Chapter 40 Group C

Chapter 40 Group C

Group C is gathered. The runners-up of the last European Cup, Spain, Ireland, Croatia and Italy, are basically divided into strong and weak teams. However, the strength of Ireland and Croatia cannot be ignored. These two teams are also used to playing in the competition. Play the role of a strong team killer during the game.

As the runner-up in the last European Cup, Spain is undoubtedly one of the biggest favorites to win this European Cup. The playing style with Barcelona's system as the core has left many teams feeling puzzled. However, the lineup is incomplete, and the outside world has brought The huge pressure may become a burden for the defending champion.

Compared with the Spanish team that won the European Cup runner-up four years ago, this time they went to the European Championship without Villa and Puyol who were absent due to injuries, as well as the aging Marchena and Ca Pudevila, Negredo, Cazorla, Juanfran and Alba became the new blood of the defending champion. The most regrettable thing is that the genius boy Adrian and the efficient killer Soldado were not selected.

Needless to say about the goalkeeper, the 31-year-old captain Casillas is at his peak, and no goalkeeper is more stable than him. The lack of Puyol in the back line has dealt a huge blow to Spain, and the hot-tempered Ramos and Pique, who has a flamboyant personality, has always disliked each other. The two of them partnered as central defenders are definitely a time bomb for Spain's defense. From a technical point of view, whether it is the helpless assists or the instability of Pique, they are all very popular. Joel is a teammate who is good at filling in and is extremely stable.

Although right back Arbeloa is active in assists, his quality and efficiency are completely inferior to when Ramos plays right back. Valencia youngster Alba, who has been in very good form recently, has almost secured his position as left back.

The midfield has not changed much since the World Cup. In Del Bosque's 4231 system, Alonso and Busquets are expected to form a starting double midfielder. The former is responsible for organizing the team's offense, while the latter intercepts and controls the team in the midfield. It plays a role in the rhythm of offense and defense.

As for the starting midfield trident, Silva, Iniesta and Xavi are popular, while Fabregas, Martinez, Cazorla, Mata, Navas and others are rotated by Del Bosque. The adjustment provides a wealth of options. Even if Bosque adopts the 433 forwardless tactics commonly used by Barcelona this season, Silva, Iniesta, Xiaofa and others can also complete the task well. The luxurious midfielder almost ensures that The Spanish team is extremely competitive.

On the forward line, despite Villa's efforts to recover, he still missed out. The selection of Negredo and Llorente were beyond reproach in terms of state and style, while the selection of Torres caused dissatisfaction among many fans. Torres was at Chelsea this season. His performance was simply a disaster. Some fans couldn't accept the fact that Torres gave up Adrian, who has performed well recently, and Soldado, the league's efficient goalscorer.

Although the Spanish team is full of talents, the absolute core of the team is undoubtedly Xavi. Tactically, Del Bosque's team basically transplanted Barcelona's control flow style of play. Xavi is undoubtedly the key figure in Spain's control of the game. Especially on the offensive end, Harvey's scheduling will be the key to how successful Spain can be.

In this group, Spain's biggest competitor is Italy. The Italian team has always been the favorite to win the championship. However, the situation in Italy in this European Cup is really not optimistic. Domestic gambling scandals broke out and the team's stars were dim. This team Most people are not optimistic about whether Italy, which is undergoing a transition from old to new, can create a miracle.

After the World Cup in South Africa, Prandelli retired from Florence and became the head coach of the Italian national team. Since coaching the Italian national team, Prandelli's task is more to "build on the past and build on the future" and lead the Italian team to do a good job. The old and the new alternate and give young talents more opportunities to grow.

There are many "regrets" in the Italian team's roster this time. Pazzini, Ranocchia and others who could have been the main candidates were not selected due to Florence's poor performance this season. Before the start of the game, the main left back Criscito He was also removed from the big list because of "gambling".

Fortunately, Cassano recovered miraculously. He, who was originally thought to be a definite miss, caught the last train to the European Cup. This team is already considered a young team compared to the previous Italian team, so many players lack experience in national team competitions. It's a shortcoming of the team.

Another shortcoming is Italy's impact, but with Cassano, Pirlo, Giovinco and others sitting on the bench, the rich creativity may make up for other shortcomings.

The first opponent in the group stage is Spain. It will not be easy for the Azzurri to get three points, but it should also cause greater trouble for the opponent. The key lies in the game against Croatia. Croatia, which is now full of talents, will naturally pose a big threat to the Italian team. If you want to make a difference in this life-and-death battle, you must strengthen the hardness of fighting in the midfield and actively press and use technology to dominate the opponent. , Ireland has the ability to disrupt the situation, but the absolute strength, especially the lack of offensive ability, determines that it is difficult for them to break out of the tight encirclement. Facing them, the ability to attack difficulties is the key. Therefore, qualifying for the group is not difficult.

Another match-fixing case broke out before the competition, which reminds everyone of the summer of 2006. I hope Italy can still perform the miracle of winning the championship under heavy pressure in a last-ditch battle in 2006. Another highlight is Bashen, as long as he is here, He is always something to watch. He is a genius on the court and a weirdo on the court.

As the former world hegemon, Italy's prospects in this European Cup are not very promising, but in fact Prandelli's team has a reasonable age structure, a gradual transition between the old and the new, and a good tactical inheritance. The top line is their basic goal. If they can reach the semi-finals, they will have exceeded their mission.

Of the World Cup winning team six years ago, only Buffon, Barzagli, De Rossi and Pirlo are left. These four are now the mainstay of this national team.

The team's tactical play, on-the-spot changes, and offensive and defensive transitions did not revolve around them at all. Just like six years ago, Buffon is also a crucial part of Italy's ability to perform well, not to mention that Buffon is also the spiritual leader of this team.

Pirlo still plays the same role as the team commander six years ago. Although he is six years older, "Sleeping Skin" is able to devote more energy to offense with the help of the young and powerful Marchisio. Among them, the power of assists also greatly exceeds the level of the past few seasons.

Balotelli is currently generally considered to be the best choice for the starting forward, which can be seen from the fact that Prandelli gave him the No. 9 jersey to wear. In this cup, Super Mario must try his best to control his bad temper, otherwise he will turn from a core player into the team's biggest trouble.

4312 is the tactic currently used by Prandelli, and it has also been a fixed style of play in Italy in recent years. The control of the midfield by the three central midfielders is the core. Of course, this is also based on Pirlo's strong reading and organizational skills. superior. De Rossi and Marchisio on both sides can not only protect the commander in the center, but also frequently move forward or assist teammates to score goals or score goals themselves. Motta and Nocerino are also the focus of the central midfielder position. Consider candidates. Pirlo's dispatching is not enough. The presence of Montolivo and Cassano has enriched the Italian team's attacking routines. Among them, Pirlo and Montolivo frequently change positions in the 4th position, and the card is stuck. Sano's decisive retreat to the midfield to take the ball and activate the middle when restricted by his opponents, etc., all made this Italian offensive method flexible and changeable.

If Italy wants to go further in the European Cup, it will first base itself on a solid defense, focusing on short passes and penetration from the center, supplemented by insertions from the wings to break through the opponent's defense. This is also Italy's traditional playing method for many years.

The transfer from Pirlo's ball control point to both sides, the precise overhead pass to the opponent's ribs, and the sharp quick counterattack are Italy's unique skills to tear apart the opponent's defense.

Up to now, the Italian national team has been away from the top of Europe for 44 years. The victory as the host nation in 1968 is the only time the Azzurri have won the Delaunay Cup so far.

To be fair, Italy is not bad. Buffon, Chiellini, Pirlo, and Balotelli are all top stars in their respective positions. Italy's poor performance in recent years has just given this team a With enough aggressiveness, other teams do not regard Italy as a serious enemy.

In this sense, Italy's low-key participation in this European Cup may lead to unexpected results. Of course, strength comes first on the court after all. Italy's strength is obviously not as good as Spain and Germany, but it is as good as England, Belgium, France, and the Netherlands. , Portugal, etc. is still completely sufficient.

Ireland, this is the first time that the Irish national team has been on the stage of a major competition after 10 years since 2002. Italian coach Trapattoni has injected more Italian elements into this team, which has a traditional British style of play. Most of the players in the Irish team play in the Premier League, so the overall strength is not bad, and there are many famous stars among them.

21 of the 23-man roster are from English clubs. Only captain Keane and Spartak Moscow midfielder McGeady are from leagues outside England. This list basically includes almost all the well-known stars in Ireland at present, including Given, Dunn, Duff, O'Shea, Keane, Gibson, etc. have been selected.

There are famous players on all lines. At the goalkeeper position, veteran Given is reassuring. On the defensive line, former Manchester United star O'Shea can serve as the core. Although central defender Dunn is the Premier League own-goal king, he has rich experience in the Premier League for many years. Ireland has Duff and McGeady on the wing, "Long Shot King" Gibson in the midfield, veteran forward Robbie Keane, and West Brom forward Sean Long, who has performed well this season.

Ireland is in a relatively difficult group in this cup. Spain is the favorite to win. Italy, under the leadership of Prandelli, has gradually returned to the track of winning, while Croatia, under the leadership of young coach Bilic, They are also led by ambitious players, so it will be really difficult for Ireland to qualify.

Another team is the habitual dark horse Croatia. In this cup, Croatia is in the same group as Spain, Italy and Ireland. Although the prospects of qualifying are not optimistic, the advantage of the grid army is that the opponents they encounter are from weak to strong, and they will face them in the first game. Croatia is fully capable of defeating Ireland, the weakest team in this group. In the second game against Italy, Croatia also has a psychological advantage. If they can play well in the first two games, Croatia does have the possibility of grabbing the right to qualify in this group. It is not an impossible task to become a dark horse again.

The team's coach Bilic miraculously reached the semi-finals with the Croatian national team in the 1998 World Cup. After retiring as a coach in 2001, he briefly coached the Croatian domestic team Hajduk Split. Since 2004, he has successively Coaching the Croatian u21 national youth team and the adult national team, the current core members of the Croatian team, Cjorluka and Modric, are direct descendants of him from the national youth team.

In terms of lineup, Deegan's former teammate Modric will undoubtedly become the absolute core of Croatia. After leaving Fiorentina, Modric unexpectedly chose to join the mid-range team Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League. The last two games Modric performed very well for Tottenham this season and was even nominated for the World Footballer of the Year at the end of last year.

Another one worthy of attention is Srna. Shakhtar Donetsk's flying wing is the captain of the Croatian national team this year, and his international competition experience is second only to the veteran defense Simunic. This versatile player on the right has experience representing Croatia as early as the 2004 European Championship. His 19 goals also rank third on the Croatian national team's historical scoring list, second only to Suker and Eduardo. , Srna is not only the absolute main force on the right side of Croatia, but also the leader of the team's locker room.

In which direction the final situation of this group will develop, it mainly depends on whether the strong team can always perform at its best, and what kind of quality the dark horse has.

Relatively speaking, the appearance of Spain should not be a problem. Ireland is relatively weak and may only act as a spoiler. Another qualifying spot will be born between Italy and Croatia.

Although in terms of reputation, Italy wants to stabilize Croatia, Croatia has the advantage in several international competitions. Especially in the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan, Croatia's victory almost forced Italy to fail to appear in the group. the point.

This time, the two teams meet in the group stage. Who will have the last laugh depends not only on the competition between the stars of the two teams on the court, but also on the fighting skills of the coaches of the two teams on the sidelines.