The general Euro2024 chit chat thread

[Dirk Gently]

Friday's game v Germany should be a cracker.

(but probably won't.)

[WestYorksRoyal]

Friday's game v Germany should be a cracker.

(but probably won't.)

Feels harsh it's so early and one of them will be going home (well, not Germany if they lose but you know what I mean )

They've been the 2 best teams so far so it should be a SF at least.

[Snowflake Royal]

All this VAR is ruining football is just nonsense. OMG, they're correctly and accurately applying the laws of the game fairly quickly.

Ignoring the closeness of the offside, for over 100 years the basic principle in handball decisions has been intent - handball had to be deliberate to be given (the difference between ball-to-hand and hand-to-ball).

That principle has now gone completely - it seems to be handball if you can't get your arm out of the way quickly enough, or if the ball brushes your hand or arm - which is quite ludicrous and completely against the spirit and history of the game.

Denmark can legitimately feel themselves very hard-done-by after those two decisions in such close proximity.

Deliberate is basically impossible to adjudicate consistently and accurately. It just doesn't fit in the modern game. Keepers picking up the ball from a pass back was in the game for 100 years and we don't miss that.

He managed to get his other arm tucked in and out the way. They all knew the rules going in and they'd have taken it happily the other way. They had plenty of chances, but their striker fluffed them.

[St Pauli]

All this VAR is ruining football is just nonsense. OMG, they're correctly and accurately applying the laws of the game fairly quickly.

Ignoring the closeness of the offside, for over 100 years the basic principle in handball decisions has been intent - handball had to be deliberate to be given (the difference between ball-to-hand and hand-to-ball).

That principle has now gone completely - it seems to be handball if you can't get your arm out of the way quickly enough, or if the ball brushes your hand or arm - which is quite ludicrous and completely against the spirit and history of the game.

Denmark can legitimately feel themselves very hard-done-by after those two decisions in such close proximity.

Deliberate is basically impossible to adjudicate consistently and accurately. It just doesn't fit in the modern game. Keepers picking up the ball from a pass back was in the game for 100 years and we don't miss that.

He managed to get his other arm tucked in and out the way. They all knew the rules going in and they'd have taken it happily the other way. They had plenty of chances, but their striker fluffed them.

I love you more with every post Ian!

Team Ian!

[Stranded]

Off to Portugal v Slovenia tonight.

My 7 year old is incredibly excited to see old man Ronaldo, so he'll probably get dropped.

[NathStPaul]

Off to Portugal v Slovenia tonight.

My 7 year old is incredibly excited to see old man Ronaldo, so he'll probably get dropped.

There is more chance of my mother getting a game in goal for Slovenia than Ronaldo being dropped. I think you're safe.

[Sanguine]

Off to Portugal v Slovenia tonight.

My 7 year old is incredibly excited to see old man Ronaldo, so he'll probably get dropped.

There is more chance of my mother getting a game in goal for Slovenia than Ronaldo being dropped. I think you're safe.

This. 210 caps and counting. Wouldn't surprise me to see him playing international football as a 40 year old next year. I think he'll fancy setting a record for most World Cups played too, albeit Messi might join him at six.

As an aside, remains a weird anomaly (to me, anyway!) that no-one has played at 4 different World Cups for England - it is only a span of 13 years. Gerrard, Ferdinand and Bobby Charlton were picked for four tournaments, but didn't play in one of them. Shilton played in three, but was 33 at his first, in 1982.

[bcubed]

All this VAR is ruining football is just nonsense. OMG, they're correctly and accurately applying the laws of the game fairly quickly.

Ignoring the closeness of the offside, for over 100 years the basic principle in handball decisions has been intent - handball had to be deliberate to be given (the difference between ball-to-hand and hand-to-ball).

That principle has now gone completely - it seems to be handball if you can't get your arm out of the way quickly enough, or if the ball brushes your hand or arm - which is quite ludicrous and completely against the spirit and history of the game.

Denmark can legitimately feel themselves very hard-done-by after those two decisions in such close proximity.

100% agree

Football is worse off with the current laws. What happens now is intuitively wrong and against the spirit of the game, as you say.

I think it should be possible to have a law that defines deliberate handball better than it is now. Perhaps it needs loads of examples of what is deliberate and what isn't. But in any case, how was it managed before? I don't recall many controversies. If a penalty was awarded, it was pretty obvious.

Otherwise you might as well just say if it hits your hand or arm inside the box it's a penalty, same as hockey

[Stranded]

All this VAR is ruining football is just nonsense. OMG, they're correctly and accurately applying the laws of the game fairly quickly.

Ignoring the closeness of the offside, for over 100 years the basic principle in handball decisions has been intent - handball had to be deliberate to be given (the difference between ball-to-hand and hand-to-ball).

That principle has now gone completely - it seems to be handball if you can't get your arm out of the way quickly enough, or if the ball brushes your hand or arm - which is quite ludicrous and completely against the spirit and history of the game.

Denmark can legitimately feel themselves very hard-done-by after those two decisions in such close proximity.

100% agree

Football is worse off with the current laws. What happens now is intuitively wrong and against the spirit of the game, as you say.

I think it should be possible to have a law that defines deliberate handball better than it is now. Perhaps it needs loads of examples of what is deliberate and what isn't. But in any case, how was it managed before? I don't recall many controversies. If a penalty was awarded, it was pretty obvious.

Otherwise you might as well just say if it hits your hand or arm inside the box it's a penalty, same as hockey

With the Danish handball - simple question I ask myself - will I have seen a penalty given for that pre VAR. The answers, is yes, I have many times. I have also seen then not given, mainly because the ref was unsighted.

The law hasn't necessarily changed markedly, VAR just means incidients than in the past would have been missed, are brought to the refs attention. Remember that is what VAR did here, they told Oliver that there was a potential handball that he may have been unsighted for - he didn't have to then give it but clearly saw that if he had seen it in real time, he would have done.

[Dirk Gently]

But what are you actually being penalised for with a handball like this? Seeking to gain an advantage? Can't be that because it clearly wasn't deliberate and no-one could argue his hand was in an unnatural position - it's exactly where it should be when running.

There seems to be a basic disconnect between why we have Laws in the first place and the Laws we have now - surely it's about preventing a team gaining any kind of advantage unfairly? The handball law, as argued above, is the way it is because referees can't or won't decide what is intentional and what isn't, which strikes me as a fundamental cop-out of what referees ought to be there for.

They're still brave enough to judge level of intent when it comes to fouls, so why have they completely run away from ever judging it for handballs?

[bcubed]

But what are you actually being penalised for with a handball like this? Seeking to gain an advantage? Can't be that because it clearly wasn't deliberate and no-one could argue his hand was in an unnatural position - it's exactly where it should be when running.

There seems to be a basic disconnect between why we have Laws in the first place and the Laws we have now - surely it's about preventing a team gaining any kind of advantage unfairly? The handball law, as argued above, is the way it is because referees can't or won't decide what is intentional and what isn't, which strikes me as a fundamental cop-out of what referees ought to be there for.

They're still brave enough to judge level of intent when it comes to fouls, so why have they completely run away from ever judging it for handballs?

It really should be all about trying to gain an advantage. If thats not the case, then the player shouldn't be penalised.

[LUX]

Enjoying Belgium. V France, as a neutral ( even though I am officially French ).

Nil nil, not many chances either way, but bound to get very tense as we get near the 90 minutes.

[LUX]

Apparently Mbappe suffers with that mask. If so, why play him?. Surely another attacker ( Giroud?) at 100% would be better than Mbappe at 75%?

[LUX]

Has Kante ever been sent off in his career? He seems to be so gentle. Prolly too gentle.

[NathStPaul]

Referee is excellent in this France v Belgium game.

[tulip]

Enjoying Belgium. V France, as a neutral ( even though I am officially French ).

Nil nil, not many chances either way, but bound to get very tense as we get near the 90 minutes.

Not even a little bit pro France?

[bcubed]

Apparently Mbappe suffers with that mask. If so, why play him?. Surely another attacker ( Giroud?) at 100% would be better than Mbappe at 75%?

I dunno

He's that special

75% is probably better than 100% of anyone else. That mazy run and shot (just over) a few minutes ago was fantastic. Acceleration was out of this world.

[John Madejski's Wallet]

Thanks God someone scored, another 30 min of this would be painful

Fitting it was a scuffed deflection

//Had Belgium in the office sweepstake

[NathStPaul]

Belgium deserve to go out for stinking up the tournament. Golden generation well and truly over.

France haven't been good either mind you. Issue is they can't get much worse, they'll probably improve a lot from here.

[WestYorksRoyal]

That was a dire game between 2 teams capable or much better. It seems a lot of teams are stinking out the tournament and hoping for a gritty win (including England, obviously). Most, if not all, will regret it. At best, 1 dire team can win. The rest will have no goodwill in the bank when they lose, just like Italy and Belgium. Even if England make the final, only winning will be enough playing this way with these players.

It's not just the destination, it's also the journey. Seems like Germany and Spain are the only 2 to realise that.