereiles)

abh1shek said:
^ ^ ^ ESPN/Star Sports.

cuf! No ESPN/Star here.

abh1shek said:
FINAL SCORE:

Switzerland 0-1 Czech Republic

The Swiss did not get two penalty decisions their way, one of them a clear handball. :neutral:

They were unlucky too, one of their shots did hit the crossbar.

abh1shek said:
GAME 2 FINAL SCORE:

Turkey 0-2 Portugal (Pepe, Mereiles)

Saw the 1st half, Ronaldo's free kick was in, except for the Turkish goalkeeper. :neutral:

portugal played well yesterday .. the score could have 3-0/ 4-0 on any other day... but good start for Portugal..and as for Czech Republic i would say they escaped a lycky win over well playing Swiss..... they missed Frei...

Prtugal win.. a better start than 2004.. Nuno gomes played well.. had an assist & hit the crossbar ....

Croatia leading Austria 1-0 at HT through Modric's penalty.
What are the betting odds of Austria winning the whole thing

GROUP B (GAME 1) FINAL SCORE:

Austria 0-1 Croatia (Modric 4' [P])

germany cracking it..great game of footbal..shame that poland couldnt capitalize on the chances..Germany are sure favs to win the Euro this time round..

GROUP B (GAME 2) FINAL SCORE:

Germany 2-0 Poland

(GER: Podolski 20', Podolski 72')

Heil die Nationalmannschaft!!!

Thanks abh1shek for the quick updates

so, they actually WON a game since 2000

GROUP C (GAME 1) FINAL SCORE:

Romania 0-0 France

Neither an upset, nor a win for France, as many would hv predicted.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

GROUP C (GAME 2) FINAL SCORE:

Netherlands 3-0 Italy

(NED: v. Nistelrooij 26', Sneijder 31', v. Bronckhorst 79')

Holland absolutely destroyed the world champions!! Great game!!!

sneijder was brilliant..the goal simply rocked Italy....nistelrooij's goal was a bit controversial..but...all the same..Netherlands rock..hoping for a germany vs netherlands semi...

GROUP D (GAME 1) FINAL SCORE:

Spain 4-1 Russia

(ESP: Villa 20', 44', 76', Fabregas 90'+2)

(RUS: Pavlyuchenko 86')

Villa got his hattrick in emphatic fashion! Fabregas got his first international goal for Spain. Spain have begun their campaign in style. I just hope they don't get knocked out in the quarterfinals this time around... AGAIN!!!

^

at your comment

Fab scored W000000t

hullap said:
^ at your comment

What else can I say? They're such a fine team, but they ALWAYS fall apart at the slightest hint of pressure!!! It's SO frustrating!!!

GROUP D (GAME 2) FINAL SCORE:

Greece 0-2 Sweden

(SWE: Ibrahimovic 67', Hansson 72')

Damn!! Greece bored the hell out of me! The first half was an absolute pain to behold, with three Greek defenders passing the ball among themselves in their own half!!!

Bad start for the reigning European champions!

Wonderful win by Portugal yesterday. Ronaldo back at his best with 1 goal and 1 assist. Portugal winning 3-1 against the Czechs.

In the other game yesterday, the co-hosts, Swiss were knocked out of Euro with Turkey winning 2-1 against them. They could not hold on after scoring first in the rain-soaked match. :neutral:

N

^ 3-1 ..wow.i watched the game till 11pm and they were 2-1.
great win

D

It was amazing to see 2 goals in 17:00 minutes

I didn't watch yesterday's matches, had an exam today....

~snipped~

^^lol,then we dont need to watch the matches,do we?

and yea ronaldo scored an amazing goal,

.

co-hosts swiss knocked out within 5 days of starting competition.lol.Well,happy hosting.Portugal made it to quarters,do and die match for turkey and Czech republic,whoever wins moves on.

Great game yesterday too, with the Croatians winning 2-1 against the mighty Germans. :neutral:

. The 79th minute strike by Podolski was not enough to earn them a draw. Time for Lehmann to retire, perhaps?

In the other late kick-off the Austrians and Polish played a 1-1 draw with the Austrians scoring in injury time penalty.

portugal ftw!!

RVP Is Back On The Scene

Holland is hammering france I see!

Netherlands rule....sniejder was brilliant..robben was ecstatic....nistelrooj was brilliant....persie was classy...kuyt was special..netherlands...take a bow..

I have a feeling it is going to be Netherlands vs Portugal at the finals. Both teams have so far shown they are serious about their game...

thread seeems dead
come on people

Italy won... france is out

Sad to see this thread dying,Euro is going fantastic.

yup it is

Dutch Ftw!!!!

damn my cable operator
no reception since days

oh here is the Euro thread ...

i was wondering why no one talked abt Euro in the Football thread.
lemme start ...

ITALYYYYYYYYYYY ITALY .... Toni will fire all cylinders frm the QFs. Pirlo n Gattuso will be missed

Its going to be Italy or Germany who will win the cup. Holland will be KOed in the semis

^^^are you drunk??

Italy without pirlo and gatusso facing spain??LOL

^^die die die you noobs,

portugal ftw!!!

go ronaldo go.

yea portugal too..i want a netherlands vs portugal final .. and ronaldo injured after the end of the match..

with the dutch winning 4-0

it will definitely not be a netherlands vs portugal final. Ambrosini n Camoranesi have to play well for Italy to win against Spain

Definitely going to be a netherlands vs Portugal finals. At least they are going to meet somewhere in the whole scheme of things...

^^cant be except the finals

ambrosini sucks...and no set piece specialist for italy now with pirlo out..

So who wins today's quarters? Any predictions?

Germany

Germany 2-1

Hehe, so Portugal might get knocked out today.

J

Is torsten frings actually playing today? i heard he busted a rib and will be out. He is crucial to Germany. Without him, i'd expect Portugal to dominant this game

^^nor frings nor podolski..shwinstieger will start..

Germany FTW!

Noooo! 2-0 already in favour of Germany! This can't happen... Common Christiano!

^^ Its Germany 2-1 Portugal now......Just one more goal needed by Germany....Germany FTW!

Nice to see Podolski playing today.....he can get us the magic goal...

Haha.....Ballack strikes...

3-1 now.......

Germany won....Next match Croatia vs Turkey....

Its all over for Portugal

Big Match and as expected Ronaldo went missing.

The_Devil_Himself said:
^^die die die you noobs,

portugal ftw!!!

go ronaldo go.

Ronaldo.....who?

i did say it wont be a netherlands vs Portugal final

germany won....
tomorrow croatia will win 3-1.
and
40% chances of Russia pulling off an upset. It cud be 4-2 in favor of Russia if Arshavin plays.

Damn..missed some easy chances..pepe missed a sitter..ronaldo was out of touch completely..

iinfi said:
tomorrow croatia will win 3-1.

Well, don't underestimate Turkey........They're a good team.

I'm on Turkey's side tomorrow....The winner of tomorrow's game will play with Germany in the semi final.

Things can be better for Turkey if Emre (captain) plays tomorrow...he has been out of the tournament since the first match against Portugal dude to injury..

dreamcatcher said:
ronaldo was out of touch completely..

You can always expect him to flop in big matches....

I just hope russia does not pull out an upset..

gagandeep said:
Well, don't underestimate Turkey........They're a good team.

hmm... good team .. but i dont expect them to break thru the Croatian defense more than once

iinfi said:
hmm... good team .. but i dont expect them to break thru the Croatian defense more than once

I know Coratia are in a very good form but sometimes underdogs 'baazi maar lete hain'....

I actually want a bit weak opponent against Germany in the Semi Final........

Hey isnt there any SPAIN fan??? see there team guys its technically the BEST!!!! its gonna be spain vs netherlands finals!!!!

WTF was that :shock:

Croatia scores in the 119th minute to take the lead but Turkey equalizes in the last added minute of extra time.Penalties.I have a feeling that Turkey might win this now they have survived 120 mins.
:shock:

TURKEY WON 3-1 ON PENALTIES :shock:

Who would have thought that when they were 1-0 down in the last minute of ET.

OMFG.....Turkey won....Watched the game completely and I was about to just leave the matche when Croatia had striked in the 119th minute but Turkey FTW! Senturk equalised in the 120+2th minute....

And Turkey won 3-1 in the penalties...

Rustu is a great keeper - one of my favourites....Tuncay played extremely well today.

Turan and Emre Asik won't be playing against Germany so things may get difficult for Turkey but I've no problems if they defeat Germany in the semi finals.

Yes! Yes! Yes! Suck it Croatia!

i cant believe Croatia lost this game ...
cant believe they cud'nt score in regulation 90 mins ...

btw there was no drama in the game until late into second half of extra time!!
Bet germany will beat them in 90 mins in the semis.

^After what they(Germany) did to Portugal.

cablewallah pulled the plug ... no ESPN here ... damn ****ing b@s****

Russia playing good today.....Pavlyuchenko strikes...

OMFG This is the best Euro ever....Many late equilizers...Nistlerooy scores in the 86th minute....

RVN equalizes with 4 mins to go. :shock:

Torbinski scored for Russia....Its 2-1 now....Lets see if there is anymore end drama.......

3-1 all over for the dutch..russia played really well..i wouldnt be surprized if they win the cup..

Haha...Russia strikes again....3-1...Game over for Netherlands....

Holland Owned

sad.. but the dutch lose

must v been a good match ... i cud not watch .... ESPN down

(
did Russia play better than they did in their previous game against Swedes, or was it kinda same?
did they miss chances?? wat abt holland??? did they miss easy chances?
plz let me know

Too bad I fell asleep. Suddenly though I've lost interest in the Euro tournament. Two of my favourite teams — Portugal and Netherlands — have gone out. Sucks.

Russia played far better than The Dutch

and they deserve to be out of Euros.
Russia were more offemsive than The Orange Brigade and were defended far better. Had Russia taken their chances in the mormal time itself the scoreline would have been more humiliating for The Dutch.
Arshavin & Pavlyuchenko pawned Holland

Italy to win tonight.
Possible Italy vs. Germany final.

^^+1

i wanted exactly that ... 2 of my favorite teams

@rahimveron thanks for the insight

I would however be fun to put the 'big boys' to shame. Turkey vs Russia finals FTW!!!

^^Lol you were a fan of Portugal and Holland not so long ago :lol:

3 Group winners eliminated. So, Spain's next?

Andrea Pirlo and Gattuso are banned for this match.Still I can't see Italy losing.

For guys who aren't getting ESPN(like me

) tonight's match is on DD.

Spain won 4-2 on Penalties.....

GO SPAIN!!!!!!!!!!!! Spain r the BEST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes Spain FTW!!!

MUAHAHAHAHAH Italy were playing for penalties and bored the fans to death but went down on penalties themselves.
Fabregas winning it for Spain is the icing on the cake

now hope it will be spain vs germany finals!!! which spain wud WIN!!!!

Spain win.. 4-2 on penalties..
looks like they will do it this time

dont count out russia..if pvalyuchenko and ashravin get goin..pain is in for a tough night..
Kolodine will miss the mathc tho..russia will miss his right footers..

Probability of winning

1.Germany
2.Russia
3.Spain
4.Turkey

NO ESPN here yday as well ... i dint expect Italy to lose

Arsenal_Gunners said:
Andrea Pirlo and Gattuso are banned for this match.Still I can't see Italy losing.

For guys who aren't getting ESPN(like me) tonight's match is on DD.

was it on DD??? i tuned DD national n DD sports .... it was not there !!

to the best of my knowledge only the Final of Euro and Champions League and from Q/F of soccer WC can be shown on terrestrial channel in this part of the world.
others are not free to air.

^^Yes it was,coverage started at 12.Even the 1st Q/F was on DD National.Remaining 3 matches will be on DD too.
Hopefully Ill arrange something before PL season starts

But if you missed yesterday's match it is good because it was crap(thanks to the world champions)

hey man .. plz tell me where it was telecast?? DD Sports or DD national or DD India ..which one?
i missed the last 2 matches.
will look @ Big TV rates when it is launched and then go for one of the 3 DTH services

national

hey guys to
www.goalcentre.com
here u'll find all football matches wid online live streaming n also highlights!!!!! as i dont have cable i watch live matches here!!! dis site rocks!!!!!!!

The whole world lost the TV feed lol.Turkey giving Germany a good fight.

Turkey comes back again from 2-1 down thanks to a Lehmann classic.

Great match
OMG Germany scores in last few seconds

Germany are through. 3-2 win,what an awesome match.

I think Germany thought Turkey wud not turn up @ the venue coz of injuries!!
Germany played poorly... experimenting with formations @ the semi-final.
and wat abt the pictures!! they say its coz of lightning.
cud be some hackers handiwork also. knocking down the servers of the broadcasters!! :d

If there wouldn't have been much injuries and suspensions for Turkey, I think they were capable enough of winning the Euro.....

Turkey were missing Tuncay, Turan & Emre Asik (defender) and all were the strength of the Turkish team. Emre (captain) was also out of the tournament since the 1st match due to injury.....A weak Turkey also gave Germany a good fight.

Anyhow...Germany FTW for the Final..

i didnt get the sucky hindi commentry yesterday

anyways, turkey can play good, but they gotta be resilient to win

Just v a gut feeling Spain will win this comfortably

Russia owned by Spain.....Spain won 3-0.

Germany vs. Spain........I'm on Germany's side.....

Screw Germany, Spain will get my support. I sooo wanted a Russia - Turkey final though

i take spain's side.... want to watch ballack cry again

gagandeep said:
...I'm on Germany's side.....

I am on Spain's side.

Spain FTW.See what happens when you play Fabregas from the start.(thanks to unfortunate villa)

hope we get a good match to see

Germany to beat Spain 2-1 in the final!!! Heil Die Nationalmannschaft!!!

^^^ Spain to beat Germany 2-1 in the final.

Frings is the key. If Frings doesnt play i dont see a German win!!
n i hope they dont play the crap 4-2-3-1 formation which they played in the semis. that left gaping holes in the mid-field.
they sud revert to the 4-1-4-1 with Frings holding!!
they sud play Gomez or Kevin Kurányi in place of Klose even though Klose has scored in the tournament twice.
hope it gets over in 90 mins

Final ka mazaa tabh hi aayega jabh kum se kum 4 goals hon aur end mein koi si bhi ek team 1 goal maar k 3-2 se jeet jaaye......

I think Spain will play a cautious game, coz they're in the final of a major competition for the first time, while many of the current German team have been to a world cup final as well, so they know all about the pressure. Germany will win with goals from Ballack & Podolski!!!

Fabregas

Arsenal_Gunners said:
Fabregas

Alright, if u say so!! Germany to win 2-1 (GER: Ballack, Podolski)(ESP:Fabregas)

No, Fab will score 2 and provide assist in other goal.
3-2 spain

The Spanish will get overrun on the flanks by Podolski and Schweinsteiger!! Ballack would not want to lose another final in a month!!!

Ballack injured!! calf injury .... missed training Friday n Sat

Germany are now out!! surely !!

Aw man!!!!

He missed the WC 2002 final due to suspension, now he'll miss the Euro 2008 final due to injury!!! That's not fair!!!!

Its Germany's time to win!

*www.paddypower.com/bet?action=go_t...v_type_id=9821&ev_oc_grp_ids=63197&bir_index=

nice odds
there is no forecast of bad weather at all. thn how cme these odds?
blackout cud be handiwork of hackers as i had previously said!! :d

expecting a gr8 match

abh1shek said:
Alright, if u say so!! Germany to win 2-1 (GER: Ballack, Podolski)(ESP:Fabregas)

Hey, you missed out Schweinsteiger....

Schweinsteiger will provide assists for both of Germany's goals!

Vyasram said:
*www.paddypower.com/bet?action=go_t...v_type_id=9821&ev_oc_grp_ids=63197&bir_index=

I am betting on Lehmann has dropped it

Fab and Ballack both starting.

Ballack trying his best to get himself sent off.

wat crap germany are playing!!!

Muhahahahaa
Germany Pwn3d Loooool

Poor Michael Ballack

What Lehmann did was actually correct......He tried to come forward to increase the angle of the shot.....It was actually the defender's mistake who couldn't block Torres from chipping the ball up.....

Anyways, Germany played crap today.....Spain deserved the win.

I also feel pity for Ballack......Poor guy.....First lost the Champions League, now the Euro....

IMHO Turkey would have given Spain a better fight if this was expected from the Germans......

Agreed..Spain deserved to win, but wanted germany to win

Ill miss Euro2008.

Best tournament ever!

Arsenal_Gunners said:
Ill miss Euro2008.
Best tournament ever!

Yeah, too much of late drama......I'll miss Turkey though.....Don't know but I think their a$$es started to burn in the end and thats why they always scored in the end......

spain deserved to be the victorious team .....
a great tournament ended...........

Guess who gets the tag of perennial underachievers now?

Btw. I am feeling bad for Raul.

^ me too but spain won its was nice match german needed to play more aggressive

Did DD1 telecast the game yesterday? On my side, they telecasted some crappy serial.

Congrats to Spain. Lahm has had a dissappointing tour and it ended that way. Just before Torres scored it, I was like 'no way Torres is gonna beat Lahm from there'. Cesc had an average game. Xavi for MotM.

Spain definitely deserved to win....they are technically the best team(present)!!!! and defeating the Germans was a piece of crap!!!! but the prob was Germany didn't play aggressive football... and their crosses were all poor... all free kicks were wasted all were way of the target not one reaching a player!!!!!

SPAIN NEVER IN PAIN!!!

hey btw wats happ to raul??? not got any info on him!!

^^He was not selected in the squad by Aragones even after having a great season with Real Madrid.Poor Raul he deserved to lift that trophy after all those barren years with Spain.
Btw. It was nice of Spain especially Sergio Ramos to dedicate the win to Antonio Puerta