Euro 2008 : Round Robin 2

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Group A match between between Portugal and Czech Republic was a treat to watch, and more so if you are a Portuguese fan ;-)

Croatia pulled out a stunner in the Group B match beating the Germans 2 - 1. Germans were completely in disarray for the entire duration of the match. They just had a horrible day at office. Not a single pass was in the right place. I dont remember seeing Klose making any impact on the match. And thats a very unusual thing to see. Germans now have to win their next match with Austria to qualify to the quarter finals. [ or atleast draw with Austria ]

The way Netherlands is playing, there is little doubt in assuming that they would make it to the finals. I am expecting to see a Holland - Portugal final. The Dutch are in prime form and are playing their football with great flair and teamwork. They certainly look invinsible. Italy were stunned by the drawn match with Romania. Romania have a technical chance to make it to the knockout stage, but only if they beat the inform Dutch team, or atleast if they draw with Dutch, while the Italy and France match as well ends in a draw. This sets up the Italy and France match very precariously, with both the teams needing nothing less than a win to move ahead to the quarters. Will we see a repeat of the World Cup final in the results ? Hopefully, both the teams play some watchable football and go for the kill.

As expected, the Russians knocked out Euro 2004 champions Greece in the second round robin match itself. It was the Spanish and Swedish match that created more fervor than any other in this group. The referee for this match was horrible. He was hell bent on breaking the flow of the match, by taking his own time to blow the whistle for free-kicks. It was even worse to see him blow the half time whistle when Spain was near to complete an attack. Probably, it was just providence that Spain scored the final goal to beat Sweden and lead the teams in this group. 

Czech Republic, Germany, Italy, France, Sweden and Russia would be the teams that will be to watch out for the last round of the round robin matches in this Euro 2008.