Croatia 2-1 Germany

Raise your hand if you saw this one coming. I need to tally the scores for the blog's bracket challenge, but I'd say no more than one person had Croatia prevailing in Klagenfurt on Thursday. ESPN announcers Derek Rae and Tommy Smyth (who are great to listen to, and I love the effects that blend the crowd noise with their commentary so that it sounds like they're actually at the game when in reality they're in a studio in the middle of Connecticut) noted that the Germans looked flat-footed and very different from the team who took the field against Poland last weekend. I have to disagree with them on this point. I think that a smaller Croatian midfield surprised a lot of people by outplaying Michael Ballack and friends, but I don't think the Germans necessarily had a bad game in the midfield. They had their defensive lapses for sure, but so did Croatia; the real problem was that the Germans just didn't create a lot of good opportunities in this game. They did possess the ball well and show patience in advancing when the Croats buckled down in their own half. I state the obvious here, but soccer comes down to who finishes and who doesn't a lot of times; it was no different here. But to say the Germans were dominated, or played a terrible game, is inaccurate. They didn't play their best, or create the chances in the offensive third, but they had enough skill keeping possession to give themselves some opportunities all game. I think they're okay and still expect them to advance out of this group. Lukas Podolski netted his third goal of the tourney with a sizzling volley in the box, but it was too little too late for the Germans. Their game with Austria is huge all of a sudden, and a silly red card by Schweinsteiger in injury time leaves one of their greatest offensive weapons stranded on the bench for the next one.

Of course there's also the matter of giving Croatia a ton of credit for this upset. They demonstrated an awesome team possession on the first goal, which ended on the foot of Darijo Srna at the six-yard box after 15 passes that saw every player for Croatia touch the ball. Grant Wahl was right; watching it on DVR is beautiful, a testament to how patience, switching fields and staying in the play can reward a team. They could've had one and possibly two more in the first half, but couldn't convert point blank gifts in the penalty box. The second goal was more of an unlucky break and slight error by German keeper Jens Lehmann than anything (watching the replay convinces me that a goalie should never let himself get beat near post like that, deflection or otherwise), but the Croatians were there to take advantage, and we can't say that about every team who has had similar opportunities afforded them in this tournament so far. The Germans showed speed and power in both the last World Cup and their opening game against Poland in Euro 08, but the Croatian side didn't seem to be afraid. They were just as physical and played virtually mistake-free soccer after their defense was a bit shaky against Austria. Croatia will head to the quarters with confidence, an extremely animated coach, and a lot of very, very talented players whose last names end with the letter C. Let's just keep crossing our fingers for those checkerboard unis before their run/the tourney itself ends.

Austria 0-1 Croatia

I'd like to hear all of the naysayers now, the ones who wanted Austria to duck out of the party they're hosting. They looked far from overmatched in this one, gaining more and more momentum as things progressed. No, they didn't get any points from it, and realistically these were points they sorely needed if they harbored any illusions about actually advancing, but the home crowd in Vienna rallied behind them and they earned a lot of respect with this result. Again, this was a game only saw bits and pieces of, but the Austrians were a questionable penalty kick away from a scoreless draw. Luka Modric converted the PK in the 4th minute, which proved to be the game-winner; I'm not sure if it was a PK or not, I probably wouldn't have called it that early on in the corner of the box, where the guy didn't appear to be in a serious position to actually score, but I don't think it's a terrible call, either (I know, I know, posting cursory reviews of the games, not taking a position on a controversial call--what kind of blog is this? trust me, it'll get better). If Austria can win or draw against a reeling Poland squad on Thursday, it could make the match against neighboring Germany awfully interesting next week. They didn't look like the 92nd-ranked team in the world yesterday, forcing Croatian keeper Stipe Pletikosa to make some nice saves late and generally holding their own. Croatia did control the tempo more in the first half, but they managed just one shot on target and have to improve if they want to make a run in this tournament. Croatia takes on Germany on Thursday, while the co-hosts entertain Poland. Both games will be played in Austria.

Group B Preview

Playing from behind after a weekend out of town, which may or may not have included some atrocious dance moves at a wedding reception. Let's continue with Group B, then get to some match reviews.

Germany
World Ranking: 5
Euro 04: Group play
WC 06: 3rd place (L-Italy/W-Portugal)
Three to Watch: Michael Ballack (Chelsea), Miroslav Klose (Bayern Munich), Lukas Podolski (Bayern Munich)
The undisputed group favorite and one of the favorites to win the whole thing, the Germans come into Euro 2008 off a bronze performance as hosts of the last World Cup. They haven't fared too well in this competition the last two times, having failed to win a match since 1996 (that's a shocking stat, isn it?), but they return a core of high profile players who are capable of taking them deep into June. While the Germans don't usually come to mind when speaking of fast-paced, high-flying soccer, they are a very aggressive team with a lot of young, offensive talent that should be entertaining to watch. They may not be truly tested until the semis, when they could potentially face Portugal.

Croatia
World Ranking: 15
Euro 04: Group play
WC 06: Group play
Three to Watch: Luka Modric (Tottenham Hotspur), Robert Kovac (Borussia Dortmund), Dario Simic (AC Milan)
After a string of recent disappointments on the international stage, Croatia looks poised to make it out of group play in this tournament. A late goal by Australia prevented them from advancing in the World Cup, but they were impressive in that campaign and have the benefit of drawing a group with one challenging game (Germany) and two very winnable games. This is another squad with world class talent and players from the best leagues across Europe. If you're angry at England's absence from this tournament, blame these guys; they eliminated them in a game where they basically had nothing to gain. I expect the Croats to make it out of this group as the runners up; it's just too bad we won't be seeing their trademark red and white checkerboard jerseys due to a color clash with all the teams in their group.

Poland
World Ranking: 28
Euro 04: Did not qualify
WC 06: Group play
Three to Watch: The names of these guys don't exactly roll off the tongue; let's wait for some stars to emerge before I do this to my keyboard.
Most of the players on the Polish team appear to be a cut below in terms of this level of play, but they had a very respectable run in 2006 in defeat and hope to continue that streak in their first ever appearance in the European Championships. They have never beaten Germany, and I don't expect them to break the streak in this tournament, but they should handle Austria, leaving their pivotal game to be the one versus the Croats. My money is on the Croatian team, but some have picked the Poles as a dark horse from this group.

Austria
World Ranking: 92
Euro 04: Did not qualify
WC 06: Did not qualify
Three to Watch: Roland Linz (Sporting Braga), Andreas Ivanschitz (Panathinaikos), Sebastian Prodl (Werder Bremen)
Widely considered one of the worst teams to ever participate in this competition, the Austrians qualifed automatically as co-hosts of Euro 08. FIFA's rankings show they're ranked below some pretty soft teams (Libya, Iceland, Georgia--and I don't mean the Bulldogs), and there was even a movement in Austria earlier this year to prevent the national team from playing in this competition so that the proud citizens wouldn't be humiliated. I happen to think they're probably exaggerating just a bit, as the home crowd will inspire them to make things interesting at the very least, but asking them to get out of this group or perhaps even just win a game might be asking too much. The Austrians will be done after three games, but it won't be as bad as some people have claimed.