Austria
Roma man impresses again, ex-Premier League forward also does well – Italy 2-1 Austria Player Ratings
Italy made it to the quarter-finals of Euro 2020 after a tough evening against Austria. The first chance of note came in the 17th minute. Leonardo Spinazzola got down the left and played a low cross to Nicolo Barella, whose shot was denied by the right foot of Daniel Bachmann. Austria responded with a chance of their own. Marcel Sabitzer floated a ball over the top for Marko Arnautovic, but the former West Ham United forward fired over on the half-volley. The closest either side came to opening the scoring came through Ciro Immobile. The Lazio man hit a shot from 30 yards which clipped the outside of the post. Italy had the better of the first half, registering 11 attempts to Austria’s one. Nonetheless, the two sides went into the break level. Austria came out in the second half showing mu...
Romelu Lukaku backed to succeed Robert Lewandowski at Bayern Munich
Former Belgium striker Emile Mpenza has tipped Romelu Lukaku to succeed Robert Lewandowski at Bayern Munich. The 28-year-old has excelled at Inter, scoring 64 goals in just 95 matches since joining the Serie A side from Manchester United in 2019. The forward has a similar record for the national team, having struck 63 times in 96 caps for the Rode Duivels, including three at Euro 2020. Mpenza has been amazed by the ex-Chelsea and Anderlecht player’s development and believes Bayern would be smart to look at him if they need to replace Poland sensation Lewandowski following his 48-goal campaign in Germany. “Romelu’s strength in a duel and his speed are outstanding. That makes it so difficult for the defenders against him,” Mpenza told Sport Bild. “If they go into a duel with him, he uses his...
Real Madrid man MOTM, Man City player disappointing – Ukraine 0-1 Austria Player Ratings
Austria confirmed their place in the knockout stages of Euro 2020 with a 1-0 win over Ukraine. The first half was end-to-end, with both sides intent on getting a win – even though a point would probably take them both through to the round of 16. The deadlock was broken in the 21st minute, and it was Austria who took the lead. David Alaba’s cross was met by the studs of Christoph Baumgartner, who turned the ball into the net from close range. It wasn’t long before Ukraine came close to an equaliser when Mykola Shaparenko’s shot was palmed away by Daniel Bachmann, with Andriy Yarmolenko just inches away from getting on the end of the rebound. Austria responded with a couple of efforts of their own. Konrad Laimer had a curling shot beaten by Georgi Bushchan, and Marko Arnautovic skewed a glor...
Italian premier calls for Euros final to be moved from Wembley
The prime minister of Italy has called for the Euro 2020 final to be moved from Wembley due to coronavirus concerns. Mario Draghi says the level of infection in the United Kingdom means alternative venues must be considered. “I will try to stop the final being held in a country where infections are rising quickly,” he said on Monday when asked if Rome could be considered a possible replacement. Wembley is due to host five knockout matches, including both semi-finals and then the final on July 11. Italy will also play their last-16 game in London against Austria on June 26. Cases of COVID-19 have been increasing in recent weeks in the UK, fuelled by the Delta variant first identified in India, with a further 10,633 confirmed on Monday. There are also still strict travel restrictions in plac...
Euro 2020: Donyell Malen adds extra dimension to potent Dutch attack
The Netherlands had every reason to step down a couple of gears but instead upped their pace thanks to a fine display by speedy forward Donyell Malen in Monday’s 3-0 win over North Macedonia, advancing their claims to be genuine Euro 2020 contenders. Frank de Boer’s side had already qualified for the knockouts as group winners but whereas Italy’s Roberto Mancini made sweeping changes for his side’s 1-0 win over Wales, the Dutchman fielded his strongest team in their final Group C game. One of the two changes he did make was to bring in 22-year-old Malen in place of Wout Weghorst, making the Netherlands even more potent in attack as they became the top scorers in the tournament with eight goals. Malen, who provided an assist less than three minutes after coming on in the 2-0 win over Austri...
West Ham forward returns to the fold for crunch Euro 2020 clash
A crunch Euro 2020 meeting at Arena Nationala pits current Group C runners-up Ukraine against third-placed Arena in a decisive showdown. The Ukrainians could make it out of the group stage at a major tournament for the first time as a sovereign nation if they avoid defeat in Bucharest. On the other hand, the Austrians need to pick up all three points to ensure a top-two finish in Group C and reach the European Championship knockout phase for the first time. Note: You can watch all Euro 2020 games via live streaming. Ukraine Preview Ukraine’s Euro 2020 journey started with a 3-2 loss to the Netherlands despite coming back from a two-goal deficit through Andriy Yarmolenko and Roman Yaremchuk. The star duo came up big again on Matchday 2 to fire Andriy Shevchenko’s side to an all-importa...
Barcelona man shines, full-back has another excellent game – Netherlands 2-0 Austria Player Ratings
Netherlands sealed top spot in their group after comfortably seeing off Austria in their second game of Euro 2020. The Oranje had the better of the first half, and were awarded an early penalty after a VAR check. Replays showed that David Alaba stepped on the foot of Denzel Dumfries, prompting the referee to point to the spot. Memphis Depay stepped up and slammed it into the bottom left corner. Alaba’s difficult start continued later on when he miscontrolled a throw in which allowed Depay to get into the box, but the former Manchester United man could only hit the side netting. Just before half time, Depay got another chance, and it was one that he really should have taken. Patrick van Aanholt floated a wonderful ball over the top to Wout Weghorst, who squared to his strike partner. But fr...
All Euro 2020 nation crests redesigned, for the modern era
National team crests are just different from their club counterparts. Both are an integral part of the team’s history, and both are definitely tattooed on many of the fans. However, in the past decade or so, most national team crests have already been updated and bought into the modern era of design. National team crests also seem to be simpler and have less elements than their club counterparts. That being said, I did find some ways to further simplify them. In some cases through minor changes without removing elements. It was also interesting to note how similar some of the crests can be to each other. For example Scotland, Netherlands & Wales all feature a roaring majestic lion or dragon. Or how Sweden and Finland, both nordic countries, feature their flags on a shield. I have tried...
Real Madrid man stars in entertaining afternoon – Austria 3-1 North Macedonia Player Ratings
Austria collected three points in their opening game despite an encouraging performance from tournament debutants North Macedonia. It was a strong start from Austria, who got on the front foot early on. And, in the 18th minute, their pressure paid off. Marcel Sabitzer played a brilliant pass to the back post for fellow Bundesliga man Stefan Lainer. The full-back guided his volley into the far corner. The Austrians continued to dominate, with Sabitzer once again the architect. The RB Leipzig midfielder put in another cross this time for Sasa Kalajdzic, but the forward’s finish was disappointing. However, North Macedonia were not deterred, and the underdogs managed to find an equaliser in admittedly fortunate circumstances. After a mix up in the Austria backline, goalkeeper Daniel Bachmann s...
Gernot Rohr: Super Eagles will be ready for 2022 World Cup qualifiers
Gernot Rohr has declared the Super Eagles will be ready to get off to a good start in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers in September. The Eagles prepared for the World Cup qualifiers with two test matches against Cameroon in Austria, losing one and drawing the other. In September, they first welcome Liberia to Lagos, before they embark on a tricky trip to Cape Verde. “We will be ready in September for the World Cup qualifiers,” Rohr said after today’s goalless draw with Cameroon in Austria. “We hope the fans can return to the stadium in September after this crazy Pandemic (Coronavirus), which has made everything difficult. “We have to start well in Lagos (vs Liberia) and four days later, we play in Cape Verde. “Cape Verde beat Cameroon 3-1 on their synthetic pitch recently. So, we know already...
Euro 2020: Germany still need some work ahead of France opener – coach
Germany still need to work on parts of their game before the start of the European Championship, coach Joachim Loew said on Sunday at the end of their nine-day training camp in Austria. The Germans, starting their tournament against world champions France on June 15, play their last warm-up match against Latvia on Monday. The Euros open on Friday. “I cannot fully draw conclusions from our camp just yet because our preparation continues and after the game tomorrow we have a week in Duesseldorf to prepare for France,” Loew, going into his final tournament as Germany coach, told a news conference. Loew has been in charge since 2006 and will be succeeded by his former assistant and former Bayern Munich coach Hansi Flick after the tournament. The Germans also play European champions Portugal as...
Marcus Rashford penalty gives England win over Romania in Euro warm-up
Marcus Rashford’s penalty earned England an unconvincing 1-0 win over Romania in their final warm-up friendly ahead of Euro 2020 in Middlesbrough on Sunday. However, victory for Gareth Southgate’s men was again overshadowed by booing from supporters as the players took the knee before kick-off. Southgate’s selection will also be questioned as he named an experimental line-up with five players who are not part of his final squad making an appearance at some point in the game. There is still one place up for grabs in Southgate’s 26-man squad, though, due to an injury to Trent Alexander-Arnold. James Ward-Prowse, Ben Godfrey and Ben White were all given the chance to further their case from the start, while Jesse Lingard and Ollie Watkins came off the bench in the second-half. An inexperience...
