Thursday, June 12, 2008

Euro 08--Kinda Like The World Cup I Guess, Day 5




PORTUGAL 3, CZECH REPUBLIC 1
After both of these teams won their opener, we were guaranteed to have our first 2-0 team after this one.
Unless they tied, in which case all both of these teams would have to do in the final is just get a tie against Turkey (Czech's opponent), and Switzerland (Portugal's), and then they are both in the final 8. Given that, it would have made more sense for these teams just to come out and kick the ball back and forth to each other for 90 minutes. Guess they don't teach math in these countries.

Anyway, the two teams went all out, and Cristiano Ronaldo looked like the best player in the world he purportedly is, scoring a goal and setting up another to lead Portugal to victory.
Barca midfielder Deco opened the scoring in the 7th minute to put the winners up 1-0. The Czechs equalised in the 16th minute off a corner kick, before Ronaldo fired a homing device from the edge of the box that threaded its way through the Czech defense like Catherine Z. Jones evading those laser beams in that movie she did with Sean Connery that I can't remember the name of right now, to give the Portugese a lead they would not relinquish.




TURKEY 2, SWITZERLAND 1
And we've got our first team to be eliminated from Euro 08, and it's one of the hosts, Switzerland. This game looked like it was heading for a 1-1 draw that would have kept both teams alive (barely), but in the 90th minute, Turkish midfielder Arda Turan toe-bashed a shot from the edge of the box that just found its way under the crossbar, stunning the crowd and giving the Turks the 2-1 win. Turkey can now advance with a win over the Czechs in the finale. A loss would be an insult to Turkishness and punishable by death.

GROUP A STANDINGS
Portugal 6 PTS
Czech Rep 3
Turkey 3
Switzerland 0

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