Chapter 38 Group A

Chapter 38 Group A

The European Cup is called the Little World Cup and includes almost all the world's top teams except Brazil and Argentina. Compared with the World Cup, upsets are more likely to happen because the teams are closer in strength, which is why the Danish myth of 1992 was born. .

The European Cup is a big stage where miracles happen one after another. Almost any kind of script can be performed on this stage. In the 1992 European Cup, Denmark won the championship, which was the most dreamy fairy tale. In the 1996 European Cup, the German team again Following the miracle in Bern, people once again presented a heart-wrenching inspirational drama. In the final, the German team left Bierhoff's two magical goals with no one available, and the 2000 European Cup Not to mention, the Italians were about to start celebrating, but the result was another magical substitution. Wiltord equalized the score in the 91st minute, and Trezeguet volleyed in overtime, directly condemning Italy to death. In 2004 Europe Cup, the host Portugal and the magical Greece eliminated the powerful Spanish group and qualified until the finals, allowing the Greek team to stage a Greek myth. In the group of death in 2008, the Netherlands defeated Italy and France by a big score, Russia and Turkey's dark horses emerged, and Belgium was in the group stage. After struggling to qualify, Digana's magical series of performances allowed the European Red Devils to finally reach the top.

The wonderful European Cups have brought endless enjoyment to the fans. Now it is time for the opening of the European Cup. As the defending champion, the Belgian team sets out again, but this time the leader is no longer Deegan. In fact, if It wasn't for the nationwide petition in Belgium before the big list was announced. Perhaps this time, Wilmer would really let Deegan sit on the bench at home.

But even if Deegan finally followed the team to the European Cup, Wilmerz had already announced before departure that the main striker of the Belgian national team would be Lukaku.

As for Deegan, since that bombardment, Deegan has not appeared in the national team's roster for more than a year. He was even stripped of the captain's armband and put it on Kompany's arm. .

The team coach Wilmots was the leader of Belgian football before Deegan. He had wonderful performances in the 2000 European Cup and the 2002 World Cup, especially in the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan. He was the key to the group stage. Against the host Japan, his overhead kick helped Belgium break through the group.

After the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, the meritorious coach Antiennis left the coaching position of the national team. The Belgian Football Association chose Wilmots, who was famous in the player era, as the head coach of the national team. Although his coaching resume is mediocre, as a Belgian The most influential figure in football, the Belgian Football Association still hopes that he can rely on his prestige to lead the European Red Devils to achieve greater success.

However, in the European Cup qualifiers, because of the conflict with Deegan, Wilmer announced in anger that Deegan would be expelled from the national team. This decision almost caused turmoil in Belgium. In the end, the Belgian qualifiers struggled, and in the end it was Eliminated Greece in the play-offs and entered the European Cup.

Before the roster was announced, due to pressure from fans and the Football Association, Wilmots finally called Deegan into the national team. However, it was obvious that this was only a stopgap measure. What he wanted was complete control of the team. Deegan's existence is obviously a big threat to him.

Belgium's lineup is a complete continuation of the lineup that won the World Cup two years ago. The 23-man roster has not changed at all. After winning the World Cup, more players left Belgium and went to the five major European leagues to develop. However, among the main lineup Without the strong fulcrum of Deegan, Belgium's prospects can't help but make people a little worried.

Deegan is still Belgium's leading star. Although he has had very few opportunities in Barcelona in the past two seasons, if you analyze it carefully, it is not difficult to see that Deegan's scoring efficiency is not low at all. In the first season, Deegan played 18 times in the league and scored 11 goals. In the second season, he played 15 times in the league and scored 9 goals. This goal efficiency is still the highest in Europe.

In the just-concluded Champions League final, Deegan only got 18 minutes of playing time, but scored two goals, helping the team finally win the championship trophy.

The current captain of Belgium, Vincent Kompany, is the backbone of the team's defense. Two seasons after moving to Manchester City, Kompany has continued his stable form in Florence and has become the backbone of Manchester City's defense. Richards, who has attracted much attention in English football, was firmly on the bench and became the captain of Manchester City under Robinho.

In other positions, the Belgian team is also full of stars. Goalkeeper Courtois, midfielder Hazard, Fellaini, and striker Lukaku are all high-profile superstars in European football.

As the defending champion, Belgium's goal is undoubtedly to defend the title in the end, but to achieve this goal, Wilmots obviously has to carefully consider his relationship with Deegan.

In the same group as the defending champion Belgium are the host Poland, the Eastern European team Czech Republic, and Russia, which shined in the last European Cup.

As one of the hosts of this European Cup, the Polish team has the lowest FIFA ranking among the 16 participating teams. It is obviously not easy for them to break through the group that includes Belgium, the Czech Republic and Russia.

Although coach Smuda is not very well-known in the international football world, he has always been highly regarded by the Polish Football Association in Poland. In addition, he played in the United States, Germany and other places when he was young, and he also has a deep understanding of overseas football.

The same is true for Smuda's coaching experience as a coach. Although there are not many highlights, he has learned from the strengths of various clubs. Smuda has coached in leagues in Germany, Turkey, Poland, Cyprus and other countries.

However, despite his rich coaching experience, Smuda had never had experience coaching a national team before coaching Poland, and he had no previous experience in how to lead a team to participate in a tournament system.

As the host of this European Cup, Poland did not play in the qualifiers. Although it has participated in many friendly matches in the past two years, no one knows how it will perform in actual combat exercises.

Compared with the league, which requires a stable state and no ups and downs, the championship requires that the team always maintain considerable tension, excitement and physical condition within a month. How to ensure that the team plays well in international competitions will be a considerable challenge for Smuda. Big problem.

Currently, as many as 17 of the 23-man roster of the Polish team come from leagues outside Poland. Obviously, coach Smuda attaches great importance to overseas players. His list almost includes the best Polish players at present, and the more well-known players are basically All in it.

Seven of them are from the same league - the Bundesliga. The Bundesliga has contributed many international players to the Polish team, including Polanski of Mainz, Bernisch of Werder Bremen, Sobieh of Hannover 96, Dusseldorf Matusik, plus the three absolute main players Piszczek, Blaszczykovski and Lewandowski who won the Bundesliga championship with Dortmund for two consecutive seasons, the advantage of this group cannot be underestimated. watch for.

In addition to the seven Bundesliga players, Arsenal's Szczesny will be the team's patron saint. In the past season, the young Polish goalkeeper has firmly occupied the Gunners' main position and performed convincingly.

Sochaux's Peques, Celtic's Brozek, and Bordeaux's Obragnak have all left a deep impression in the league and European competitions in the past few years.

Speaking of the current core strength of the Polish team, there is no doubt that the three international players from the Bundesliga champion team Borussia Dortmund are full-back Piszczek, captain Blaszczykowski and forward Lewandowski.

Piszczek has outstanding forward penetration and assist abilities. He is a right back as famous as Ram in the Bundesliga. He is good at both offense and defense. Captain Blaszczykovski, who serves as a winger, is extremely fast and can make personal raids, crosses and set pieces. He is very threatening and is the core of the team's offense. He can play as both left and right wingers, but considering his partnership with Piszczek, he will appear more often on the right wing. Center Lewandowski is Dortmund's most reliable scorer.

The three main players of the championship team, Piszczek, Blaszczykovski and Lewandowski, who won the championship with Dortmund for two consecutive seasons, are undoubtedly the core players that Polish coach Smuda looks forward to and trusts most. For the national team, Smuda can transplant the outstanding trio in the club to the Polish team intact. Whether it is their tacit understanding, cooperation or understanding of each other, the three of them have been recognized by the national team and the club, and the requirements of the national team and the club are basically the same, so there is no problem for them to adapt.

The success of Piszczek, Blaszczykovsky and Lewandowski in the club were directly transplanted to the national team by Smuda. Piszczek right back, Blaszczykovsky On the right wing, Lewandowski serves as a single arrow, and the entire right wing will become the team's main attack direction.

The left wing candidate may be played by another Bundesliga defender Bernisch. Bernisch is stronger in defense than offense. Although the offense is average, he is better than his solid defense.

Central defender Vasilevskiy will definitely occupy a main position. Although Pekes does not have much experience in the national team, he has rich experience and may become another main central defender.

Two experienced midfielders, Dudka and Murawski, are still indispensable to the team, and Polanski, who has performed steadily, will appear in the defensive midfielder position.

This European Cup is the second time in the history of the Polish national team that the Polish national team has participated in the European Cup finals. Although it has achieved several very good results in the World Cup and the Olympic Games, Poland was not the third in the European Cup until the last European Cup. A knock on the door to the European Cup finals.

In the 2008 European Cup co-hosted by Switzerland and Austria, the Polish team reached the finals for the first time in history. Poland, which was in Group B with Croatia, Germany, and Austria, only got one draw in the final three group matches. At the bottom, he went home after the game.

As the host country, if Poland can qualify from the group stage, it will undoubtedly create new history. Reaching the quarterfinals is not an impossible task for Poland, but it will be difficult to go further.

Even if Poland can qualify from the group, the possibility of further reaching the semi-finals is slim. According to the schedule, the team in Group A that Poland is in after qualifying will face the top two teams in Group B. Group B has the world runner-up Netherlands and the third runner-up. Germany, these two teams are the favorites to win the championship. Even if these two teams are slightly careless, there are also teams like Portugal in Group B. It is not easy for Poland to win.

Coach Smuda has a clear view of the team's situation. Their goal is to qualify for the group stage and reach the quarterfinals. Poland's most practical and clear goal is to take seriously the three opponents in the group stage. Reaching the quarterfinals is not impossible.

All in all, if the Polish team with limited strength wants to become a dark horse in this European Cup, it must not only take advantage of the right time, place and people, but also need some luck.

In Group A, the team that is most capable of competing with Belgium for the top spot in the group is the Russian team, the biggest dark horse in the 2008 European Cup.

Four years ago, the earth-shattering Tsarist Revolution was still frightening. In the qualifiers, Russia squeezed out the favorite England. In the group stage, it defeated the Vikings Sweden and the defending champion Greece. In the quarter-finals, Facing the Dutch team, which advanced to the finals with a complete victory in the death group, Russia shocked Europe by scoring two goals in overtime to advance to the semi-finals.

Although he was defeated by Spain in the semi-finals, Arshavin's name is resounding throughout Europe. Russian football has undergone tremendous changes in recent years and has made great progress. Especially stimulated by the success in 2008, Russia began to mobilize the whole country. Strength development in football.

In this European Cup, Russia was lucky enough to be placed in the weaker Group A, and the goal set by Dutch head coach Advocaat for the team is to reach the finals.

After Hiddink left office two years ago, Advocaat took over as Russia's coach. The Dutch coach has traveled to many countries during his coaching career and has achieved extraordinary achievements at PSV Eindhoven, Glasgow Rangers and Zenit St. Petersburg. He has also He has twice served as the coach of the Dutch national team and led the team to the semi-finals of the European Cup in 2004.

Compared with "magic coach" Hiddink, the equally experienced Advocaat has come to Russia to coach Zenit since 2006. He is more familiar with the Russian football environment. Arshavin, Anyukov and Zhiriya Nov and others are his old team who led Zenit to win the last UEFA Cup, which helps him better control the team and train the lineup.

In terms of players, among the 23-man roster of the Russian team for this European Cup, the most eye-catching ones are undoubtedly the new and old generations of Russian football "tsars" Arshavin and Dzagoev.

Dutch coach Advocaat chose a lineup that combines old and new this time. Arshavin, Zhirkov and Korzhakov of the Mesozoic era are the leaders of the team. Seam Shaw who participated in the 2004 European Cup and Sharonov will provide the team with valuable experience. In terms of newcomers, CSKA Moscow's Zagoev and Dynamo Moscow's Kokolin have been selected. The age structure is very reasonable.

For the goalkeeper position, Advocaat recruited Akinfeev, who has recently recovered from injury, which shows that he attaches great importance to this talented goalkeeper. Also selected are Zenit goalkeeper Malafiev and Dina young goalkeeper Shu. rather.

On the defense line, Advocaat recruited eight players. Many CSKA players such as Ignashevich, Zhirkov, and Alexey Berezowski were selected. In addition, there are Zenit captain Anyukov and Kazan captain Sharonov who returned to the national team. The main substitutes are the versatile Granat, Dimitri Kombarov, who can play on the left wing, and Nababkin, who was selected at the last moment to replace Shishkin, who withdrew due to stomach problems.

In the midfield position, Zenit players took the lead. "Tsar" Arshavin, Denisov, Shrokov and Zhiryanov were all the backbone of the team.

"Future Tsar" Zagoev and Sporting Lisbon winger Ismailov will assist Arshavin in charge of the team's offense. Veteran international player Shem Shaf and Lokomotiv captain Glushakov, who has performed stably in the league, are the defensive midfielders. main substitute.

This season's Russian Premier League Silver Boot, Korzhakov will lead the Russian team's striker. Other candidates include Pavlyuchenko, who has returned to the Russian Premier League, and Pogrebnyak, who has performed well at Fulham.

Arshavin, who became famous in the last cup, is still the leader of the Russian team. After joining Arsenal in the winter of 2008/09 season, Arshavin firmly occupied the team's main position. He played on the left wing in the game against Liverpool. There have been four major performances in China. Arshavin has extremely outstanding skills and can play multiple positions such as wing, attacking midfielder, and forward.

Due to injuries and form reasons this season, Arshavin gradually lost his position at Arsenal. In order to participate in the European Cup, he resolutely chose to return to his old club Zenit on loan in the winter, and eventually helped his old club win the league championship. After England started high and went low, the "Czar" proved himself again.

Korzhakov, who came from Zenit together with Arshavin, has not been the first choice of the national team for a long time. He has also been criticized by fans for missing good opportunities. Until this season, he won the league silver boot and has now become Edvor Carter's top choice at center.

He made his first appearance on behalf of the national team at the age of 18 years and 20 days, becoming the youngest international player in the history of Russian football. He became the captain of CSKA under the age of 20. His height of 186cm is not outstanding among goalkeepers, but his solid basic skills and excellent reactions make him Akinfeev became the third generation of Russian goalkeepers after Yashin and Dasayev.

Of course, the young player Zagoev cannot be ignored. He was dubbed the "Future Tsar" at the beginning of his debut. Although he is only 21 years old, he has become famous for a long time. In the budget competition of this European Cup, he became The top scorer of the national team.

Since the disintegration of the Soviet Union, Russian football has inherited the main body of football from the former Soviet Union, but its results in competitions have not been outstanding. In the three European Cup finals it participated in, only one passed the group stage.

The summer four years ago was also the most glorious moment in the history of Russia's European Cup. Arshavin became famous at one stop, Pavlyuchenko attacked the city, and the team defeated the Dutch team, one of the favorites, and reached the semi-finals. Only to be defeated by Spain.

The Russian team is in a good grouping in the European Cup. They are in Group A with Poland, one of the hosts, the Czech Republic, and Belgium. The Belgian team is more difficult to deal with. Of course, this depends on whether Deegan can get a chance to play in the game. However, considering that in the past two seasons, Deegan has always been a marginal figure in Barcelona and has not even played consecutive games. It is difficult to guarantee his status. Coupled with the conflict with head coach Wilmer, speaking of which, this There is really no strong team in the absolute sense. Four teams with close strength have opportunities to appear, but from the card point of view, Russia is even better than the other three opponents. Therefore, Russia's goal is to compete for first place in the group. And then replicate the magic of the last cup in the knockout rounds.

In the Czech Republic, Brückner's golden age has long gone. The iron man Nedved and the forward Baros are also history. Today's Czech team is led by the Blues' goalkeeper and the Gunners' "Mozart" Rosicky, who pays tribute to their predecessors. The highest honor in Europe, which failed to realize its dream, launched an attack.

The former Czech international Bilek took over as coach from Brückner. As a player, Bilek served as a midfielder and played a total of 35 games for his country. In the 1990 World Cup, he was an indispensable member of the national team, playing the central role. At the core of the field, Bilek started his coaching career in 2001 after retiring. He coached many Czech League teams, including Pulcen and Sparta Prague. His most brilliant achievement was leading Sparta in the 2006.07 season. Bada reached the league title and won three consecutive cup titles. He had previously been the coach of the Czech U19 team, and finally gained the favor of the national team in 2009. Although he failed to lead the team to the World Cup, requalification to the European Cup gave Czech football, which was in the doldrums, a vague hope.

In terms of the lineup, goalkeeper Petr Cech's status is unshakable. Although he was in a sluggish state in the first half of last season and made repeated mistakes, he regained his form in the second half of the season and saved Chelsea from fire and water with many superb performances. He single-handedly helped Chelsea reach the Champions League final. Unfortunately, in the final, the suddenly resurgent Deegan penetrated the door twice. Unfortunately, he lost the best opportunity to stabilize the European Cup. The substitute goalkeepers were Hamburg's Drobny and Uzbekistan. Rashtovka beyond Dnepr.

In terms of defense, the central defender combination is composed of the famous players Kadlec Jr. and Siwork. The substitutes are Hubnik and the teenager Susi. The left and right wings are composed of Limberski and Ethiopian descendant Gebrsilasie. In defense, Kadlec Jr. can also play at left back. If he returns to the left, Susi will serve as the main central defender, and Raitoral will be the substitute on the right.

In the midfield, Rosicki is still the core of the attack. Pilage and Rezek will be responsible for attacking on both sides. Behind them is the double team of Prasil and Iracek. In the midfielder combination, both are capable of both offense and defense. Iracek's Wolfsburg teammate Pirage will become the substitute winger. The backup midfielder candidates are Huebschmann and Kraj. The teenager Dalida is a All-rounder.

Forward, veteran Baros and rising star Peckhardt will compete for a starting position. From the current point of view, Baros is more likely to start. The substitutes are CSKA young center Nechid and veteran Rafata.

Among the Czech team's lineup, there is no doubt that the core player is Rosicky. At his peak, Rosicky was one of the best offensive midfielders in European football. He had excellent speed and dribbling skills, and could often break up the ball with passes. The opponent's defense can also score goals on its own, which is known as the "Mozart of Football".

Although his status has declined due to injuries in recent years, Rosicky has regained his second youth in the second half of this season and performed well in many key battles such as the Champions League. For the national team, he has represented the Czech Republic in 85 games and scored 20 goals. , both statistics are at the forefront of team history.

Cech, who also became famous at a young age, has long been one of the best goalkeepers in European football. Like Rosicky, his performance this season has been low and high.

The downturn in the first half of the league did not destroy the confidence of the Czech goalkeeper. His many superb performances in the second half of the season saved Chelsea from the fire and almost single-handedly brought the team to the Champions League. Unfortunately, in the end He encountered the sudden outburst of Deegan and failed to lead the team to the top. After experiencing the tragic defeat in the last European Cup, Cech is now more mature and stable than before.

When it comes to Czech football, the names will definitely not be forgotten in the 1996 European Cup. The 24-year-old "bobo" Ski, the 23-year-old Nedved and Smicer, and the 22-year-old Berg set off a wave of excitement in England. The youthful storm established the status of the "golden generation" of Czech football. They defeated Italy in the group stage, and then eliminated Portugal and France to reach the final. In the end, they only lost to Bierhoff's golden goal.

Eight years later, in 2004, the "Golden Generation" brought endless surprises to the fans in Portugal. They defeated the Netherlands and Germany in the group stage and defeated Denmark to reach the semi-finals. In the final, Greece scored the winning silver goal as Nedvěd left the field due to injury.

Historically, the predecessor of the Czech team, the former Czechoslovakia team, had a more glorious history. They twice won third place in the European Cup and defeated West Germany in a penalty shootout in 1976 to win the Delaunay Cup. Panenka's The spoon lob has become an eternal classic in the history of the European Cup.

The strength of the four teams in Group A is relatively even. Basically everyone has a chance to appear, but the only thing that is uncertain is the Belgian team. The Belgian team with Deegan and the Belgian team without Deegan are completely two levels. Although people Everyone is talking about whether Deegan, who has been almost abandoned in Barcelona for two years, can still be as majestic and invincible as before. However, people who have watched the Champions League final believe that they can feel that despite being suppressed for two years, But as long as there is a chance to play, Deegan can still solve any opponent at any time and anywhere.

As long as Deegan can once again take the lead in the Belgian team, all the other three teams can hope for is to compete for another qualifying spot.