Los Toros

By AM Sunday, June 16, 2024

Share Tweet Share Share Email

Anthony McIntyre ⚽ No better way to celebrate Father's Day than with a feast of international soccer.

Strange as it may sound, even bonkers, I am predicting an England victory in Euro 2024. That could all come off the rails this evening if they fall to Serbia.  

A most encouraging sign from the England perspective is that Gareth Southgate chose not to include Jack Grealish in his side. It is difficult to see what he brings to Manchester City and impossible to see how he could raise his game to the standard required at this level of competition. Battle rather than bottle is what top drawer soccer needs. 

So far the most impressive team has been Spain. An ageing Croatia side was taken apart by the Spaniards in a manner not dissimilar to the drubbing Scotland took at the hands of Germany. Los Toros takes pole position by the slightest of margins simply because Die Mannschaft are on home turf, for now benefitting from the false bottom that provides. As the tide goes out, as it inevitably does later in the competition, when a Darwinian battle of the fittest takes hold, then we shall see who is naked. But for now, the only two teams who look like they could win are Spain and Germany. 

The 1992 winners, Denmark, were in action earlier but I was walking the dog and missed them. A 1-1 draw against Slovenia suggests they won't be paying an expensive hotel bill when they depart the scene. Still, it was heartening to see Christian Eriksen grab a goal on his return to the Euro competition after his almost fatal exit on the last outing three years ago. 

Spain are certainly not the force they were when they were unrivalled in world soccer, winning two Euros and a World Cup in a six year period. But something of the old spark has returned. There is fluency and individual talent coupled with the managerial acumen to integrate the talents into a collective where unlike a team characterised by egos, the players cooperate with each other rather than compete.

The Netherlands, no longer the force of old in world soccer, looked very unconvincing against Poland today. Myself and Barry Gilheany found ourselves in agreement after the game that Poland deserved to get something from the encounter.  The Dutch pupils (the master tag deserted them quite some time ago) missed chance after chance. On one occasion Cody Gakpo seemed to think he was still wearing a Liverpool shirt, firing his shot over the bar when it was much easier to find the back of the net. 

Italy didn't look too inspiring either in last night's opener against Albania. After recovering from a first minute goal, they did enough and no more, and could as easily have been pulled back to evens at the game's end. Gli Azzurri just didn't do enough in their opening game to emit a message that the same steely determination of the side that won the tournament last time around, runs through the current crop.  

My son, a France enthusiast, thinks Les Bleus will storm to glory in Euro 2024, but I am not so sure. England were unlucky to lose to them in the quarter final of the Qatar World Cup. He looks at me with a quizzical frown when I tell him England can go the distance in this one.

Experience should tell me that the safe money has to be on anybody but England, even more so in the wake of the friendly defeat against Iceland. As I don't gamble I have the liberty to put my imaginary money on whoever takes my fancy. 

In a few minutes I will open the Tequila, pig out on the order-in - treated by the clan on Father's Day - and plump for England, hoping that Trent Alexander Arnold does not, like Gakpo, think he too is in a Liverpool shirt. It is a tenuous gamble, risking the wrath and ridicule of Peter Anderson in his upcoming Tuesday column where he will certainly touch on the England performance. 

Let the chips fall where they may.

⏩Follow on Twitter @AnthonyMcIntyre.