Group B Chat

[RiG]

Fixtures

Round 1

Austria v Croatia

Germany v Poland

Round 2

Croatia v Germany

Austria v Poland

Round 3

Austria v Germany

Poland v Croatia

Results

Round 1

Austria 0 v 1 Croatia

Germany 2 v 0 Poland

Another game and another win for the "form team" in Croatia who were left hanging on at the end against Austria who were far from the walkover many had predicted - including 10,000 of their own fans who apparently wanted them to pull out of the tournament! An early penalty for a crude challenge was converted and proved to be all that separated the teams. Spurs new boy Modric showed flashes of why Tottenham have splashed out ?14 million on him with some good passing but Austria gave them a fright and had some glorious chances to equalise right up until the final whistle. While I have a couple of Croatia defenders in various dream teams I was willing Austria to go on and get that equaliser they probably deserved. With a winnable game against Poland next up for Austria they have to take that spirit into the next round. Croatia meanwhile face a stern test against Germany with the loser likely to take the runner up spot and, you would imagine, a tie against Portugal in the knock out stages.

Next up - Germany v Poland. Looking forward to seeing Gomez who should be starting with Klose up front. Previous strike partner Podolski has been utilised on the left win by Germany so we might see him appearing there tonight. A revitalised Ballack in midfield along with a strong defence and you can see why Germany are tipped by many to have a successful tournament. They look a well organised team indeed and have the ability to score goals.

Currently sitting at 2 - 0 to Germany who have been far from their best against a useful looking Polish team at times. Metzelder has been thoroughly unconvincing and appears to be suffering from his long standing foot injury. That said Klose has been a threat up front and Gomez seemed decent when he was on. Podolski however has gotten the goals from the left flank including a belter of a finish from a Polish mix up and a scuffed shot/pass from Klose that nearly took the net apart. Ballack has been wonderful in midfield tonight.

EDIT: Finished 2 - 0 Germany.

[RossP]

Ahh... i'm in the right room now  :015:

Just cleaned myself after nearly defacating my boxers during the Croatia game  :022:

Won just over ?100 yesterday on betting the Czech v. Swiss game would be low scoring, with a draw half time Czech win full time. Followed by a flutter on Portugal to win, after seeing how strong they were in the first 5mins of the game.

So in a half cut state I threw it all on Croatia to win at evens  :021:

Austria deserved something from that game, despite Boularouz (sp?) being lucky to stay on the pitch.

Banking almost all of the money, and putting a wee ?20 flutter on Germany v. Poland being low scoring.

[RiG]

Round 2

Croatia 2 v 1 Germany

Austria 1 v 1 Poland

Stunning win for Croatia last night against a very unhappy German team who looked at odds with each other. This is a big result as it means that Germany look likely to play Portugal in the Quarter Final.

Never saw the Austria v Poland game. Went to the gym and played football instead  :001: