The Quarters :
The first of the quarters was between the Portuguese and the Czechs. A tremendous display by the Real Madrid powerhouse once again (A fine contender for this years Ballon d'Or) as he headed the only goal of the night. A glorious piece of individual skill was not rewarded with a goal in the first half, while a typically long-range free-kick clipped the post too.( the curse of the woodwork!).
Germany then routed the Greece 4-2 to ominously ease into the semi-final. Ozil took the match ball home as he glided around the pitch laying on chances and producing openings at will. The next day, Xabi Alonso celebrated his 100th international cap with both goals in a 2-0 win as Spain saw off France who seemed to be off sorts to set up an Iberian derby against Portugal in the semi-finals.(Probably the biggest rivalry in Europe!).
Sadly England had to see the door as a heart-breaking penalty - shootout loss sent them home. A cool spot kick by the Italian Talisman put England under a lot of pressure to which the two 'Ashleys' succumbed to as England lost 4-2.
The Semis :
The Euro Semis was a real treat as it was Portugal vs Spain on one hand and Germany vs Italy on another. First up was the Iberian derby. A pacy and 'don't touch your remote' kind of match which sadly ended in a nil-nill scoreline. Both teams had fair amount of chances yet could not settle it even in extra-time. It was down to penalties once again! João Moutinho missed the first one and so did Alonso (yes! he actually missed a spot-kick) Pepe, Nani, Iniesta and Pique found the net making the score 2 each. Next up was Ramos (we all remember the space-rocket jokes :| ) who surprisingly did a Pirlo by chipping the ball over the Portugese keeper. (Sweet!). By this time I was waiting for Ronaldo to take his kick, when suddenly (surprise surprise!!) Bruno Alves steps up and misses!!! So a poor judgement by the coach made sure that the men in red got a chance to retain their title ( Frankly, in my opinion Portugal deserved it, but hey I am a CR7 fan so i might be biased.).
The match between Germany and Italy totally lived upto its expectations. The 'bad boy' of Prandelli's side and also the youngest player on the pitch made the biggest impact as two first-half goals (My word!! they were truly amazing!!) fired Italy through to a Euro 2012 final against Spain. Germany's defense were nowhere to be seen as the "Mario" of Italy stole the show. (A weird celebration to follow - nothing unexpected though)
The FINAL!! :
So on Sunday the first of July, was the time to crown the "Champions of Europe" A tasty match between the tournament underdogs Italy against the World cup winners Spain and Oh God! it was a disaster for the blues. Spain totally owned them on the night. It was too much to handle as Spain went on to win it by trashing their rather unlucky opponents in a historic win! Spain started the match with no striker as they had done so for the most part of the tournament. Goals from David Silva and Jordi Alba had knocked the stuffing out of the Italians in the first half. Fernando Torres coming on in the second half finished them off with a goal and an assist to his Chelsea team-mate Mata. ( He stole the golden boot !!! with the least game-time Yay!! ). Match ending in a 4-0 defeat to Pirlo and his team.
And so it was Spain stealing the show and painting Europe in red with chants of "Viva La Espana" heard all around the world!
The first of the quarters was between the Portuguese and the Czechs. A tremendous display by the Real Madrid powerhouse once again (A fine contender for this years Ballon d'Or) as he headed the only goal of the night. A glorious piece of individual skill was not rewarded with a goal in the first half, while a typically long-range free-kick clipped the post too.( the curse of the woodwork!).
Germany then routed the Greece 4-2 to ominously ease into the semi-final. Ozil took the match ball home as he glided around the pitch laying on chances and producing openings at will. The next day, Xabi Alonso celebrated his 100th international cap with both goals in a 2-0 win as Spain saw off France who seemed to be off sorts to set up an Iberian derby against Portugal in the semi-finals.(Probably the biggest rivalry in Europe!).
Sadly England had to see the door as a heart-breaking penalty - shootout loss sent them home. A cool spot kick by the Italian Talisman put England under a lot of pressure to which the two 'Ashleys' succumbed to as England lost 4-2.
The Euro Semis was a real treat as it was Portugal vs Spain on one hand and Germany vs Italy on another. First up was the Iberian derby. A pacy and 'don't touch your remote' kind of match which sadly ended in a nil-nill scoreline. Both teams had fair amount of chances yet could not settle it even in extra-time. It was down to penalties once again! João Moutinho missed the first one and so did Alonso (yes! he actually missed a spot-kick) Pepe, Nani, Iniesta and Pique found the net making the score 2 each. Next up was Ramos (we all remember the space-rocket jokes :| ) who surprisingly did a Pirlo by chipping the ball over the Portugese keeper. (Sweet!). By this time I was waiting for Ronaldo to take his kick, when suddenly (surprise surprise!!) Bruno Alves steps up and misses!!! So a poor judgement by the coach made sure that the men in red got a chance to retain their title ( Frankly, in my opinion Portugal deserved it, but hey I am a CR7 fan so i might be biased.).
The match between Germany and Italy totally lived upto its expectations. The 'bad boy' of Prandelli's side and also the youngest player on the pitch made the biggest impact as two first-half goals (My word!! they were truly amazing!!) fired Italy through to a Euro 2012 final against Spain. Germany's defense were nowhere to be seen as the "Mario" of Italy stole the show. (A weird celebration to follow - nothing unexpected though)
The FINAL!! :
So on Sunday the first of July, was the time to crown the "Champions of Europe" A tasty match between the tournament underdogs Italy against the World cup winners Spain and Oh God! it was a disaster for the blues. Spain totally owned them on the night. It was too much to handle as Spain went on to win it by trashing their rather unlucky opponents in a historic win! Spain started the match with no striker as they had done so for the most part of the tournament. Goals from David Silva and Jordi Alba had knocked the stuffing out of the Italians in the first half. Fernando Torres coming on in the second half finished them off with a goal and an assist to his Chelsea team-mate Mata. ( He stole the golden boot !!! with the least game-time Yay!! ). Match ending in a 4-0 defeat to Pirlo and his team.
And so it was Spain stealing the show and painting Europe in red with chants of "Viva La Espana" heard all around the world!
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