give up editing and translate as the bulk discuseed/shard with friends. but since this is MY thread i can do whatever want. started last week and also wait for a few of the Friendlies as the formations coaches put out for those will be pretty much exactly what we will be seeing in 1st round.
still a few weeks away before we might make it there, but last time England hosted this we didnt even advance past groups.
(commentary) for those old enough to remember. Brits hosted this back in '96. with the final in Trafford. and you all know the bombing which took place in Manchester right before the start. not sure about the exact casualties but that was a sad day for the sport. talks of cancelling the thing made its rounds. but in true British fashion - youre not going to put down a Brit for long;.... they love their futbol, and d*mn anyone whom tries to get in their way. and they went on with the match the opener next day.
so lets uncork one and have a toast, heres to Britain (to everyone except those whom work for their tabloids)
and if you ask me, THIS was the reason UEFA was reluctant to wait a qtr century to put it back there. and its a damn shame.
because if youre going to sit there and talk about the logistics and everything which goes into HOSTING such a tourney. England is 1A. the infrastructure already there. no need to BUILD new stadiums. every city basically within driving distance. (give or take the lovely traffic jams London now has. and you dont have to worry about catching a flight between stadiums. and Brits could fill up the stadiums even when their beloved Lions werent playing. (didnt they break the overall attendance record back then? at that time). and it suprises me those greedy b*stards in the UEFA offices refused/continued to look the other way.
so, heres to England & our good friend up there, whom might not have his fingernails to type with in a few weeks.
my "Continental Pride" kicks in. this has always been the toughest tournament - including the WC - on the planet. every 4 years, the bulk of the Top 20 in FIFA's BS rankings are involved. reason which makes this soo difficult is the familiarity. from the players: many are club teammates. knowing tendencies, strengths/weaknesses. stuff which can be recognized when ur out there practicing together, playing together practically everyday. even coaches are releuctant to allow their normal PK-taker to step up to the spot if the GK is their club teammate. even within the coaching ranks is a lot of familiarity.
however. UEFA......like always, somehow managed to scr*w this up too. got bored, created Nations League. and 'lets give some of these countries access to Euros' no disrespect to their fans, but if you think Macedonia are more worthy than Serbia, Romania or those Irish lads then you need to have a 2nd thought. even the Scots got in through the backdoor for godsakes.