New Euro 2008 Power Rankings

2008-09-10T06:59:46-04:00

2008-06-16T10:09:40-04:00

2008-09-10T06:38:34-04:00

2008-06-17T09:22:45-04:00

grumpee

No City 438762

Biggest World cup upsets 1. 1982 Italy vs Brasil. David vs Goliath. Oh how the mighty can fall. 2. 2006 Italy vs Germany - On home soil in a stadium where Germany never lost dating back to the 1930's Germany was brought to it's knees 3. 1990 Italy vs Argentina - On home soil with a stacked team expected to win it all Cannigia delivers the knockout punch to bring the game to penalties where Argentina prevails Peculiar how the Italians figure into many dramatic games. 1994513

2008-06-16T20:29:47-04:00

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Barca4Life

Milwaukee 440478

As a native Spaniard I have to swallow hard but admit that Portugal should be ranked ahead of us despite their one loss which was essentially a give-away game. Spain has looked shaky at times at the back. Ramos has been making poor clearances and making far too many runs up the field exposing the back defense even more. And if Puyol isn't fully fit to play in the next round that just raises even more reason for concern. Say what you will about Puyol, but basing his performance solely on the Euro's he's been Spain's best defender by far! He saved Ramos' butt on a number of occasions in their first match. Even with a star studded lineup, Puyol's still the heart and soul of the team. 1993079

2008-06-16T19:03:21-04:00

DoubleX

New York 441455

I'll chime in with 1982 as the best I saw. The final was anticlimatic, but the France-West Germany semifinal was one for the ages and the quality of play in both rounds prior to the semis was exceptional (Brazil in particular deserves a mention). I think one of the reasons the WC and most major tournaments for that matter isn't as quality across the board, particularly after the group stages, is that there is no longer a 2nd group round. Everyone seems to forget that what made that Italy-Brazil match so memorable (in 1982) was that Italy had to win to advance because they were in group play. Teams often play not to lose in the knockout rounds, but will often need results (wins or ties) in group play. I believe losing that 2nd group round has really hurt tournament play. For example, I think Italy and France tomorrow is going to be a lot more interesting than the World Cup final because both teams need a result to have a chance of advancing. Someone above asked why the teams play their last group matches at the same time. In 1978, Argentina needed to beat Peru by four goals (or more) to advance to the finals. They won by 6 and to this day the Brazilians think Peru folded purposely. Even worse, in 1982, Austria and West Germany could both advance (at the expense of a very good Algerian team) if the Germans won 1-0. After scoring early, the two teams just basically let the clock run and did no attacking whatsoever. Arguably the single most embarrassing match in WC history. 1992679

2008-06-16T17:29:48-04:00

amerinfrance

No City 439801

"Omahan" ... I've been converted to become a Russian football fan. I saw a lot of the St. Petersburg team that won the UEFA Cup (beating Bayern, among others). Russian football has really taken a big step forward (perhaps in conjunction with the improved economy there). Granted, the national team hasn't looked as cohesive or smart as the St. Petersburg club, but I'm expecting good things out of Russia against Sweden (perhaps an upset victory) 1992025

2008-06-16T17:13:14-04:00

LuisR

Minneapolis 439363

I'd be curious to hear what you think about goalies and PKs as we start to head into the Quarterfinals. I think this part of the game is overlooked too often, as so many of these games are decided from the spot. 1991901

2008-06-16T16:50:51-04:00

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Omahan

Omaha 163668

Based on the Round 2 games, Sweden looks six places better than Russia to me. Sweden gave Spain an even game and was unlucky to lose on a late goal. Russia-Greece looked like a matchup of two non-contenders, and was only decided on a bad play by the Greek keeper. Since I'd be very surprised to see Russia escape the group stage, especially since Sweden can advance with a tie. 1991674

2008-06-16T16:26:47-04:00

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MoriartySucks

424631

I only saw it live and then a couple of replays, but it looked to me like David Villa never even touched the ball. That could be called brilliant, I suppose, but it looked more like a lucky bounce of the ball and bad defense. 1991421

2008-06-16T16:24:33-04:00

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Burgundy

Baltimore 142635

1982 - la Forza Italia's march through Zico's Brazil and Rummenigge's Germany to win it all should be considered an example of determination. (The fact that I was actually at the final game has nothing to do with it.) Marco Tardelli and Alessandro Altobelli were both highly underrated in all of those games. 1991390

2008-06-16T15:29:40-04:00

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nelsonorange71

No City 116259

O.K. when was the last both managers were sent off in a game? 1990592

2008-06-16T15:29:04-04:00

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nelsonorange71

No City 116259

For me it espa??a 82. Italy 3 Brazil 2 Germany's comeback win against France although with controversy. And the stars maradona, zico, kempes, platini, tigana, rummenigge, boniek, lato, rossi, zoff, well the list goes on and on. 1990538

For entertaining soccer, stirring comebacks and fantastic finishes, Euro 2008 is shaping up so far as the best major tournament in a long, long time. (Help me out, older folks: were the World Cups in 1970, ’82 and ’86 better than this? I only go back to World Cup ’90.) As we head into Monday’s Group B finales (Germany-Austria and Croatia-Poland), it’s time for our second edition of the Euro 2008 Power Rankings. Same caveats as always: the Rankings are based solely on how impressed—or unimpressed—I’ve been with these teams’ performances on the field in this tournament, and the quality of opponents’ performances is being taken into account as well: 1. Netherlands (last ranking: 1). In hindsight, it was the 3-0 Dutch romp over Italy last week that got this tournament headed in such a memorable direction. It’s hard to single anyone out with this entire team cranking on all cylinders, but Wesley Sneijder has been incredible in the midfield. 2. Spain (last ranking: 2). If you get a chance, take another look at the sublime piece of skill shown by David Villa on his last-minute goal to beat Sweden. Genius, I say. I’ve got concerns about Spain's defense—just as I do about the D on the top two other teams as well—but does it really matter if you can simply outscore your opponents? 3. Portugal (last ranking: 3). Don’t worry about the meaningless hiccup against Switzerland. Portugal got a chance to rest all of its big guns, which should come in handy for a likely quarterfinal date against Germany. 4. Croatia (last ranking: 10). The checker-boarders came to play against Germany, toppling the pre-tournament favorite with an often-exquisite display of skill and (even more surprising) midfield domination. I’d still like to see a little more from Luka Modric, however. 5. Turkey (last ranking: 6). What more can you say? The Turks’ epic 3-2 win over the Czech Republic was one of the greatest comebacks in the history of European soccer. Losing goalie Volkan Demirel and midfielder Mehmet Aurélio (to suspensions) for the quarterfinal against Croatia will hurt, but this team seems to make up for personnel losses (see: Emre) with aplomb. 6. Sweden (last ranking: 5). That was a great first half against Spain. The second half? Not so much. Wednesday’s winner-take-all game against Russia may shape up as another classic to rival Turks-Czechs, but it will certainly help if Zlatan Ibrahimovic is healthy and ready to go. 7. Germany (last ranking: 4). I’m still not sure why Michael Ballack played so poorly against Croatia, though the opponent surely had something to do with it. Forwards Mario Gómez and Miroslav Klose have been abysmal, and only Lukas Podolski has saved the Germans from further embarrassment. 8. Italy (last ranking: 8). The Azzurri got a raw deal on their incorrectly disallowed goal against Romania, but I’m still leaning toward Italy getting out of its extremely convoluted group. Penalty-saving ‘keeper Gianluigi Buffon has been a lifesaver so far, especially with a makeshift back-line in front of him. 9. France (last ranking: 13). It may be hard to believe, but I feel a lot better about the French after their 4-1 loss to Holland. Franck Ribéry looked more like himself, and Thierry Henry is a much bigger threat than Nicolas Anelka. But Raymond Domenech has been the worst coach in the tournament so far, and I fear he’ll do something else to sink his team in Tuesday’s showdown against Italy. 10. Romania (last ranking: 15). At least the Romanians opened things up a little more against Italy, although they’re the one team in this tournament that seems to be succeeding by playing defensive-minded soccer. It would be a shame if the Netherlands took the foot off the gas against Romania on Tuesday, but I don’t see that happening. 11. Czech Republic (last ranking: 7). I’ll be curious to see if Petr Cech can put his gigantic mistake behind him as he moves forward in his career (though I sense that the U.K. media won’t ever let him forget it). Yes, that was an epic collapse against Turkey, but I think the Turks deserve more credit for winning the game than the Czechs do for giving it away. 12. Russia (last ranking: 12). I enjoy watching the baby-faced Russians play, but there does seem to be a real lack of quality when it comes to finishing in the box. Still, Guus Hiddink has put these guys in an enviable position: win against Sweden (not impossible) and they’re in the quarters. 13. Switzerland (last ranking: 9). The more-skilled of the co-hosts came away with three points after all, and as we’ve mentioned before, there’s a lot of promise in youngsters Eren Derdiyok, Johan Vonlanthen, Gelson Fernandes and Tranquillo Barnetta. 14. Poland (last ranking: 14). The Poles missed a great chance to bag three points against Austria (dubious late penalties notwithstanding), and now they need a lot of help to survive. For me, Ebi Smolarek has been one of the more disappointing forwards in Euro 2008. 15. Austria (last ranking: 11). Given the low pre-tournament expectations, it’s probably a small victory that Austria is still alive on the final day of group games. I thought the Austrians were supposed to have some promising youngsters. Aside from Sebastian Prödl, where are they? 16. Greece (last ranking: 16). From first to worst in four years. But if that’s the case, then how do we describe England? Today’s games: Germany-Austria (2:45 p.m. ET, ESPN). If an Austrian brewery is giving a lifetime supply of free beer to any Austrian goal-scorer, then what will you get if you score the game-winner to eliminate the Germans? (The possibility boggles the mind.) Yet that just doesn’t figure to happen in this one, despite the wishes of the rabid home fans. Germany usually gets its act together after a bad performance, and it sounds like Ballack cracked some heads on the team after the Croatia loss. A bigger question: Who will start up front for Germany? If I were Joachim Löw I’d keep Klose (for his big-game experience) and drop Gómez for Oliver Neuville, whose speed could unsettle the big, slow Austrian back line. (Then again, if I were Joachim Löw I'd be constantly talking about how great I was in Twin Peaks and Showgirls.) Germany 2, Austria 0. (Reminder: If you’re recording this game, it’s on ESPN, not ESPN2.) Croatia-Poland (2:45 p.m. ET, ESPN Classic). Anyone who thinks Group B winner Croatia won’t take this game seriously only needs to recall their victory at England in qualifying when it was only playing for pride in that game, too. I wonder what the chances are of U.S. Olympic coach Peter Nowak getting a shot at the Poland job down the road? (I’d think they’d have to be pretty good.) Croatia 1, Poland 1. Who do you like in the games today? Is this the most entertaining major soccer tournament you’ve ever seen? And what do you think of our Power Rankings? Please post your comments below, and check back for another edition of the Euro Blog after today’s games ... 1328 http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/194/315/thumb/wahl_grant.jpg 11 MD

Grant Wahl

Baltimore 194615