Grupo de Muerte!

Sunday was the much anticipated debut of the group of death and I couldnt have been happier...or so I thought. The France-Romania match turned out to be an absolute yawner and ended nil-nil. Leading up to the Oranje-Azzurri matchup, there had been a total of 6 clean sheets. Not exactly a good way to capture the attention of the neutral observer. Thankfully, the Dutch seized the limelight and put on a captivating display that wowed many (except the finicky Italians).

Group C- Game 1
Letzigrund, Zurich

France- All Blue
Romania- All Yellow

France really showed their age in this match as they failed to live up to the hype as a pre-tournament favorite. Without Thierry Henry, who sat out due to a sciatic nerve issue, it was up to Nicolas Anelka (Boooo!) and Karim Benzema to lead the attack with the help of Franck Ribery, the footballing Quasimodo. On paper that seems like a formidable threat, but this three-pronged "attack" couldnt have put the ball in the Atlantic Ocean, even if they wanted to. Anelka showed no real intentions of scoring and Ribery disappeared for long periods of the match. The young Benzema, who was clearly looking to impress a worldwide crowd blew the best scoring chance of the match as he cooly passed a nicely squared ball right to the keeper.

Romania matched France's anemia in almost every department. They seemed satisfied with ending their first group of death match with a draw and played accordingly. To be honest, I stopped taking notes on this match before the end of the first half as I found myself dozing off here and there. This game was certainly nothing to write home about, so I am going to stop pretending like this game interested me.

Fulltime France 0-0 Romania

Group C - Game 2
Stade de Suisse Wankdorf, Bern

Netherlands- Orange Shirts with white shorts
Italy- All Blue

Any fears or concerns that Euro 2008 would be a nadir of lackluster football were quickly put to rest in a thrilling match between the Oranje and the Azzurri in Bern. This game was extremely fast paced and very much a free-flowing affair, which suited the Dutch "total football".

The Dutch were given a favorable call thanks to a technicality as garbage man Ruud van Nistelrpoy was able to poke home a Wesley Sneijder cross in the 26th minute. Replays showed that Ruud was clearly offside, yet in the play that led up to the goal, Italian defender Panucci was knocked off the pitch by his keeper Buffon. Panucci remained off the field when van Nistelrooy tapped in the goal. According to the rule book any player who is not given permission to leave the field is deemed a part of the pitch, so technically the offside line was where Panucci was lying, so the goal stood. Both the Dutch and Italians shared an equal amount of disbelief when the goal was allowed to stand, but I dont think the Dutch were as upset as the Azzurri.

Five minutes later the Dutch were able to produce one of the greatest counter attacking(ie total football) goals I have ever seen. The Italians were awarded a corner kick that was flicked on and looked to curl inside the back post were it not for the omnipresent Giovanni van Bronckhorst, who dutifully stuck to the back post and cleared the ball off the line. For most defenders, their job would have been done, but van Bronckhorst took the road less traveled and sprinted up the left side of the field and received the ball. He then reached the left edge of the box and sent a cross to Dirk Kuyt on the far right side of the box. Kuyt headed the ball right to the feet of Sneijder, who beautifully took the ball and fired home at the near post in a space between Buffon and the post that was just as wide as the ball. It was a stunning piece of football that will surely go down as one of the best goals of the tournament.

Italy was reeling at this point and it was obvious. The Dutch are not exactly known for resolute defending and the Italians were looking to take advantage of that and get back in the match. Luca Toni and Andrea Pirlo both had a bevy of chances that went begging. Italian manager Roberto Donadoni went to his bench to find some additional firepower. Talisman Alessandro del Piero entered the match and made a positive impact, but like his teammates, he also couldnt unlock the Dutch defense. Donadoni's final substitution was made to bring Real Madrid striker Antonio Cassano on in an all-out effort to steal at least a point.

Any chance of getting something out of the match was put to rest in the 80th by none other than van Bronckhorst. Andrea Pirlo took a free kick that was fantastically met by a diving Edwin Van Der Sar. The ball was quickly pushed upfield to sub Robin van Persie, who boldly attacked the scrambling Italian defense. He fed the ball to Kuyt on his right, who tried to chip Buffon. The keeper was able to get a hand to it, but pawed the ball back to Kuyt, he found the diminutive van Bronckhorst--who had no business being up there--in the penalty area in which the left back headed home and put the game on ice. It was a fabulous result for the high-flying Dutch and it has certainly raised questions about the Italians.

Fulltime Netherlands 3-0 Italy

Table

Netherlands 3 pts +3
France 1 pt 0
Romania 1 pt 0
Italy 0 pts -3

Ref's Take:

I cant believe that the group of death produced the atrocity that was the France-Romania match, but thankfully the Dutch brought the tournament to life with their breathtaking display of attacking football (if you cant tell, I am a little biased here). I think the age and miles on the collective legs of the French and Italian squads are really starting to show as neither team looked like the sides that met in the World Cup finals just two years ago.

I wouldnt count the Italians out of it just yet, but I think that the French are dead in the water at this point. The Italians showed that they are built to sit on leads and suffocate the opposition, rather than play from behind. There still is no easy game in this group but I think the Dutch have turned a lot of heads by giving the Azzurri their worst loss ever in the Euros and will be a force to be reckoned with.