More Euro 2004

I didn't post yesterday because, frankly, I was still too stunned. The France - England game was a heartbreaker indeed, but in terms of 'Classic' value, it definitely earned it's place in the annals of comeback history. The boys in white had scored a header late in the first half off a wonderful delivery from Beckham, and the mark looked to stand up as the English side clamped down and stood tall against the repeated efforts of the high-powered French offense.

In spite of their efforts though, it was not to be. Mere minutes after Barthez stoned his former teammate Becks from the penalty slot, Zidane delivered on a free kick in true world class fashion in the 91st minute, to tie the game. Then, 2 minutes later, just before extra time came to a close, Gerrard - usually a solid midfielder for England, made the terrible mistake of dumping the ball back to the goalkeeper without looking. Instead he set Pires loose in the box, leaving James no choice but to commit a foul. With Zidane lining up his shot, the outlook was dim for those English fans still holding to the chance James could create a miracle like Barthez had only minutes previous, but it was all dashed as Zidane blasted the ball into the corner. Game over, hearts broken.

I was wallowing in that disappointment for a little while, but I managed to catch the final minutes of the Switzerland - Croatia match that ended in a draw. Neither team looked especially impressive and I have faith that France and England will be the ones advancing out of Group B. I admit though, that at least part of that assessment is derived from the fact that I'm cheering for England here and desperately hope they win their next two games.

The game between Denmark and Italy today was a good one as well, even though it ended in a draw. I have a lot of respect for the Danes, I was able to see them play Scotland about a month ago and they dominated the pitch and really impressed with their excellent ball control and solid passing. Today was no different, with the Danes getting the better chances of the game, making Italy look a lot less like the Group C favorites.

Sweden blasted out of the gate today, notching an impressive 5-0 win over a overmatched Bulgarian side. I'm actually about to go down and watch a bit of the replay for that game, just to see Glasgow Celtic alumni Henrik Larsson's two goals. No doubt, the Friday game between Sweden and Italy is going to be a good match.