So
Euro 2012 is almost done and dusted with Spain and Italy set to contest the
final in Kiev on Sunday. It took a penalty shootout to separate Vicente Del
Bosque’s men from their Portuguese neighbours, while Cesare Prandelli’s side
stunned the Germans with a brilliant display. Here’s who caught the eye in this
round:
HEROES
Mario
Balotelli – How can you describe the man? Super Mario lit up the semi final
with two stunning finishes, showing just why if he puts his mind to it, he can
truly be one of the best players in the world. Balotelli even worked hard for
his side, tracking back and chasing the ball, something that will have shocked
everyone at Manchester City. His header was well taken, but his second was
simply sensational, firing past Manuel Neuer in the German goal before ripping
off his shirt ensuring that if he fails in football, there’s always a gig out
there for him as a stripper. Balotelli said before the game he never celebrates
his goals, but this was a display of raw emotion from a young man who’s never
out of the headlines. Perhaps this could be the moment for Mario to grow up and
fulfil his obvious potential. Or maybe he’ll get sent off on Sunday. You just
never know.
Cesc
Fabregas – Nerves of steel that boy. He might not be completely sane talking to
the ball on his run up, but it sure worked for him. Spain seem to finally have
put their penalty hoodoo behind them, winning the last two in a row. If only
they could teach England how to do it. Or just give us their players.
Andrea
Pirlo – Another masterclass from the maestro. The Germans picked Toni Kroos to
try and mark him out of the game, but Pirlo still dominated the midfield,
outplaying the Germans’ Bastian Schweinsteiger and Mesut Ozil and starting the
move that led to Balotelli’s opening goal. He even showed his defensive
qualities, clearing one off the line from Mats Hummels. Calls for the Ballon
d’Or may be premature, indeed the footballing world seems to simultaneously
fall into orgasm every time Pirlo even breathes at the moment, but he’d
certainly be a worthy winner of player of the tournament. Majestic.
Cesare
Prandelli – Credit has to go to the coach for Italy’s performances this
tournament. They were written off before it had even begun, losing 3-0 to
Russia in a warm-up and struggling with the accusations of match fixing. No one
expected them to really get this far and Prandelli’s tactics have to be
praised. He set out to beat the Germans in Warsaw rather than just contain them
like other Italian sides might have done previously and got his just reward.
England should perhaps take note.
Gianluca
Vialli – Slotted onto the BBC sofas effortlessly, adding a touch of class to
proceedings whilst providing us viewers with some insightful analysis,. And
therefore we didn’t have to listen to Alan Hansen. Joy of joys!
ZEROS
Germany
– Arrogance is never a nice personality trait. And the Germans displayed it in
abundance on Thursday. If resting their key players for the Greek game wasn’t
enough, Joachim Loew’s side seemed to have simply decided they were going to
beat Italy by default. They paid for it as well, Italy stunned them as the
Germans started unusually sluggishly and therefore it’s once again only the
semi finals for this talented young side. Hopefully they’ll have learnt their
lesson.
Portugal’s
penalty order – Never leave your best penalty taker till last. Ever. Ronaldo
should have stepped up earlier to give Portugal the advantage. Instead, Paulo
Bento’s order meant their talisman and dead ball specialist didn’t even get the
chance to take one and could only watch on in horror as Bruno Alves thumped his
effort against the bar.
Mark
Lawrenson – Listening to his ‘punditry’ is almost as painful as hearing someone
drag their nails down a blackboard. I lost count of the number of times he said
‘surely not’ in a sarcastic voice, while he’s doing a good job of defining the
phrase ‘stating the obvious.’ If ITV signed him up to do a show with Adrian
Chiles, I’d wager it would be even less popular than watching Blackburn at
Ewood Park.
Mats
Hummels – Back down to earth with a bump for the German centre back, who’s
stock has significantly risen this tournament. However, the Borussia Dortmund
man had a bit of a shocker in Warsaw, defending poorly, while also missing his
side’s best chance. He’ll be deeply regretting his performance now, while the
pundits can put away their constant admirations towards him for now.
Spain
and Portugal – For such an eagerly anticipated game, this was a massive
disappointment. I don’t buy into the new ‘Spain are boring’ concept that is now
doing the rounds, but they certainly haven’t dazzled this tournament. Portugal
were never going to play all out attack given their inferiority to their rivals,
but this game was so poor, I’m surprised the BBC managed to put together a
highlights package for the end of game montage.
Read
Euro 2012: Heroes and Zeros of Round 3: http://goo.gl/xtaI5
Read
Euro 2012: Heroes and Zeros of Round 2:
http://goo.gl/w1uYa
Read
Euro 2012: Heroes and Zeros of Round 1:
http://goo.gl/cGz1O
By The Coin Toss
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