The Euros 2020/2021

I got up at 2:40am to watch it, why do I put myself through it? The match reminded me of the defeat to Germany on penalties in euro 96. We scored very early and the Italy slowly got a foothold in the game. I was thinking that Southgate needed to change something about 5 minutes before Italy scored. Baring the first 25 minutes we didn't really control the midfield until Chiesa got injured. I knew we would bottle the penalties even though when it went to them I was hoping there would be Southgate's redemption through penalties, but it wasn't to be.

To end on a sour note what makes me sick are comments like the one I saw on the BBC discussing/ commenting on of the skin colour of penalty takers (and then there are the other ones that aren't as subtly racist); I could not care less about someone's skin colour in anything other than a simple description to identify someone or you're like me and need to remember your sun cream or you burn to a crisp GAHHHHHHHHH!

 

Interesting selection.

 

This probably sounds very unpatriotic, but I might have zero English players in there, on the grounds that we were very much a team which was more than a sum of its parts, without any outstanding individual. I'd definitely go for Chiellini to partner Bonucci if I was picking a team to go out there and play just because they know each other so well. Can't argue with the midfield. The forwards are tougher, especially the central striker, because if I had to criticise this tournament, I'd say that there was a lack of real class in that area - Morata was erratic, Immobile was rubbish, Ronaldo didn't do much except score penalties, and Lewandowski was in a very poor side, so maybe Lukaku makes sense. Perhaps Sterling deserves his place in there, although the fact that he is a cheat makes me want to exclude him.

 

The operation of VAR in the tournament has been widely applauded, including on here, yet the decision to award England that penalty is rubbished despite having been reviewed by VAR and not overturned!
Question. If it had been Kane rather than Sterling who went down in that incident, would he be labelled "a cheat"? Why wasn't Kane labelled "a cheat" after going down and claiming a penalty in that earlier incident in which he was rightly penalised for fouling the defender in the first place?

 

It was reviewed by VAR and allowed to stand because in this tournament VAR did not overturn the on-field referee's decisions unless there had been a clear and obvious mistake. In my (and many people's) opinion, Sterling dived; in other people's opinion, he didn't (even after watching the replay). So it was right that the decision to award a penalty stand. However, that does not prove that Sterling didn't dive.

Re. the Kane incident, if I am remembering the same thing as you are referring to, Robbie, we disagree again. I personally felt that was more worthy of a penalty than Sterling's going to ground.

In the final I remember at least three occasions in which Sterling again tumbled to the earth in the penalty area. Ironically (again IMO), one of these was probably a decent call for a penalty, but I'm afraid by then his reputation had proceeded him. You don't generally get called "a cheat" on the evidence of one tumble in the penalty area; if it happens again and again, the evidence piles up.

 

I think VAR was handled very well all tournament.
I would however suggest it should have been used in the final for the Jorginho studs up challenge on Grealish.
A colleague tried to suggest to me that Chiellini should have been sent off for pulling Saka back by the neck as he would have been through on goal, but I think he was too far away to call that a clear goal scoring opportunity.

 

And counter-evidence gets ignored. For instance, Sterling was impeded and knocked off balance by Maehle as he ran into the penalty area just prior to the Jensen challenge. He didn't go down, though he could have done; on the contrary, he did everything he could to recover from the resulting stumble, managed to stay on his feet, and continued towards goal. Whether he had fully regained balance before Jensen's intervention is another question.

 

For me Chiellini's pull back on Saka's neck was dangerous play and he should have gone.

 

I'd like to briefly say how difficult it is for referees now that most young players seem not to have grown up believing that diving is unacceptable. Part of the tactics of many skilful dribblers of the ball is to get into the penalty area and 'invite' a foul, and this is totally legitimate. However, if the defender is careful and doesn't take the bait, many players would now simply dive, doing everything they can to make it look as if contact has taken place. Separating the two is almost impossible at times, even with repeated video in slow motion from several angles.

 

This - a clear professional and dangerous foul. Right in front of the lino as well

 

I don't disagree, and the pace the game is played at now also makes even the slightest touch enough to genuinely send a player sprawling. I think players running and trying to position legs unnaturally to invite contact is very hard to police.

But equally, officials have encouraged diving by refusing to give fouls if the attacker hasn't ended up on the deck. There was one with Lukaku at the Euros that I remember where he did well to stay on his feet and try to keep going, despite a clear foul. But he lost some control of the ball and couldn't make anything of the chance. Going to ground would have definitely secured him the set piece, so staying up disadvantaged him.

 

I remember thinking the same at the time. On the other hand, Lukaku is a big, powerful guy and it takes a lot more to shift him off the ball than most; challenges often look to be mere irritations to him, Lilliputians attempting to down Gulliver!