It’s the Euros Baby.

 Late last night, when I was about to go to sleep, I had a thought - what is the Monday Musings if I don’t make a rambling post about the Euros? Strangely enough, I hadn’t originally planned to write anything about the ongoing festival of football, as I’ve had something else in the works for a while, which has occupied my attention. Yet, as I mentioned, my early morning revelation kicked me into gear, and I’ve set myself the task of writing an article in two days, in time for Monday. As a result of this, you should expect to meet with typos and nonsense aplenty in the following paragraphs (more so than usual). Indeed, I haven’t really decided what I’m actually going to be writing about here - just whatever Euros-related thing comes into my mind, I suppose (like an extended tweet) With that said, I hope that you can put up with this article to its end. Thanks.

The first thing that came to me in my dozy brainstorm last night was: ‘Roman Yaremchuk deserves credit’ (verbatim from my phone notes). Let me explain. The named man is a 25 year-old striker who has bagged two excellent goals so far in Euro 2021, having played 2 games for Ukraine (he also has an assist). I’ve been mightily impressed by him - he seems to have a real lethal touch in the final third. His first goal - a well guided header against the Netherlands - capped off a brilliant display: he was the joint highest rated player in that match, with 3 shots on target, 1 key pass and 2 successful aerial duels. I remember at one point, he took a neat touch and unleashed a vicious shot on the turn, and I thought ‘he’s quality’. Days later, after perfectly timing his run versus North Macedonia, Yaremchuk collected Yarmolenko’s through-pass to tuck the ball away at the near post. His finish was unerring. I don’t think you can say enough for a striker with composure nowadays - seeing people like Morata and Werner clowning around, it’s refreshing to observe someone in total control of what they’re doing. Unfortunately, though, I find that Yaremchuk has been lost among the Euro hysteria - Ukraine are in a forgettable group, his name isn’t Ronaldo, and he doesn’t play in one of the big Leagues. Truly, even within his own national team, people seem unable to look past Malinovskyi, Yarmolenko and Zinchenko (who have been good, don’t get me wrong, but I’d expect nothing less) What I’m thrusting at is - he’s not getting enough credit for his showing so far. He’s demonstrated proficiency in every area of the art of striking, which hasn’t nearly been given the recognition it deserves. Maybe it’s because he plays for an unfancied country - but so does Schick, and everyone’s loving him (I suppose a 40 yard goal helps with that, though). Europe’s top teams should be all over Yaremchuk: he scored 17 goals and assisted 6 more for Gent in Belgium last season, and now (in the Euros) he’s proving he can mix it at the highest level. Someone, give a word to Roman - and Roman, keep it up.

Next item on the list: Spain. My opinion here is controversial. First of all, I’d like to say that the Spanish have a place in my heart, as they bossed world football when I was beginning to take an interest in watching the sport. More importantly, though, Fernando Torres led their line for ages, and he’s my favourite-ever player, so I loved to see Spain doing well. I have stuck with them since his retirement - and since their drop-off in international success - as they’ve still got a nice kit, and they still play tiki-taka (and now they’ve got Thiago, another of my favourite players). Not even Morata can detach me from Luis Enrique’s men. I tell you this because I want my bias to be on the table before I go on to say questionable things; and essentially, the questionable thing is, I think Spain have been better than people are giving them credit for, so far in Euro 2021. Yes, they’ve missed sitters. Yes, watching pass-after-pass-after-pass can be boring, but - I think Enrique’s system has been effective thus far. Please let me explain. It’s not the fault of the system if a striker misses sitters! Nor, for that matter, if anyone in the team misses sitters! Take the game against Sweden, for example. Spain were in total control of things, and had fifteen hundred chances, but happened not to score. Unlike Liverpool last season, it wasn’t a case of a dearth of quality chances - no, Spain had an xG of 2.47 here. They set up camp in Sweden’s half and choked the game, patiently waiting for openings in the flat-pack, yellow-shirted, defence. Maybe they looked a bit shaky at the back, but Laporte-Torres is a new partnership in defence, so I think you need to cut them some slack here (also, they were facing an exceptional talent in the shape of Alexander Isak - I’ll get onto him later) Sweden only got a sniff of goal twice or three times, and I would say it’s probably impossible to deny a team any chances at all. What’s more, I actually enjoy watching Spain pass the ball around. I can imagine the brains of people like Thiago and Pedri whirring, trying to slot a killer ball through. This brand of football works for Spain precisely because they’ve got players like the aforementioned duo. Unfortunately, though, they’ve been cursed where it most hurts - in the striking department; but surely, in any system, Morata would miss sitters. Truly, before the third round of games started, Spain had accumulated the most xG at Euro 2020, with 5.83, having only scored 1 goal so far. If there is one criticism you could level at Enrique (the Spanish manager) it possibly pertains to his refusal to drop Morata: Gerard Moreno is a quality finisher (penalty miss aside) and deserves a shot in the starting XI. Yet, aside from this, I think Spain have done everything right. They’ve only conceded one goal so far - to Lewandowski of all people - not to mention their exceptional xG again; and if you consider actually having the ball to be the best form of defence, Spain are the world’s most impenetrable unit, having had 85% possession (a record) versus Sweden. It seems to me as if people are reluctant to recognise Spain’s quality: we’re all too hung up on tiki-taka and Morata missing the final touch. Maybe I’m deluded, but I’ll never cease to be amazed by a team that can bide their time and unpick a tight, low-block. I just wish that Liverpool could’ve played like Spain, as such, in some of their games from last season.

With Liverpool on the tip of my fingers, I’ll get onto my next Euro reflection (I’ll burst if I don’t get this written down soon) I know that signing a player off the back of a decent showing in an international tournament has been proven to be a foolish move in the past (see El Hadj Diouf, Yerry Mina, Karel Poborsky, etc.) but in the case of Alexander Isak, I’m convinced that Liverpool Football Club need to swoop immediately. Simply, In 2 games for Sweden in Euro 2021, the forward has proven that he has real composure in front of goal. This might sound unremarkable, but please understand that, among Liverpool’s current forward options, there’s barely a spoonful of composure to be spoken of. What’s more, Isak is 6’4”, so - unlike Salah, Mane and Firmino - might actually be able to get onto the end of any of the crosses whipped into the box by the wingmen every game. I’m aware that he isn’t a ‘target man’, by the way, but still, a tall forward is desperately needed at Anfield. What I love about him most, though, is the fact that - as well as being physically imposing - he’s super agile, ridiculously silky with the ball at his feet and fast. He’s played 159 minutes of tournament football so far this summer, and having seen bits of this, I think I can safely say that he’s the complete package. The way he sat down Laporte against Spain was magnificent; the way he ran through all of Slovakia the game afterwards was even more magnificent - go and watch these magical moments if you haven’t seen them already. Here’s to you, Alexander Isak - Liverpool’s next great striker. Actually, I have something else to say about Liverpool. On the back of his Euro 2021 performances so far, Andrew Robertson, fan favourite at LFC, has cemented his status as the world’s best left back, I believe. You’ve got to remember, he’s captain of Scotland, and probably their best player, so he must feel immense pressure to perform on the international stage. His load is only made heavier when people like Kieran Tierney get injured - as happened against Czechoslovakia - forcing him to contend with even more of the creative onus. Well, given all of these mitigating factors, I think Robbo has performed commendably for Scotland so far this summer. If not for Schick in the first match of Group D, Robbo was the highest rated player on the pitch as Scotland faced the Czech Republic - he was certainly better than any of his patriots, by far. Liverpool’s left back managed six key passes in that game and 1 shot on target, but also, he contributed defensively, with 4 successful defensive actions. I witnessed his flying performance on that day, and he was just irresistibly good, at both ends of the pitch. Days later, as England lumbered up to face Robbo’s Scotland, the man in question showed how strong he is with the other side of his game too. The Scottish defence was impenetrable, and I remember Robbo making a crucial tackle on Foden - he also managed to whip in 3 accurate crosses, and produce a key pass. Name me another left-back who could be so unflinchingly solid against Foden & co, whilst still managing to get up the pitch and create key chances for his team. Andrew Robertson is the world’s best left back, and Euro 2021 has been his stage to demonstrate his class.

I’d like to quickly make a point about the Christian Eriksen thing - and yes, I realise I’m a bit behind the curve here. The thing is, everyone complained about the BBC not cutting back to studio at the time - but I’d like you to consider this: the studio hosts would’ve been in no fit state to fill the air as events were unfolding. Indeed, Alex Scott was basically in tears when we did eventually return to studio, so I can only imagine what they would’ve been like in the actual heat of the moment. I think it would’ve been unfair, as such, to have thrust them back before camera at the time, and people seem to be looking over this. Don’t get me wrong, though - I do think that the BBC should’ve cut away to something at the time. Anything would be preferable to the images of a man receiving CPR whilst his wife looks on. However, as I’ve said, I don’t think that cutting back to studio was the answer.

I’m running out of article fuel now: I have two more vague thoughts to jot down before I leave you be. First of all - I’m disappointed by Poland. Lewandowski’s men fall desperately short of the sum of their parts, and have done so for ages. Just imagine: a team with Lewan, Zielinski, Bednarek, Krychowiak (who has gotten better recently), Szczęsny and Moder (among others) for a solid spine. Well, in this way, Poland are living the dream - their team is really good on paper, I reckon. Yet, I’ve seen them at multiple international tournaments now, and I always feel disappointed by what plays out before my eyes. Poland never seem to function well as a team, and their star players never live up to my expectations (I’m thinking of one striker in particular here). This was the case in the 2018 world cup, and it looks like Euro 2021 is following suit. Take the game against Slovakia for instance: Poland, really, with their superior firing power and solid looking defence, should’ve trounced their Group E opponents - but this didn’t happen. Poland looked rather crap from minute one (something certainly not helped by a red card) and I was left with an all too familiar feeling: why do I ever expect anything different from the Polish? Zielinski and Lewandowski should be a devastating partnership, but, for some reason, they just aren’t. This has perturbed me. Someone who hasn’t perturbed me, though, is Xaver Schlager - Austria’s midfield maestro. The sturdy 23 year old has improved as the tournament has gone, playing in the middle of the park for Franco Foda’s men. He’s got a good eye for a pass; he shields the ball well; he’s aggressive in the tackle and he can drive forward with possession too. I loved his battle with Frenkie de Jong the other day as Austria faced the Netherlands; I got the feeling that this is a battle we’ll see many more times - at the top level - in the future. The fact that Austria have been generally poor so far in the tournament has helped Schlager to stand out. He plays a calm game for a young man, and I reckon he could be a potential Wijnaldum replacement for Liverpool.

Well, I’ve exhausted my notes-app prompts now. I’m writing this at half nine on Monday evening, and already some of my points have been made invalid by tournament developments. If I take any longer to get this out, then, maybe none of my thoughts will be relevant - so, I’m going to take a laissez faire approach to reading through my work, in the interests of expediency. Thus, I apologise if this post is hard to get through (owing to tricky sentences/typos, or simply my dodgy opinions). I do hope you’ve enjoyed it, though, and I thank you for reading. 

Please share your thoughts, on my thoughts, by tweeting me @Torpaldo. 

Thanks.