It’s getting close – only 3 matches to play. Don’t forget to use your ‘golden ball’ if you haven’t yet. In respect of the final bonus question, there is only one member still in the game (10 pts). The long term leader may make it all the way through – but you never know.
Hope you enjoy it. Let me know.
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The straight red card in the 78th minute to Swiss Midfielder Freuler by the english referee “Oliver” changed the flow of the game completely. Based on the UEFA VAR-rules, the VAR actually has the option to change Yellow to Red – that would have been the better option in my opinion. The VIDEO-VAR still could have decided ‘red’ after the main referee shows a yellow for the defensive foul, which was not given from my perspective. It was a clear ‘foul’ but not against the player as it was a regular fight for the ball.
Why aren’t the Video referees not able to tune in and make the necessary changes? The very first decision against Switzerland in history was by the Video-VAR – now when you need ’em – they are not showing up.
Hopefully the referee will enjoy his lifelong vacation at the beaches in Spain.
Playing 10 against 12 isn’t fun anymore.
If you disagree – please comment below.
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Denmark vs. Wales
Denmark is favored, but Wales is good as well. Gareth Bale is showing why he’s still one of the top talents in the world and Aaron Ramsey is taking charge in the midfield. Denmark may be past its early struggles after Christian Eriksen’s collapse, but still only has one win in the last three contests.
Italy vs. Austria
Italy has raced past everyone in the group stage so far, showing why it is considered one of the favorites in the tournament. Austria has a solid back line with David Alaba and Stefan Lainer, but the Italians are rightfully favored.
Netherlands vs. Czech Republic
Netherlands is unsurprisingly favored to win this one after they cruised through the group stage with three straight victories, winning Group C in the process. Georginio Wijnaldum led the way with three goals while Memphis Depay added two goals and two assists of his own. That’s not to say Czech Republic are already down and out before it even starts, though. They finished the group stage with a 2-0 win, a 1-1 draw, and a narrow 1-0 loss against England, and should put up a fight against the Dutch even though they’re the clear underdogs. Patrik Schick finished the group stage with three goals, including one absolute world-class wonder goal in the opening match.
Croatia vs. Spain
No surprise here that Spain are the favorites to win over Croatia, especially after their 5-0 shellacking of Slovakia in their third and final group stage match. Spain finished in second place, just two points behind Sweden and will take on the second-place team from Group D which ended up Croatia. The Croatians finished the group stage 1-1-1, winning their third and final match with a 3-1 scoreline over Scotland, just barely edging out Czech Republic on a tiebreaker. Luka Modric and his squad will look to upset the Spanish giants despite the odds being stacked against them.
England vs. Germany
England fared better in their group standings than Germany did, but then again England wasn’t drawn into the group of death, either. Three Lions finished top of Group D, logging wins over both Croatia and Czech Republic while ending their match against Scotland in a scoreless draw, scoring only two goals through three games. Germany finished second in Group F, narrowly escaping elimination at the hands of Hungary before they found a late game equalizer. They were able to take down Portugal 4-2 in their second game after opening the group campaign with a 1-0 loss to France. Now these two sides will face off against each other in the Round of 16, and while England is only slightly favored here to Germany, I would argue it could be flipped as Germany definitely has the talent to move on. This game could easily go either way, and will be an exciting affair to watch.
Belgium vs. Portugal
Portugal, after escaping Group F in third place, will have to take on a very good Belgium side who went 3-0-0 in Group B, locking up the top spot without much trouble. Belgium only allowed one goal through three games — their 2-1 win over Denmark — while scoring seven of their own. Romelu Lukaku was a standout as he notched three goals for the Red Devils while several other players added one each. Portugal also totaled seven goals through the group stage, with Cristiano Ronaldo leading the way with an impressive five. Belgium is favored to win, and I think that’s the right call, but Ronaldo and the Portugal squad could be poised for an upset.
France vs. Switzerland
The reigning World Cup champs are riding high after finishing first in Group F. Karim Benzema led the way with two goals as Kylian Mbappe surprisingly didn’t get even one. They’re heavily favored to beat Switzerland and rightfully so — as the Swiss sneaked through in the Group A’s third-place spot. Switzerland has some big players in Kevin Mbabu and Xherdan Shaqiri, but France is the obvious choice for the win here.
Sweden vs. Ukraine
Sweden finished at the top of Group E thanks to a stoppage time goal from Viktor Claesson in their third and final group stage game, giving them a 3-2 win over Poland. Striker Emil Forsberg scored the other three goals in the opening stage while their defense was able to keep two clean sheets including a scoreless draw with Spain. While Ukraine didn’t fare too well, they slipped through with the third place spot in Group C thanks to the three points they collected from North Macedonia in a 2-1 win. They lost their other two outings, and honestly their odds to win don’t seem low enough, as Sweden should definitely be expected to win this contest.
What is your take? Let me know in your comments below.
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As of today, all teams have shown their form and the group winner bonus questions need to be answered before the next games. Make sure you have all group winners selected.
France win heavyweight clash with Germany thanks to Hummels own goal!!
Mbappé’s superiority seems effortless every time he runs and twice more he showcased that. He might have won a penalty when he burned past Hummels, starting a good seven or eight metres behind him and finishing a metre in front where the centre-back just managed to dive in and take it off his toe. And another run seemed to have wrapped it all up when he escaped everyone and rolled across for Karim Benzema to score, the same flag delivering. France were not to be denied. Yet resisting is just another thing France do well, perhaps better even than the rest of it – and they’re good at that.
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GAME: Wales 1-1 Switzerland, June 12
DECISION: Mario Gavranovic (Switzerland) goal disallowed for offside, 85th minute.
WHAT HAPPENED: Breel Embolo helped the ball on to Gavranovic inside the six-yard box, and he finished well past goalkeeper Danny Ward. The Swiss celebrated what they thought was a late winner, only for the VAR to rule it out for offside.
VAR RATING: 9/10 – Definitely the correct decision. Gavranovic was just ahead of the last defender when Embolo played the ball and VAR came to Wales’ rescue. However, UEFA’s lack of transparency in broadcasting the final VAR offside image loses it a point.
This is history and even if I agree with the decision – it took some points away from me ;-(
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I hope everybody is going to enjoy the upcoming games. It has been some time before we finally will get some decent soccer again. Keep in mind, you are able to change your bets up to 2′ before the game starts, then your last chances are gone …… You always can be proactive and put all the ‘potential’ bets in the system already now – not worrying about a potential weak signal or other issues.
If you ever experience any connection issues – send me an email – and I will try to fix what will be fixable.
Keep pounding for your team – am sure you know which is my team!!
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As you hopefully have your way to our page – you know – the countdown is on – less than two weeks!
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Am really glad you found your way back to our website. Most importantly WELCOME to YOUR site!
The more content we all provide – the more information we share – the more interesting the upcoming Soccer Championship will be. After all the hurdles the normal life took on all of us – it’s finally time to get back to a ‘new’ normal. Soccer is the combining part of bringing people back together – even virtually.
So let’s take some time – use the forum to post whatever you want to talk about – and enjoy the upcoming great games of the most famous sports of all times.
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If you have not yet pulled your
“golden ball” you only have two matches left to do so!!
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