***EURO 2020 - SEMI FINALS***

[Cade]

3 games to go.

 

4 teams left.

 

The Semi Finals are to be played over the 6th and 7th of July.

 

All remaining games are to be held at Wembley.

 

 

Semi Final 1) Italy vs Spain - Tuesday 6th July - 2000 BST

 

 Italy

An outside bet coming into the tournament.

In the Group stage, two bruising 3-0 wins over Turkey and Switzerland in their first two games made people sit up and take notice.

Having already won their group, they made 8 changes for the final game against Wales but still won it 1-0.

In their Round-of-16 game they were held 0-0 by Austria, but emerged 2-1 winners in extra time, having gone 2-0 up in the first period of extra time before letting in a panic-inducing goal in the 2nd period.

The Quarter Final was a high quality game, with Italy stunning the World #1s Belgium with two quick-fire goals towards the end of the first half before Belgium clawed one back from a penalty right at the end of that half. The 2nd half was a masterclass in game management. Tight defence, time wasting, winding up the opponents; all the tricks were there. Not to say that Italy had stopped playing football as well, but as time wore on and the Belgian attacks became more desperate, they showed a real winning mentality to shut the game down.
Hot tournament favourites now, and have been since pretty much their 2nd game.

 

 Spain

A team on the decline??

In the Group stage, they began poorly with a 0-0 draw with Sweden, although they had something like 85% possession and had peppered shots towards the general direction of the Swedish goal.
Their second game produced another draw, 1-1 with Poland.

They did finally spark into life in the final group match, smashing the Slovaks for 5. They did, however, only qualify in 2nd place.

The Round-of-16 saw Spain fall behind to Croatia before scoring 3 of their own. Game over, or so we all thought. Croatia fought back hard and scored twice very late on to take us to Extra time. The energy expended to draw back level had clearly sapped the Croats and Spain scored twice more in extra time to run out 5-3 winners.

In the Quarter Final, Spain took an early lead against Switzerland from a wickedly deflected shot. Then the game came to resemble their first game, the ball being kept in possession but no end product being evident. The Swiss took the game to Spain in the 2nd half and were rewarded with an equaliser with about 25 minutes to go. Extra time was the result, but no more goals were scored despite the Swiss keeper pretty much playing Spain all on his own.
The penalty shootout was awful, with both teams missing pens. The Swiss were just slightly worse than the Spanish so Spain ran out 3-1 winners on penalties.
I still have no idea if Spain are actually any good.

 

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

 

Semi Final 2) England vs Denmark - Wednesday 7th July - 2000 BST

 

 England

The trophy is coming home. Whether or not an Englishman lifts it remains to be seen.

In the Group stage, they began with a tight 1-0 win over Croatia.

They were then lucky to escape with a 0-0 draw against a Scotland side playing the game of their lives.

Another tight 1-0 win over the Czechs was enough for England to win the group on 7 points, having scored twice in three games. Efficient.

The Round-of-16 pitted them against a German side that nobody knew what expect from, especially not the Germans themselves.

Germany played pish and got well beaten 2-0. Flag shaggers rejoice. Ten German Bombers and all that pish.

Their Quarter Final was a 4-0 demolition of a bloody awful Ukraine side that were even more pish than Germany.

England may have had an easy draw, but that's not their fault. They've won 4 games out of 5.

 

 Denmark

Everybody's 2nd team since that dark day way back at the start of the tournament.

In the Group stage, they began with a 1-0 loss against Finland in very trying circumstances. With Christian Eriksen almost dying on the pitch and the game being halted for hours before resuming, it was no wonder that their heads weren't in the game.

Their 2nd group game also saw a loss, this time going down 2-1 to Belgium, but scoring a very early goal lifted spirits around their home stadium and this energised the team and the nation. A valiant display.

Going into the final game on 0 points, only a win would be good enough and it had to be a big one. Denmark duly delivered a 4-1 beasting of Russia and qualified for the knock-out stages in 2d place.

Their Round-of-16 game saw another demolition job, this time of an awful Wales side. Final score 4-0. Momentum was building.

The Quarter Final against the Czechs was most definitely a game of two halves. Denmark scored early on and added a 2nd just before the break, also passing up a host of other chances along the way. 

The Czechs made two subs at half time and tinkered their tactics, turning the game on its head with an early goal of their own at the start of the 2nd half and then pinned the Danes back for most of the rest of the game.

Denmark didn't just try park the bus and try to defend a single goal lead; they did hit on the break in attempts to score a 3rd.

In the end they held out 2-1 and now travel to Wembley full of confidence.

 

Edited July 3, 2021 by Cade

[1971fozzy]

Denmark v England is a hard one to call. Just beat them please then we can relax 

 

also thank you for your great threads 👍👍 brilliant stuff

[davemclaren]

Thankfully I’ll miss the England semi as I’ll be at Bonnyrigg Rose v Hearts. 

[John Findlay]

The way this tournament is going. An England v Spain final wouldnt surprise me.

[davemclaren]

4 minutes ago, John Findlay said:

The way this tournament is going. An England v Spain final wouldnt surprise me.

Indeed 

[One five]

10 minutes ago, davemclaren said:

Thankfully I’ll miss the England semi as I’ll be at Bonnyrigg Rose v Hearts. 

👍

[Jamhammer]

Hoping for Italy but have a sneaky feeling the Danes might do it again

[1971fozzy]

I fancy Italy. They look immense. Not many are able to beat Belgium.  
England have most certainly had a good half of the draw. Germany aside (who are on a huge decline) they’ve not had much to get past (including their semi opponents) to get to a final. It’s a huge chance for them no doubt

Edited July 3, 2021 by 1971fozzy

[TurboT]

I just can't see Denmark beating England, they'll cause England problems going forward but defensively they look too weak and the Czechs could and should have scored more tonight. 

[dobmisterdobster]

Love's got the world in motion
And I know what we can do
Love's got the world in motion
And I can't believe it's true

[Cruyff]

Spain have got a bit lucky and they're unrecognisable from the last generation. I don't think they are a great side by any means and they lack world class quality but seem to have a strong team spirit & work ethic which makes them tough to beat. 

 

Italy imo are the best side in the tournament by a mile and bossed the best ranked side in the world off the park, controlling every facet of the game. They did everything perfectly. First half they pressed high and nullified Belgium, second half they played on the counter and gave nothing away against real world class opponents. An outstanding performance. 

 

I think they will have too much for Spain. Their defence consists of two legendary Centerhalfs, Cheilini imo is one of the greatest ever and Bonucci is probably the best ever at passing out from defence. Their midfield is majestic and they have options galore. In attack they have pace & creativity with Insigne & Chiesa, Immobile can score goals and Berardi & Belotti aren't bad either. 

 

England flatter to deceive. They play safe, cautious, zero risk football and have never been tested in the tournament by a side on the same level. They've had a cake walk in the knock out rounds, a piss poor German side followed by a truly awful Ukraine side who gave them easy goals. However, they haven't conceded a goal, despite being fortunate on numerous occasions. Their luck seems to be in and with the attacking players & pace they have, could go all the way. Sometimes slow and steady wins the race. 

 

I think Denmark were in shock in their opening group games after almost losing a team mate but their recovery has coincided with Erikssons. They also have a solid backline, Kjaer and Christiansen are excellent, Schmeichel is a good keeper, Maehle at FB has been sensational and in front of them they have an industrious midfield of Hjorberg & Delaney. They will without a doubt be a much tougher challenge for England than the Ukraine but perhaps lack the attacking threat with the loss of Eriksson who can be the difference. 

 

Italy v England final. 

Edited July 3, 2021 by Cruyff

[vegas-voss]

I can see Spain beating Italy.Seems to happen quite a lot the most entertaining team just ends up falling short and Spinazolla is a huge loss.

 

I really hope the Danes take the game to England and show no fear as despite how good it looks on paper England just haven't been tested at all so far.

[Dusk_Till_Dawn]

England to smash Denmark.

 

Italy to outclass Spain.

[Longbaws]

We are all Giovanni Tomasini's bairns

 

ABE

FTH

[HartleyLegend3]

Really looking forward to Italy, Spain. I kind of wish it was the final. Two world class footballing nations. 

Really enjoyed how well Italy played against Belgium. Technically Italy are the better team, but Spain do have quality and work really hard. May the best team win. 

 

England vs Denmark, not a game to get excited about, but both teams getting further than most people would have predicted. Just got to hope both bring their A game and we see a bit of quality. I reckon we might see and explosive start as both these team like to hit early. 

[Tommy Brown]

Denmark will certainly give England their toughest game yet.

I have said since they demolished Russia they can go all the way.

 

Facts are England have dealt with each opponent efficiently enough, but an overcritical Scottish eye will say their opponents have been not been good enough.

 

Text my mate at start that if England deserve to win, I have no problem, within 3 minutes their ahead and I'm spewing.

 

Come on Denmark.

 

[Maroon Sailor]

4 minutes ago, Tommy Brown said:

Denmark will certainly give England their toughest game yet.

I have said since they demolished Russia they can go all the way.

 

Facts are England have dealt with each opponent efficiently enough, but an overcritical Scottish eye will say their opponents have been not been good enough.

 

Text my mate at start that if England deserve to win, I have no problem, within 3 minutes their ahead and I'm spewing.

 

Come on Denmark.

 

 

The only England result that has been a surprise is not beating Scotland.

 

Tournament turned in their favour when Sweden got that late winner against Poland.

 

Meant Spain ended up in the half of death and gave England a freebie in the quarters.

[3fingersreid]

Thankfully I’ll be at the Hearts v Bonnyrigg game , not because I dislike the England team it’s the pundits that piss me off.

If there’s one team that can stop England it’ll be Italy , although I hope Denmark win the tournament 

[milky_26]

1 hour ago, vegas-voss said:

I can see Spain beating Italy.Seems to happen quite a lot the most entertaining team just ends up falling short and Spinazolla is a huge loss.

 

I really hope the Danes take the game to England and show no fear as despite how good it looks on paper England just haven't been tested at all so far.

spinazolla is  a massive loss for italy. he has been outstanding for them. it will be a difficult game, i would put italy as favourites as spain seem to be missing that striker who will score with their only chance as the italians will reduce the number of chances they get

[vegas-voss]

1 minute ago, milky_26 said:

spinazolla is  a massive loss for italy. he has been outstanding for them. it will be a difficult game, i would put italy as favourites as spain seem to be missing that striker who will score with their only chance as the italians will reduce the number of chances they get

I agree would def have Italy as favourites.

[vegas-voss]

England kind of remind me of modern equivalent of the German sides the English media used to despise.Workmanlike , powerful get the job done it's not pretty but really effective.

[SectionDJambo]

Every so often, a tournament just clicks into place for a team and luck goes with them.

It happened to us in 1998, with a good draw all the way through and Albertz getting himself sent off the previous week. We still had to beat Rangers in Glasgow though. Years of bad luck washed away.

Similarly, England have enjoyed remarkable luck in playing mostly at Wembley resulting in hardly any travelling, and a very kind draw. Whether they can finish the job off is another matter as they will now have to get past Denmark, who have an emotionally charged team, and probably Italy, who have been the most exciting team to watch, are unbeaten for over 30 games and don't lose many goals.

England could very well do a Hibs of the 2021 cup variety. Easy draw, get over confident and mess up in the final.

[rory78]

Denmark won 1-0 at Wembley fairly recently in the Nations League and drew 0-0 in Copenhagen so if the English fans think they've just got to turn up to win they might get a nasty wee surprise 🤞

[tian447]

38 minutes ago, rory78 said:

Denmark won 1-0 at Wembley fairly recently in the Nations League and drew 0-0 in Copenhagen so if the English fans think they've just got to turn up to win they might get a nasty wee surprise 🤞

 

Here's hoping.

 

England 0 - 3 Denmark would be absolutely beautiful.

[professorfate]

I honestly think this is the time for England to win something they have got there best squad for years.

[JimmyCant]

1 hour ago, 3fingersreid said:

Thankfully I’ll be at the Hearts v Bonnyrigg game , not because I dislike the England team it’s the pundits that piss me off.

If there’s one team that can stop England it’ll be Italy , although I hope Denmark win the tournament 

For information of folks who are NOT attending Bonnyrigg vs Hearts, you are still not required to watch the England game. Just don’t turn the telly on, or if you must have it on, watch another channel.

[Kirky Jambo]

Spain are the hardest to work out imo. They’ve struggled in a few games but mainly due to not being clinical and conceding easily. They haven’t lost yet and if it clicks up front you wonder if they could cause an upset. If they did end up getting pst Italy I’d fancy their midfield to boss it against the over hyped Calvin Phillips and Declan Rice etc.

 

That said, Italy have looked the most impressive side in the tournament so far and their game with Belgium just seemed generally of a higher quality than anything else.

[3fingersreid]

24 minutes ago, JimmyCant said:

For information of folks who are NOT attending Bonnyrigg vs Hearts, you are still not required to watch the England game. Just don’t turn the telly on, or if you must have it on, watch another channel.

I think everyone who is in the vicinity of a tv should watch it just in case the Danes do what the world is wishing them to do 😉

[iantjambo]

Have England really been tested yet? We’ve gave them their hardest game so far. The Czech and Croatia games were fairly straight forward for them and the last 16 and quarter final games were against god awful Germany and Ukraine teams. They’ve still got a very good chance and they’re entitled to be optimistic. I just don’t feel like they’ve come up against a really good side yet. Denmark game should be different though.

[GBJambo]

1 hour ago, rory78 said:

Denmark won 1-0 at Wembley fairly recently in the Nations League and drew 0-0 in Copenhagen so if the English fans think they've just got to turn up to win they might get a nasty wee surprise 🤞

England were down to 10 for a large majority of the game tbf. 

[SectionDJambo]

1 hour ago, JimmyCant said:

For information of folks who are NOT attending Bonnyrigg vs Hearts, you are still not required to watch the England game. Just don’t turn the telly on, or if you must have it on, watch another channel.

That's what I did last night. It's remarkably easy. I've done similar when Celtic are at Tynecastle. Just don't look at them.

It's just a fact of life for us that we share the coverage for the whole of the UK. We can't blame them for getting excited, although it gets tiresome when it creeps into other non football programming.

[Last Laff]

Italy and England both to win very comfortably.  Italy being the only team that can stop England now.

 

There should be a match of both Euro and Copa America winners imo.  Be a good money spinner for covid victims or something.

[Tommy Brown]

5 minutes ago, Last Laff said:

Italy and England both to win very comfortably.  Italy being the only team that can stop England now.

 

There should be a match of both Euro and Copa America winners imo.  Be a good money spinner for covid victims or something.

Why are you dissing the Danes so easily.

 

I think the have played well in every game, I missed the Finland game, though. But they should be alloweda break under  the circumstances  in that one.

[Last Laff]

18 minutes ago, Tommy Brown said:

Why are you dissing the Danes so easily.

 

I think the have played well in every game, I missed the Finland game, though. But they should be alloweda break under  the circumstances  in that one.

 

England are simply a better team with better players imo. 

[JimmyCant]

1 minute ago, Last Laff said:

 

England are simply a better team with better players imo. 

We’ve not seen England go a goal behind yet. I’m not convinced about them team spirit wise. Big BIG test for them If Denmark score first.

[Last Laff]

12 minutes ago, JimmyCant said:

We’ve not seen England go a goal behind yet. I’m not convinced about them team spirit wise. Big BIG test for them If Denmark score first.

Denmark lost both games they went behind? England haven’t even conceded a goal yet. 

[Cruyff]

1 hour ago, Last Laff said:

 

England are simply a better team with better players imo. 

They have better attackers, certainly. 

[Last Laff]

1 minute ago, Cruyff said:

They have better attackers, certainly. 

 

Hailey from Corrie and Luke Shaw are world class as is Walker. 

[Cruyff]

Just now, Last Laff said:

 

Hailey from Corrie and Luke Shaw are world class as is Walker. 

Naaaaaah. 

[Morgan]

8 hours ago, Dusk_Till_Dawn said:

England to smash Denmark.

 

Italy to outclass Spain.

I too think this is what will happen.

[Maroon Sailor]

4 hours ago, SectionDJambo said:

That's what I did last night. It's remarkably easy. I've done similar when Celtic are at Tynecastle. Just don't look at them.

It's just a fact of life for us that we share the coverage for the whole of the UK. We can't blame them for getting excited, although it gets tiresome when it creeps into other non football programming.

 

Deliberately avoided the match last night - watched the tennis only for McEnroe to mention it was 1 nothing to England. No avoiding it - it wasn't like that when Wales reached the semi finals 5 years ago

[JackLadd]

4 hours ago, Last Laff said:

Denmark lost both games they went behind? England haven’t even conceded a goal yet. 

 

If a Kane or Sterling had went over with a cardiac arrest then they might also have been affected by that. Denmark turned the corner and have nothing to lose which makes them dangerous. Ukraine were a poor side, if England think that can happen vs Denmark they are in for a shock.

[Kiwidoug]

23 hours ago, davemclaren said:

Thankfully I’ll miss the England semi as I’ll be at Bonnyrigg Rose v Hearts. 

You bloody champion.  If I possibly could I'd be right there with you.

 

I am interested in these euro games but nowhere near as interested as I am in the Hearts.

 

Keep an eye out for three fingers.  He's going too.

[Spellczech]

22 hours ago, JimmyCant said:

We’ve not seen England go a goal behind yet. I’m not convinced about them team spirit wise. Big BIG test for them If Denmark score first.

I agree with this. They went to pieces against us and became less and less dangerous the longer the match lasted. If they actually fell behind they could crumble entirely like they did against Iceland at the last Euros...The pressure on them is enormous for all the talk about keeping calm, and players have started to make comments about how brilliant they are from within the squad (not just Rio). Their arrogance has always previously been their undoing as they cannot cope with the pressure it brings.

[colinmaroon]

On 03/07/2021 at 22:58, davemclaren said:

Thankfully I’ll miss the England semi as I’ll be at Bonnyrigg Rose v Hearts. 

 

 

The return of our Bible Study on a Wednesday night this week is opportune!

 

I may record it so that if they lose I can watch it.  If they win - <delete>.

Edited July 5, 2021 by colinmaroon

[Homme]

I've an English friend in Edinburgh looking for a place to watch the game on Wednesday. Suggested Three Sisters but it's full...anyone have any other decent suggestions I can get back to him with? 

[milky_26]

1 minute ago, Homme said:

I've an English friend in Edinburgh looking for a place to watch the game on Wednesday. Suggested Three Sisters but it's full...anyone have any other decent suggestions I can get back to him with? 

eighteen74 bar at tynie?

[Homme]

1 minute ago, milky_26 said:

eighteen74 bar at tynie?

 

Maybe. Is it busy for the games? 

 

I don't think he's that bothered where it is tbh, just somewhere he can see it and support England safely! He's with another couple of guys but they're a good bunch.

[milky_26]

13 minutes ago, Homme said:

 

Maybe. Is it busy for the games? 

 

I don't think he's that bothered where it is tbh, just somewhere he can see it and support England safely! He's with another couple of guys but they're a good bunch.

not a clue, only mentioned it as it was on the email i just got from the club

[part_time_jambo]

1 hour ago, Homme said:

I've an English friend in Edinburgh looking for a place to watch the game on Wednesday. Suggested Three Sisters but it's full...anyone have any other decent suggestions I can get back to him with? 

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