In the early morning of July 7, Beijing time, with the Dutch team reversing the "quasi-home" Turkish team 2:1, the semi-finals of the 2024 European Championship will all be produced, and Spain and France, England and the Netherlands will compete for the final seats.
Since the start of this European Championship, the battle between "beautiful" and "ugly" football has been fiercely staged, and the semi-finals happen to be divided between the teams with these two styles of football. The Spanish team and the Dutch team have been welcomed by many fans for their insistence on attacking football and open style of play, and have become representatives of "beautiful football". Correspondingly, the French and English teams, which have adhered to a conservative style of play from the beginning of the competition, have been criticized by many parties, and are typical of utilitarian football in this European Cup.
Coincidentally, in the next semi-final matchup, Spain and France will face off, and England will have to withstand the strong attack of the Dutch team, and it seems that this-for-tat contradiction will continue.
Continue to "reluctantly" Gareth Southgate and Didier Deschamps remain conservativeIn the press conference after the match between England and Switzerland, apart from the penalty shoot-out, Southgate's most asked questions about utilitarian football were the questions of journalists.
England, which has Harry Kane, Bellingham, Foden, Saka and other superstars in the Premier League, Bundesliga and La Liga, is considered the biggest favorite to win the championship before this European Championship. Unexpectedly, since the group stage, Southgate's team has shown the opposite of what everyone expected: stumbling on the field, no control, many stars disappearing from time to time, every game is like a hypnotic drama, even England fans who have always passionately supported the team have been tricked, and there have been many scenes of English fans drowsy in the broadcast. The British media, accustomed to finding faults, even asked: "What else can Southgate do?" Angry fans threw beer glasses at Southgate as the team left the pitch after the game to express their frustration with the team's ugly play.
In the face of these doubts, Southgate is more often silent or passing by. After winning the match against Switzerland, he finally stopped holding back. Pressed again by reporters at the post-match press conference if he would continue to play this ugly style, Southgate decided to hit back: "We are playing the best game in Europe and the results should be the most important test for the team and the fans. As a manager, I am responsible for the final result. Sometimes we need to show some tactics and the players need to make some changes for the end result and it may not look like they are playing as well. Did you notice that this is the third time we have reached the semi-finals in the last four international tournaments? It's true that some teams play a little bit more beautifully, such as Spain, whose players have excellent skills and can play a dazzling amount of pass-and-possession football. However, it's their way of playing, it's their team's tactics. As a manager, I need to develop a game plan based on the situation of my players and then execute this strategy with the players. We're still moving forward, and I think that's going to make more people happy. ”
Southgate is also the head coach of the French team, Didier Deschamps. Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal side were eliminated on penalties, and Didier Deschamps was also questioned for his conservative tactics. Although the "Gallic Roosters" reached the semi-finals, they did not score a single goal in the sports battles since the start of the European Championship in Germany, which made many people extremely disappointed with the team's performance. If it's always like this, how can it make people excited? What else can motivate children to stay involved in the sport? ”
However, Deschamps was unimpressed by criticism and questioning. In his opinion, winning is the last word.
Still beautiful Spain and the Netherlands continue to be passionateLuckily, not all teams have chosen to settle down. Since the start of the tournament, the ambitious hosts Germany and the youthful "Matador" have played offensive football that will delight the fans, Koeman's orange team has also flown in the knockout round, and second-rate teams such as Hungary, Romania and Turkey have shown the momentum of dark horses, playing almost every game with wide open, and they have shown the beautiful side of Germany's European Championship.
Koeman's side were more realistic in the group stage, with the main goal being to qualify for the group against strong France and dark horses Austria, and the conservative style of play made the players timid on the pitch and almost overturned. In the match with the Romanian team, Gakpo's powerful shot and Malen's brace finally woke up the all-attacking and all-defensive play that the "orange team" had infiltrated in the bones, and the 3:0 victory made the fans chant that the passionate Dutch team was back. In the quarterfinals held in the early morning of July 7, Beijing time, in the face of the Turkish team with a "half home" advantage, the Dutchman who took the lead in conceding the goal was completely awakened, Coman waved his hand and launched a strong siege of the Turkish team. In the end, it was the "orange army" that was still stronger that had the last laugh.
Just a day ago, the passionate collision between the Spanish team and the hosts had already kept the fans confident in the beautiful football. In this life-and-death battle that the whole of Germany, the whole of Europe and even the whole world is concerned about, the absolute draw and the lore are staged one after another, the German chariot is exhausted, and the-for-tat bullfighters also pay a heavy price, so it is a hearty epic duel. Kroos, who could barely stand at the end of the game, greeted the fans with tears in his eyes and said goodbye to his national team career. At this moment, the Spanish team with their heads held high won applause, and the German tank that was out of the game was also amazing. At this moment, it makes people believe once again that football is still passionate and beautiful.
Clever? The semi-finals happen to be "beautiful" VS "utilitarian"At 3 a.m. Beijing time on July 10, the first semi-final of the European Championship in Germany will be held at the Allianz Arena in Munich, against Spain and France. At 3 a.m. on the 11th, England and the Netherlands will compete for another place in the final at the Westphalen Stadium in Dortmund.
Coincidentally, the two semi-finals coincided with the duel between "beautiful football" and "utilitarian football".
Historically, only England have not won the European Championship among the top four teams. In the group stage of the 1996 European Championship in England, England defeated the orange team led by Kluivert 4-1 thanks to goals from Alan Shearer and Sheringham. In the semi-finals, England drew 0-0 with Germany, and the two sides decided the winner through penalty shootouts. It was Gareth Southgate who missed a penalty in the sixth round and sent the ambitious hosts out of the tournament. That penalty also became an eternal pain for Southgate and the entire England team, which has been in the limelight since the penalty shoot-out for the past 28 years. Now, Southgate, who is infamous for "ugly football", led his disciples to eliminate Switzerland on penalties, which can be regarded as unloading the heavy burden of history. From this point of view, Southgate should continue his conservative tactics against the Netherlands in the semi-finals.
The Netherlands reached the semi-finals of the European Championship for the first time in 20 years. Coman and his disciples have thoroughly activated the blood of all-attack and defense, and they will naturally not shrink back to defense when their morale is high, and in their credo, "offense is the best defense". The match with England will be a-for-tat tough battle, which both sides should be aware of.
Will Spain, who lost a game against Germany, adopt conservative tactics in the semi-finals? For now, the young matadors will certainly not be as conservative as the French team.
In this way, the next two semi-finals must be a duel between "beauty" and "utilitarianism". Let's see which side will make it to Berlin for the final showdown.
Euro 2024 semi-finals July 10 at 03:00 Spain vs France July 11 at 03:00 Netherlands vs EnglandReporter: Meng Xiangjun Editor: Li Fujie Photographer: Xinhua News Agency Proofreader: Li Li