I don't know myself either what the deleted posts were about, but just looking at the ridiculous posts above show that it's about children gangs fighting each other. I don't need that and hope that we can get back to talk about
soccer.
this is an European forum so I'd prefer to talk about
football
and otherwise I agree. As some posts were deleted and we didn't know what was said exactly and which context, we can only refer to what we see in this thread. And indeed some posts were pretty childish and I wonder why people who are obviously not interested in football join this thread and spam. Looked a bit like Lovecraft and Deniz/ESC Turkey had arguments before but I can't and don't want to judge on that. Anyway, when people feel offended or are in a dispute they sometimes write silly things they would regret afterwards.
Back to topic: Finally it's the final match day
I have a hard time predicting this one, but I feel like it will be a long night again. The odds consider England slight favorites probably because of the home advantage. However, England still didn't impress me. The attack could shine against a bad defense line of Ukraine but they didn't create a lot against us (can hardly remember chances apart from the two goals) and they didn't create a lot against a pretty tired Danish side, that had given up their midfield stability when they made three substitutions in the 65th minute. Sure, some nice saves by Schmeichel but in consideration of the high presence of English players in the Danish box the outcome was average and in the end they needed a present by the referee team.
However, credits to England for coming back after being a goal back. This has certainly boosted their self-confidence as they managed to prove they can also deal with resistance. I think the attendance can give them wings tonight again, I just hope everything is gonna be fair on the stands and especially after the match. There were some terrible reports about Danish fans, even families, being attacked by British fans after the match. And I wonder, if the aggressions are on a high level after an English win, how are they gonna be after England, maybe, loses? What also annoys me, especially since I usually consider Southgate a good sportman, is a statement of him, which actually affirm the silly war narrative of the English crowds:
Whereas predecessors as England coach would stick to talking about matters on the field, Southgate has often talked about the role of sports in uniting the country since the 2016 Brexit referendum. And he doesn’t shy away from how the nation has been shaped by military conflicts — and the place victory over Nazi Germany in World War II has in the sense of nationhood.
Southgate brought up how much it resonated that England beat the modern-day Germany 2-0 in the round of 16 at Euro 2020.
“People have tried to invade us and we’ve had the courage to hold that back,” Southgate said. “You can’t hide that some of the energy in the stadium against Germany was because of that. I never mentioned that to the players, but I know that’s part of what that story was.”
BURTON-ON-TRENT, England (AP) — Behind the unassuming coach on the touchline, Gareth Southgate grasps the privilege of a status never sought and the leadership qualities now so admired in England.
apnews.com
I think England will be the dominant team tonight and Italy will rely on their defense strength in the beginning. Having said that, Italys centre midfield is much more solid than the midfield of England so if it's necessary Italy can gain control quite easily in my oopinion. Also, against Spain they proved they can go forward pretty straight when they gain the ball so I expect them to use the space by counter attacks and puts the English goal into danger. And even if England manage to defense their attacks, Italy is good in winning the "second balls" and scoring from behind if it's necessary. We could see impressive goals from the distance against Switzerland, Belgium and also against Spain.
How is England gonna try to beat Italy's defense? Well I guess they will again attack on the flanks, as they successfully did before. They might just prefer the right side, where Emerson has to replace the injured Spinazzola. Emerson played well against Spain, especially when he pushed forward and took risks. But defensively I'd prefer Spinazzola any day, so I guess England is gonna try to put pressure on the right side and take an advantage of the space behind Emerson when he pushes forward too much.
Set pieces (apart from a possible penalty shoot-out) I think won't be a factor tonight as both can defend them quite well.
I think Italy is gonna win this by 2-1 goals in extra time