Is It Coming Home? Recapping an Exhilarating First Week.

Karan Ahgun

— 3 min read
Is It Coming Home? Recapping an Exhilarating First Week.
Photo by Peri Stojnic / Unsplash

Well EURO 2024 has certainly started with a bang and I would hope that the tournament continues as it has started! The hosts, Germany, out down a marker on Friday night with their 5-1 victory over Scotland. Talents like Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz showcased their ability, with both scoring brilliant goals, whilst Kai Havertz continued his good vein of form from the end of last season. I have to caveat this with Scotland tax though. Whilst Germany were impressive, Scotland were quite poor. Ryan Porteous' reckless tackle on Ilkay Gundogan was an example of the Scots' lack of quality and they will be hoping to improve their performance against Switzerland and Hungary (unlikely).

Spain surprised me with their directness. It was something that I haven't seen before when watching Spain in international competitions but it was a welcome change. I always found Spain to be irritating to watch after the novelty of tiki-taka football in 2008 and 2010 but this new direct approach using pacy wingers like Nico Williams and Lamine Yamal is refreshing and exciting. One of the more eye-opening stats from La Roja's opening match against Croatia was that it was the first time in 136 competitive games that they had less possession than their opposition. This further highlights a move away from the values of tiki-taka football to a hybrid version including more directness and physicality in attacking areas.

Three of the favourites prior to the tournament, England, France & Portugal, huffed and puffed to get over the line in their first matches but ultimately secured the win. Of the three, England were by far the most disappointing. The balance of the team was all wrong. Trippier playing at left-back is understandable but the midfield balance has to be sorted out before the Three Lions face better opposition later in the tournament. In my opinion, one of Kobbie Mainoo or Adam Wharton have to play alongside Declan Rice in midfield instead of TAA who is looking like a failed experiment. Phil Foden needs to be utilised better too or England might be having another Gerrard, Lampard & Scholes problem again. Also, please stop dropping back after scoring! It's a recipe for disaster!

France stuttered to a 1-0 win against Austria with Wöber's own goal in the first half ultimately being enough for the victory. The standout performer for Les Bleus was the incredible N'Golo Kante. Kante's performance was like a throwback to when he first stepped into the Premier League. He was all-action and looked like he could still be playing for Chelsea. On a slightly sour note, Kylian Mbappé broke his nose after a robust challenge from Kevin Danso and there are doubts about his availability for France's game against The Netherlands. He will be wearing a mask for the rest of his involvement (TMNT transformation complete?).

Portugal were dominant in terms of possession and shots against Czechia but didn't make as many clear-cut chances as their dominance would suggest. I didn't understand the line-up, with Nuno Mendes playing LCB in a back-three, when he is one of the best attacking left-backs in the competition. Bernado Silva and Rafael Leão were disappointing but I thought that Bruno Fernandes and Vitinha in midfield were doing their best to create chances for Ronaldo. Francisco Conceição and Pedro Neto's contributions in the dying embers of the game were crucial to secure the win for Portugal and the former was congratulated enthusiastically by Cristiano Ronaldo.

Let's see if the next week of EUROs action brings more excitement and more long-distance bangers! Keep an eye on Own Goal for the Golden Boot too!

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