Euro 2024 kicks off tomorrow morning, with hosts Germany aiming for a good start

New Yellow River

2024-06-14 08:19Published on the official account of Shandong New Yellow River News client

Euro 2024 kicks off at 3 a.m. Beijing time on June 15, with the opening match between host Germany and Scotland. Germany have set their sights on getting off to a good start, but Scotland won't be throwing in easily.

Since winning the World Cup in 2014 and achieving the "four-star" feat, the German men's football team has experienced a decline in the past decade. In the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, the German team was very rare to go out in the group stage; In the last European Championship, the German team stopped in the round of 16. The German team, which has always been regarded as a top powerhouse, has stepped down from the altar and gradually moved away from its former glory. In the trough, German football, which has deep roots in the league, has shown an upward momentum. In the 2023-2024 season, Bayer Leverkusen won the first Bundesliga title in 120 years, breaking Bayern Munich's 11-year monopoly, and then finishing second in the Europa League. Dortmund reached the Champions League final again after 11 years, almost singing the "old boy's dream" of veterans such as Reuss and winning the runner-up. Although Bayern, the "Bundesliga giant", lost the league championship, it still showed its strong team heritage and reached the semifinals of the Champions League.

The three clubs are strong overall, and Stuttgart, who finished runners-up in the Bundesliga, contributed more than half of the international players to the German team under manager Julian Nagelsmann. And after entering 2024, the overall form of the German team has begun to improve. In the two friendlies in March, the German team defeated France 2-0 and the Netherlands 2-1 respectively, which boosted the team's morale. In the national team, the meritorious defender Kroos won La Liga and the Champions League with Real Madrid, young midfielders such as Wirtz and Musiala gradually developed into stars at their respective clubs, and Kai Havertz also found his form with Arsenal. Coupled with the veteran captain Manuel Neuer and the young Real Madrid centre-back Toni Rudiger at the back, the main lineup of the German team has taken shape, and it has shown the characteristics of fast and efficient, cross-cutting in midfield. Whether or not they can carry over the club's good form to the national team will determine whether the German team can sound the clarion call for revival.

Scotland, who will take on Germany in their opening game, have their best result in the European Championship being a quarter-final in 1992. In this European Championship qualifiers, the Scottish team won the second place in the group with 5 wins, 2 draws and 1 loss, beating Haaland's Norwegian team to qualify.

Scotland have a number of Premier League players, with Liverpool left wing-back Robertson the number one star in the team, and Manchester United midfielder Scott McTominay and Aston Villa striker McGinn in midfield. The team's main style of play is to rely on the excellent ability of the wing-backs on both sides to insert assists, and outflank and steal points in the middle.

The official website of UEFA recently counted the scores and venues of the opening matches of the previous European Championships, and its record of the host team in the east is 6 wins, 5 draws and 5 losses.

1960: France 4-5 Yugoslavia

Parc des Princes, Paris

1964: Spain 2-1 Hungary, extra time

The Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid

1968: Italy 0-0 USSR (Italy wins with a coin flip)

Stadio San Paulo in Naples

1972: Belgium 1-2 West Germany

Antwerp Bosuilstadion Stadium

1976: Czechoslovakia 3-1 Netherlands, extra time

Maksimir Stadium, Zagreb

1976: Yugoslavia 2-4 West Germany, extra time

Rajko Mitić Stadium in Belgrade

1980: Czechoslovakia 0-1 West Germany

Stadio Olimpico in Rome

1984: France 1-0 Denmark

Parc des Princes, Paris

1988: West Germany 1-1 Italy

Rheinland, Düsseldorf

1992: Sweden 1-1 France

Råsunda Stadium in Solna

1996: England 1-1 Switzerland

Wembley Stadium, London

2000: Belgium 2-1 Sweden

Stadium of the King Baudouin, Brussels

2004: Portugal 1-2 Greece

Porto Dragons Stadium

2008: Switzerland 0-1 Czech Republic

St. Jakob's Park in Basel

2012: Poland 1-1 Greece

National Stadium in Warsaw

2016: France 2-1 Romania

Stade de France

2020: Italy 3-0 Turkey

Stadio Olimpico in Rome

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