Friday, June 20, 2008

Germany in Euro 08 - Quarter Final Analysis


Astonishing! Germany wins against Portugal and be the first team to qualify for the semi final. Portgual was the favorite of this match but Germany had gone over the obstacle and won against them and the match ended up with 3-2. Now here's my analysis:



Defence: The defence is sensational! Even though the German lose 2 goals, it is still the best performance in these 4 matches. Cristiano Ronaldo has very limited space to work on and he cannot perform his best in the entire match. Still, his first touch is excellent that create the first goal for Portugal, so we can't blame the German defence in that goal as Cristiano Ronaldo does very well. However, the Germans lose concentration a bit to let Portugal score the 3-2 goal and make the last few minutes very exciting. Generally the defence is very good this match. Marks: 85/100.



Midfield: Bastian Schweinsteiger and Michael Ballack say it all. These 2 fellas make an astonishing performance in the midfield. Schweinsteiger make 1 goal and 2 assists in the game, which means all 3 goals are related to him. He comes out in a different person comparing to the last 2 games. He is very active, very aggressive, and creates lots of space from the right side. This is one of his best performances in his career for sure. Michael Ballack, Mr. Big Match, he seals the game in the 61st minute and make Portugal has great distance to get back to the game. His header is always threatening, he only grabs a single mistake from Portugal defense and it is a goal. The others such as Simon Rolfes and Thomas Hitzlsperger have a good game in defense and tackling so Portugal are not comfortable at all in the midfield. So we should give them credit as well. Marks: 92/100.



Attack: Mario Gomez finally is on the bench this game and he does not come out to play. However, Miroslav Klose gains back his confident and scores the most important goal of the match. His 2-0 header makes the Germans lead Portugal to play. On the other words, Portugal just only follows the Germans' rhythm. Even though he is going to be quiet in the last quarter of the game but he still makes threats. Lukas Podolski plays at the left side, even though the starting lineup shows him to be the striker. However, he runs at the left side in the entire match and leads the Germans have one more extra midfield to create the attack. He makes the first goal in the left side for Schweinsteiger. Also, he still makes runs in the final quarter of the match and lead Portugal can't push up too much. Marks: 90/100.


Overall: It's all about belief. I think the key that the Germans win is all about their belief. They kiss all the problem away and only concentrate on this match. Their moral is very high and aggressive, and their tactics also beat Portugal. So the Germans are the deserved winner last night. Overall marks: 90/100.

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