Lessons From Euro 2020 So Far

 It's been a brilliant eleven days of football with already some great matches played. Wales vs Turkey , Netherlands vs Ukraine and Denmark vs Belgium stand out but there's been plenty of drama to go with it. The unfortunate incident involving Christian Eriksen will be heavily remembered but the unity shown by the football nation was beautiful to see. So what has the first  and Second round of games shown us ?

Turkey's Pre- Tournament Form Fooled us 

Remember a certain so called pundit who called Turkey dark horses for the tournament? Well neither do I :) but what a let down Turkey have been. Lack of intensity, defensive blunders and non-existent threat going forward  have led to Turkey being dumped out of the tournament so early on. A pale shadow of the side that caused the Netherlands so much problems in a friendly in March.

 

The Turks had a good shape about them but that now seems like a distant memory. They will surely be hurt by the manner in which they have left the tournament, no fight at all. 

Question marks will surely be raised about coach Şenol Güneş .

ITALY Walking The Talk

While many expected Italy to be one of the dark horses for the tournament they have proven to be much more impressive than expected. The Italians have won their first two games with an aggregate score of 6-0 . Quick attacking football supplemented by a robust defense has seen Italy easily dispose off their first opponents in easy fashion.

While critics may argue that they have not faced a top level opposition ,it is extremely hard to ignore how impressive they have been. We do not have to wait for long until that happens though ,a quarter final matchup against Belgium looks likely.

England Are a Crisis awaiting to happen

The English press just couldn't wait for the full time whistle to go against Scotland for them to hammer their team. There were even boos at the stadium come full-time. The groans are increasing with every minute.  Everyone wants their favorite player in the team and no matter what Gareth Southgate does he won't be able to please anyone. 

Scotland frustrated England , none more than Harry Kane .The England talisman could not get going and was eventually substituted after 74 minutes . He looked tired and frustrated . No chances created for him but his body language was also not great . That will be a worry for English fans knowing that success for England will at some point depend on their point man starting to fire again.

Gareth Southgate has been firm in his choices and it does not seem like he will cave in any time. His approach for the tournament has been for England to be conservative and choose their time to attack. While this worked against Croatia  it is not the best approach against low blocks like that of Scotland. It remains to be seen whether the clamour to get Grealish and Sancho in the team will be successful or Southgate will stick to his tested and proven players. However it goes it will be a big shock if they make it past the quarters.

Belgium's Star Quality Overpowers their Collective Weaknesses

For 45 minutes on Thursday night Denmark absolutely tormented the Belgians. They struggled to get any real rhythm going and were getting stretched out wide struggling to cope with the Danish  press, passing and movement going forward. 

On came Kevin De Bruyne at half time and the game completely changed. With his compatriot Eden Hazard , De Bruyne led Belgium to a 2-1 second half win . Two goals that oozed quality showing that when you are blessed with such an abundance of talent you do not really need to play awesome for 90 mins. Patches may be enough to see you through.

While they were not at their scintillating best against Denmark the Red Devils left with some positives. The three points obviously but a return to action for Eden Hazard , Kevin De Bruyne and Axel Witsel was the big plus . They will be vital going forward for them.

Notable mention to Wales. They have a spirit that is very hard to break plus it helps that Gareth Bale turns up for them. 

The Netherlands too ,whom we had written off :) , have been putting on a show . How far it goes we will see.

Today's predictions

A look at today's games 

Hungary have the unenviable task of trying to contain France's attack. While for 80 minutes they contained Portugal , the French should prove too strong for Hungary as they are better suited than Portugal when playing against deep blocks. Hard to see anything other than a French win. Prediction 3-0 France.

Germany have to get something from today's meeting against Portugal. While they showed a decent level of performance against the French , their attack is a big concern and would likely struggle to break down a solid Portugal side. This game seems better suited for Portugal as they can keep solid and play on the counter . Prediction  2-1 Portugal win .

Spain completed almost nine hundred passes in their first match against Sweden but could not put the ball in the back of the net. Over the years Alvaro Morata has proved to be a frustrating striker who can come up with the goods but often falls short. They will have to spread the goals if they are to have a decent tournament. Poland were disappointing in their defeat to Slovakia but pose a threat upfront with Lewandoski. However Spain should have more than enough to beat Poland who defensively are not as resilient as Sweden. Prediction 2-0 Spain

Will try to put up a more comprehensive outlook before the knockout games. Thanks :)