Euro 2012 Final

First off, I must apologize to the Italian team.  They have far exceeded what I thought they were capable of at this tournament.  The Azura truly deserve to be in the Final with Spain.  After squeaking by the first round, they out classed England and again squeaked by via PKs to the Semis. Once in the Semifinal, the Italians dominated the German team with the same stifling defense that the world has come to know them for during the better part of the past decade and a half..  Their offense looked better, livelier than the German side.

As for the Germans, I cannot even explain what I saw the other day.  This was their tournament.  It was supposed to be their coronation, at long last a trophy for all their hard work.  But alas, like the Russians against the Greeks, the German team crumbled under the pressure of the moment.  Every other game that they played in this tournament was so easy for them.  As soon as the Germans ran into a team (the Italians) with the wherewithal to actually put up a fight, they lost all sense of who they were.  The midfield and backline should be very disappointed with themselves.

What were Gomez and Klose supposed to do when the heart of the German team, the supposed strength, failed them so miserably?

I still don't know what was wrong with Bastain Schweinsteiger.  If he had a bad ankle and was so ineffective against the Greeks, why on Earth did the man start and play the whole match against the Italians.  He was better in the Semifinal but there was no energy and the only time he did anything positive was at the very end when he began lobbing the ball in toward goal once the game was lost.  Not sure what the Germans will have to do to overcome this massive setback.  First Bayern Munich in the Champions League Final, and then this stinker against Italy.  It's going to be a long off season for some of these players.  They are better suited for a deep run in a tournament than the Russians, but they have to shed that choker status--much like Lebron James did this year in winning his first NBA Championship in dominating fashion.  You cannot let up, ever, until the prize is yours.



There was also another semifinal game this week.  The Spanish beat the Portuguese via penalty kicks, without Ronaldo talking a kick.  Big deal.  Somebody had to go last.  I believe there is an old saying about saving the best for last, but maybe that doesn't factor into PKs.  This was a claustrophobic game to watch.  Not that it was truly tense the whole way through, because there were hardly ever any scoring opportunities for either team.  This was a battle of defenses.

Spain truly does miss David Villa and Carles Puyol.  It's hard to believe that they have made it this far without them, but I believe there is something to be said about a heart of a champion.  It permeates through this Spanish team.  The confidence they have.  The depth of their collective character.  This is the thing that it seemed the German team had, but it proved to be a false confidence that comes from winning without effort.
The Italians have that same grit of character that prevents them from giving up hope, no matter the odds.  No matter how little rest they have.  

Credit goes to the Portuguese--they did not falter until the PKs.  But they blew it when they called back Bruno Alves once he had begun the lonely walk out to take the PK that Nani then went on to make.  I cannot tell you how crucial an error that was.  To go the whole match without a mistake and make it to penalty kicks with Spain was a huge victory, but then to shatter Alves' concentration as well as his confidence was inexcusable.  This was the biggest gaff of the tournament, without a doubt.  They should of had somebody else take Alves spot after that, or just let him take the shot and have Nani go next.  But they didn't.  Foolish.  Alves, of course, went on to miss his PK and the rest is history.  Spain wins and Ronaldo never gets a whiff of goal.     

This should be a brilliant final to watch. I said last week that I thought the Italians were on the decline.  I was wrong.  Whether or not they will be as good come World Cup 2014, we'll see, but they are rock solid right now.  They are a strong willed team led by willy veterans like Buffon and Pirlo, and they have several crafty youngsters like Mario Balotelli.

Can the heart of the reigning champions in Spain overcome the unlikely resurgence of Italy.  I have doubted Italy's metal twice in this tournament so far.  I will not make that mistake for a third time.  Spain is trying to not only win the championship, but also to make history.  No team has ever won back to back European Championships.  That is added pressure that cannot be denied, especially in the final game.

The Italians have no pressure on them--they will come in calm, cool and collected.  Italy is  playing with house money at this point.  No one expected them to beat Germany, but they did so in dominating fashion.  If Spain had David Villa and Carles Puyol out there for them, I would say that Spain would just out class the Italians and win their second European Championship in a row.  Those guys are not going to be out there, though. 


Italy will come out firing, and I believe it would take a Balotelli self-implosion (aka a red card) for the momentum to switch to the Spanish side.  The Portuguese have shown that you can have equal possession against the Spanish, and the Italians are better at doing so than the Portuguese.  The Italians will be riding a wave of confidence coming into this match and will very likely be holding the trophy on Sunday.    


In spite of the dominate Spanish defense, Italy wins 2-1.  


Enjoy the Game!


-aap