EURO 2016

[ForehandReverb]

EURO 2016 is only a few months away. For the first time there will be 24 teams, which i think is a great number, though many disagree. Their argument is that you get more tight group matches with 16, but I think is better to have those matches in the knockout stage which most likely will happen with 24. Also all the best players will be there, except for the dutch (how did managed to actually miss it lol). With 16 teams players like Zlatan or Bale might not have qualified.

Stadiums and matches:

Favorites according to bookies:

Germany 4.00
France 4.25
Spain 6.50
Belgium 11.00
England 12.00
Italy 20.00
Portugal 20.00


Top Goalscorer:

Giroud 8.00
C Ronaldo 8.00
Muller 9.00
Lewandowski 11.00
Benzema 12.00

 

[Alex78]

France.

 

[Poisoned Slice]

Northern Ireland.

 

[Sysyphus]

Would love to see Les Bleus take it.
Belgium should have a strong squad as well.

 

[bezs]

Gutted the Dutch are not there, but they don't deserve to be there failing to qualify even with the expanded format.

 

[TheMuzziah]

I don't know if I can be arsed with this..

Though I'll probably change my mind when the media hype train begins lol

 

[Chicharito]

Anyone going?

The fourth TT thread

Euro 2004 http://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/index.php?threads/who-will-win-euro-2004.6643/ @Feña14
2008 http://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/index.php?threads/euro-2008.201888/
2012 http://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/index.php?threads/euro-2012.427271/

 

[Feña14]

I don't know if I can be arsed with this..

Though I'll probably change my mind when the media hype train begins lol

l'm the same. With the rise of the Champions League (and domestic football in general), lnternational football doesn't hold that much appeal to me these days. l dread lnternational breaks when the Premier League has to stop for a week.

England v Estonia in some friendly or qualifying .. or a full slate of the Premier League or Juventus v Bayern, Chelsea v PSG, Arsenal v Barca.. even the Europa League? No contest for me.

 

[Chicharito]

Euro 2004 Halcyon Days

 

[RS92]

France vs Germany the final.

 

[DUROC]

Yep......can see France v Germany

Love to see Les Bleus win but the Germans are always tough in big games.

Watch out for Belgium.........full squad will be back and all are playing well. Can see a nice run from the Red Devils

 

[Slice'n'dice]

Germany the obvious choice, ridiculous that England are ahead of any of those teams mentioned in the opening post regarding the odds I mean. To be honest, I would be more surprised for England to win it than any of the other teams mentioned in the poll. They are not really a team and haven't been for quite some time. Not to mention having one of the most unimaginative, stuck in the past dinosaur perennially average managers that are in Football at the moment. They have no chance. (Feel free to quote me on this if England do somehow win it, I'll happily eat my words.)

l'm the same. With the rise of the Champions League (and domestic football in general), lnternational football doesn't hold that much appeal to me these days. l dread lnternational breaks when the Premier League has to stop for a week.

England v Estonia in some friendly or qualifying .. or a full slate of the Premier League or Juventus v Bayern, Chelsea v PSG, Arsenal v Barca.. even the Europa League? No contest for me.

I totally agree with you, such a pain (and one coming up imminently) although international tournaments are pretty good when they come around. Also from my point of view I don't really support an international team particularly so it allows you to enjoy the matches for what they are a bit more.

 

[Chicharito]

Squad deadline day.

Injured Reus missed out.

Marcos Rashord goes less than 100 days after his pro debut.

Broken leg Joe Ledley is going... (Wales are good enough to go deep, very deep...)

Will Grigg is on fire will be sung beneath the Eiffel tour. (@Russeljones)

 

[bezs]

Such a shame for Reus the World Cup now the Euros.

 

[Sysyphus]

So, how's the Spanish squad doing? I haven't followed too closely lately. They have crazy depth, but I hear they have struggled with form on the national side lately, and are lacking goalscorers. C'est correct?

 

[West Coast Ace]

Belgium. As @DUROC said, the gang is back. They should win that group without much/any stress.

Everyone who's going - keep your eyes open and be safe.

 

[rainingaces]

Germany the obvious choice, ridiculous that England are ahead of any of those teams mentioned in the opening post regarding the odds I mean. To be honest, I would be more surprised for England to win it than any of the other teams mentioned in the poll. They are not really a team and haven't been for quite some time. Not to mention having one of the most unimaginative, stuck in the past dinosaur perennially average managers that are in Football at the moment. They have no chance. (Feel free to quote me on this if England do somehow win it, I'll happily eat my words.)

Being a international coach has to be one of the cushiest jobs going. All the guy has to do is pick the right team based on the league and stats, the team should motivate itself, it is the Euros!

But he even gets that wrong. Hodgsons decision not to include Drinkwater, Valencia or Albrighton in the team will prove costly to Englands chances.

 

[Slice'n'dice]

Being a international coach has to be one of the cushiest jobs going. All the guy has to do is pick the right team based on the league and stats, the team should motivate itself, it is the Euros!

But he even gets that wrong. Hodgsons decision not to include Drinkwater, Valencia or Albrighton in the team will prove costly to Englands chances.

It's not as simple as that, there've been some good managers at club level that have failed internationally, and other managers who've done the opposite. England have had some great teams, quality of players-wise in recent years, but they haven't had a team and haven't been anywhere near achieving anything with that team. Until Euro 2008, Spain were similar, they never got anywhere in big tournaments. While Germany always have been there or thereabouts regardless of the team. Do agree Drinkwater should have gone, but the squad is riddled with errors. I mean 3 centre backs and 5 strikers and he's likely to play 1 up ront says it all. Who do you mean by Valencia? Can't think of an English player by that name. Not sure about Albrighton, sooner or later the Leicester players are going to come back to earth and play at their real level. Can't take a risk on too many of them I don't think.

 

[rainingaces]

It's not as simple as that, there've been some good managers at club level that have failed internationally, and other managers who've done the opposite. England have had some great teams, quality of players-wise in recent years, but they haven't had a team and haven't been anywhere near achieving anything with that team. Until Euro 2008, Spain were similar, they never got anywhere in big tournaments. While Germany always have been there or thereabouts regardless of the team. Do agree Drinkwater should have gone, but the squad is riddled with errors. I mean 3 centre backs and 5 strikers and he's likely to play 1 up ront says it all. Who do you mean by Valencia? Can't think of an English player by that name. Not sure about Albrighton, sooner or later the Leicester players are going to come back to earth and play at their real level. Can't take a risk on too many of them I don't think.

Sorry I meant Antonio, the West ham player.
Sure you can take a risk on Leicester players, they are team players.

 

[jaggy]

Didn't England already win this or was that just their media talking?

 

[Rusty Shackleford]

Can Spain win a third consecutive title?

 

[70sHollywood]

So based on the squad selection I'm guessing Roy plans to start with the diamond formation and two up front. Could he possibly go with Dier, Wilshire, Alli; Rooney; Vardy, Kane?

 

[TheMuzziah]

Wales to win the whole thing.

Joe Allen last minute winner in the final against Germany or France.

Heard it here first.

 

[jaggy]

Wales to win the whole thing.

Joe Allen last minute winner in the final against Germany or France.

Heard it here first.

 

[Alex78]

What are the French up to - again? Talk about shooting yourself in the foot before the big games even start. Can I still predict them to win the championship if they don't get their sh-t together and start acting like a real team? (That's a rhetorical question, non?)

 

[Feña14]

Not particularly bothered about the tournament, but the fact that there's no real stand out favourite should make it interesting. Germany and Spain don't look as good as they have been the last 8 years, France look great on paper but the drama seems to of already started, ltaly and England aren't good enough, Belgium have talent but flatter to deceive..

Could be another one for a talented outsider who gets hot for a couple of weeks... l'm going with Croatia.

 

[TheMuzziah]

l'm going with Croatia.

Wow and I thought I was nuts

No lovren, no party for Croatia.

 

[Feña14]

Wow and I thought I was nuts

No lovren, no party for Croatia.

That was a strange one yeah! Something about him not warming up how the manager wanted wasn't it? Weird.

They have some fun players to watch though (Modric, Rakitic. Perisic. Srna and Vrsaljko are two exciting full backs, Mandzukic is a handful up top. Paja and Coric are two stars in the making).

They probably won't win it, but they have the talent and it'll be seriously fun to watch if they do.

 

[Doctor/Lawyer Red Devil]

Germany with no votes yet? What's going on?

 

[Russeljones]

I am backing the ridiculous talent of the Belgium squad.

 

[hawk eye]

Holland all the way!!
Oh wait..

It's going to be the French then. Young, hungry and very talented squad.

 

[mr_eko]

Wow and I thought I was nuts

No lovren, no party for Croatia.

That's because Lovren sucks.

Lewandowski and Polska for the win!

 

[sarmpas]

I am backing the ridiculous talent of the Belgium squad.

Please be right because I drew them from the hat in a work sweepstake. £72 I stand to win.

 

[TheMuzziah]

That's because Lovren sucks

Dont watch a lot of football do you mate

A couple seasons ago he was included in the team of the year (when playing for Southampton he was one of the best defenders In the league, without a doubt), since klopp came in he's been immense for liverpool, I can't even remember one bad game from him really. Sakho gets a lot of praise (and rightly so, I love him) but lovren has been even better imo.

Maybe youre a dortmund fan?!

 

[augustobt]

Dont watch a lot of football do you mate

A couple seasons ago he was included in the team of the year (when playing for Southampton he was one of the best defenders In the league, without a doubt), since klopp came in he's been immense for liverpool, I can't even remember one bad game from him really. Sakho gets a lot of praise (and rightly so, I love him) but lovren has been even better imo.

Maybe youre a dortmund fan?!

hahahahah come on, how can you say that? Lovren, Sakho, Moreno and Mignolet are the reason Liverpool finished the season in a drought. They suck way too much.

 

[Sysyphus]

Worth considering that it's been 10 years since La Roja conceded a goal in the knockout stages of a major tournament. Once they get through their somewhat tricky group, it's a done deal

 

[TheMuzziah]

hahahahah come on, how can you say that? Lovren, Sakho, Moreno and Mignolet are the reason Liverpool finished the season in a drought. They suck way too much.

As I said lovren has been brilliant since klopp came in, never put a foot wrong. Not sure what you've been watching.
Sakho has had a few bad games, but generally he's quality, people think he's clamsy but his composure on the ball is fantastic for a defender.
Mignolet is a strange one, I like him but it's obvious that he's not a very good goalkeeper overall, he's average in every department besides shot stopping/reflexes. But then again that's why weve already bought Karius.
I'll sort of give you Moreno, he's a liability when defending, absolutely brainless at times, cost us so many points in the league. He's good going forward but as a left back thats not saying a lot. He's pretty much the opposite of Clyne.

I bet you haven't watched liverpool play more then 5-6 times this season, have you (honestly)?

 

[Feña14]

England were really good tonigZZZzzzzzz

That was abysmal, which is a shame. There's a decent team in there waiting to get out, that whole slow, narrow thing? Not good enough. Play Vardy and Kane in their best positions, stop trying to get Rooney in the side (Alli having to play wide to accomadate him? Seriously).

Play the young players in their best positions, whatever happens we can have no complaints.

 

[Chicharito]

Regarding dark horses, Austria have a good side.

Germany with no votes yet? What's going on?

Sticky form since World Cup I suppose.

So, how's the Spanish squad doing? I haven't followed too closely lately. They have crazy depth, but I hear they have struggled with form on the national side lately, and are lacking goalscorers. C'est correct?

Well Morata is a good player but yes striking options are a bit low. 35 year old Aritz Aduriz in the squad after banging in 36 goals this season.

 

[augustobt]

As I said lovren has been brilliant since klopp came in, never put a foot wrong. Not sure what you've been watching.
Sakho has had a few bad games, but generally he's quality, people think he's clamsy but his composure on the ball is fantastic for a defender.
Mignolet is a strange one, I like him but it's obvious that he's not a very good goalkeeper overall, he's average in every department besides shot stopping/reflexes. But then again that's why weve already bought Karius.
I'll sort of give you Moreno, he's a liability when defending, absolutely brainless at times, cost us so many points in the league. He's good going forward but as a left back thats not saying a lot. He's pretty much the opposite of Clyne.

I bet you haven't watched liverpool play more then 5-6 times this season, have you (honestly)?

I've quite watched practically every match since Klopp assumed the team. I honestly can't agree with you with any defender, but maybe you're just too happy reminding that dortmund match

I'd sign a whole new defense system for the new season... and of course, find a new team for Origi.

 

[Feña14]

Well Morata is a good player but yes striking options are a bit low. 35 year old Aritz Aduriz in the squad after banging in 36 goals this season.

l like Morata, he doesn't score enough goals for me though.. he's got about 25 in 90 games for Juventus, so 1 in every 3 and a half games.

He got 7 in Serie A last year, Higuain (who has his critics) got 36.

Maybe they'll end up packing the midfield again with one of those false 9's.

 

[augustobt]

Germany with no votes yet? What's going on?

They're in a terrible form and with probably the worst coach I've ever seen. Let's remember that Germany wouldn't have won the world cup if it depended on him, they were very lucky that Mustafi got injured and low had to play the basics with Lahm back on the defense (he insisted in Lahm as a midfielder in the first four matches!) and the title eventually came.

Low is ridiculous. The guy tries some formations that I wouldn't try even on Football Manager, like the line of 3 defenders with Kimmich playing in the center, or like calling MARIO GOMEZ back to the national squad. "ohh, but when guardiola does the same he is considered a genius", yeah, except the Guardiola's teams actually play decently. I bet Löw is gonna kill the team with Gomez as a striker and Schweinsteiger (that is playing terribly in the last couple of seasons) will put Weigl on the bench.

I honestly don't know who is actually the worse coach in national teams, it's someone between Low, Vicente del Bosque and Dunga.

These are the nationalef results after the world cup:

 

[TheMuzziah]

I've quite watched practically every match since Klopp assumed the team. I honestly can't agree with you with any defender, but maybe you're just too happy reminding that dortmund match

That Dortmund match was indeed epic but it doesn't really compliment liverpools defenders does it.

I'd sign a whole new defense system for the new season...

We've already signed Matip. Skrtel will probably leave and we've got Gomez coming back from injury, was very impressive playing as a left back (not his natural position) at the start of the season. Had Alexis in his pocket at Emirates. If Kolo leaves, then maybe we'll try sign another cheapish cb, personally hope he stays for another season. We deffo need a lb though.

and of course, find a new team for Origi.

PARDON???

Surely you mean Benteke?! If not, let's agree to disagree..

 

[augustobt]

Surely you mean Benteke?! If not, let's agree to disagree..

hahahahah both actually, I even forgot about benteke for a second.

 

[mr_eko]

Dont watch a lot of football do you mate

A couple seasons ago he was included in the team of the year (when playing for Southampton he was one of the best defenders In the league, without a doubt), since klopp came in he's been immense for liverpool, I can't even remember one bad game from him really. Sakho gets a lot of praise (and rightly so, I love him) but lovren has been even better imo.

Maybe youre a dortmund fan?!

I remember him getting into team of the year and that when he was at his first year in Liverpool. Everybody was having a laugh!

 

[TheMuzziah]

I remember him getting into team of the year and that when he was at his first year in Liverpool. Everybody was having a laugh!

What are you talking about mate? He was included in the team of the year after his fantastic season with Southampton, that season convinced Liverpool to offer 20 million for him.

Granted, his first season here was a disaster, was voted flop of the year by many pundits, but again, since October he's been our best defender along with Clyne, him and Sakho looked like a pretty good partnership.

No offence, but sometimes I wonder if people (not just here) watch before judging certain players. Anyway.

 

[mr_eko]

What are you talking about mate? He was included in the team of the year after his fantastic season with Southampton, that season convinced Liverpool to offer 20 million for him.

Granted, his first season here was a disaster, was voted flop of the year by many pundits, but again, since October he's been our best defender along with Clyne, him and Sakho looked like a pretty good partnership.

No offence, but sometimes I wonder if people (not just here) watch before judging certain players. Anyway.

Wow your last line there makes you sound so snobbish. Remember Lovren was left off the euro squad because he said if he isn't in the starting line up he doesn't want to play. Great attitude from the lad but hey who am I to judge right?

 

[TheMuzziah]

Wow your last line there makes you sound so snobbish. Remember Lovren was left off the euro squad because he said if he isn't in the starting line up he doesn't want to play. Great attitude from the lad but hey who am I to judge right?

How exactly is it snobbish to suggest that you have to regularly watch a certain player to have a clear, unbiased opinion of him? I don't really watch foreign leagues so i try avoiding any arguments regarding non English league players. Its simple; if you don't watch a player, don't go around spouting nonsense about him (and, again, that's not directed at you exclusively). Even going by the facts, you said he was in the team of the year last season, and "everyone was having a laugh", which is incorrect.

I agree with you on the whole euro thing, no player should demand a place in the starting 11, but I don't see hows that relevant?! We were talking about Lovrens quality as a player, not his attitude. Plus I'd like to add that he's never behaved like this for us, and there were times he wasn't even included in the match day squad, so it was quite surprising coming from him, if you ask me. And as long as he doesn't act like this when at Liverpool, I couldn't care less what he does with Croatia.

 

[Russeljones]

Like I said, the Belgium squad is ridiculous.

Goalkeepers: Thibaut Courtois (Chelsea), Jean-Francois Gillet (Mechelen), Simon Mignolet (Liverpool).

Defenders: Toby Alderweireld (Tottenham), Jason Denayer (Galatasaray), Bjorn Engels (Club Bruges), Christian Kabasele (Genk), Jordan Lukaku (Oostende), Thomas Meunier (Club Bruges), Thomas Vermaelen (Barcelona), Jan Vertonghen (Tottenham), Laurent Ciman (Montreal).

Midfielders: Marouane Fellaini (Manchester United), Radja Nainggolan (Roma), Axel Witsel (Zenit St Petersburg), Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City), Eden Hazard (Chelsea).

Forwards: Moussa Dembele (Tottenham), Michy Batshuayi (Marseille), Christian Benteke (Liverpool), Yannick Carrasco (Atletico Madrid), Romelu Lukaku (Everton), Dries Mertens (Napoli), Divock Origi (Liverpool).

 

[Feña14]

Like I said, the Belgium squad is ridiculous.

Goalkeepers: Thibaut Courtois (Chelsea), Jean-Francois Gillet (Mechelen), Simon Mignolet (Liverpool).

Defenders: Toby Alderweireld (Tottenham), Jason Denayer (Galatasaray), Bjorn Engels (Club Bruges), Christian Kabasele (Genk), Jordan Lukaku (Oostende), Thomas Meunier (Club Bruges), Thomas Vermaelen (Barcelona), Jan Vertonghen (Tottenham), Laurent Ciman (Montreal).

Midfielders: Marouane Fellaini (Manchester United), Radja Nainggolan (Roma), Axel Witsel (Zenit St Petersburg), Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City), Eden Hazard (Chelsea).

Forwards: Moussa Dembele (Tottenham), Michy Batshuayi (Marseille), Christian Benteke (Liverpool), Yannick Carrasco (Atletico Madrid), Romelu Lukaku (Everton), Dries Mertens (Napoli), Divock Origi (Liverpool).

7 forwards? They're in trouble if they're thinking of playing Dembele up top

lt does look great on paper though. They remind me a bit of Dutch sides in the '90's. Totally stacked, but it feels to me like they will struggle to put it all together.

Looking forward to seeing Carrasco on the big stage though.