The UEFA Euro 2016 boot battle: Day 3
Anyone else wake up this morning with an overwhelming sense of disappointment and a banging headache (as a result of trying to deal with that disappointment)? Me too. Kane on corners… No Vardy… We think this may be the beginning of the end for Roy. So expect Hart on all free-kicks and Rashford starting holding mid for the Wales game. But oh well, let’s not reminisce of the past.
Today was another day. World champions Germany opened their campaign, with an array of ‘team Adidas’ players on show. But first up was Turkey and Croatia, featuring Adidas’ Rakotic.
A dull first half was lit up by an unbelievable strike as it neared its end. The ball was cleared hurriedly by the Turkish defence, and up into the air. As it fell with an incredibly steep trajectory, Luka Modric was there on the end of it thirty yards out. The midfielder connected beautifully to strike home and give the Croats a deserved lead.
The second-half saw Croatia dominating, with Modric and Rakotic running the show. They created chances at will, the best of which came when Srna and Perisic both struck the bar with a free-kick and header respectively. Turkey pressed a little but in the end struggled to create chances. Corluka was valiant and his heroic defending ensured that they shutout their opponents. At 16/1, they may be worth a shout for outsiders to win the whole tournament.
As for the battle, Rakotic certainly advanced Adidas’ lead. He gets one point for a good performance, as does defender Srna.
Next match up was the hugely anticipated return of Northern Ireland to a major finals. They went in as underdogs, despite being unbeaten in 12, as Poland came into the finals on the back of an impressive qualifying campaign.
For the first 15 minutes, Ireland couldn’t get into the game and barely made it out their own half. They withstood, however, the pressure and grew into the match as it progressed. Their strong defence crumbled though in the second-half, as Milik struck a low shot which proved to be too powerful for the keeper to keep out.
So their first game ended in defeat, but the Irish fans were not deterred and showed immense support throughout. Fair play to them!
The biggest game of the day was the final one, where Germany took on Ukraine. The Germans looked overly comfortable while in control of the ball and they dominated possession. After 20 minutes, Mustafi headed in powerfully from a Kroos cross.
Ukraine did trouble a shaky-looking German defence at times, and Boateng had to make a clearance off the line. It was a Yarmolenko effort towards the goal which caused the problems, as it hit the defender and looked to be going in. But Boateng managed to stretch and clear it fantastically.
The second-half was less fluid and chances were not as frequent. But as Ukraine pressed for that equaliser, Germany scored the most German goal ever on the break. Ozil latched onto a through ball and ran down the left wing. He had Schweinsteiger as company, and the Manchester United man was found with an inch-perfect cross that could have only come from heaven. As the ball bounced, the veteran expertly caressed the ball into the top corner from close range to give Germany the win.
They now sit top of the group, and will play Poland in their next game – who also have three points.
In terms of the battle, Adidas extend their lead hugely with no Nike players featuring as opposed to Ozil, Neuer, Howedes and Muller all starting for Adidas.
Ozil earned his side three points alone; one for a good performance, one for the assist and another bonus one for that assist being so damn sexy. Neuer and Howedes both get a point for the clean sheet, and Neuer gets another one for a good performance. Muller didn’t do enough to earn himself one. But in total, the Germans secured team Adidas six points in this match alone.
Adidas
Rakotic +1
Srna +1
Ozil +3
Neuer +2
Howedes +1
Nike
No points
Overall score
Adidas 11 – 1 Nike
All is not lost just yet for Nike though, as they come back on day 4 in force with
Tomorrow’s Euro 2016 matches
Spain v Czech Republic
Republic of Ireland v Sweden
Belgium v Italy
Players involved
Adidas: Vermaelen.
Nike: Ramos, De Bruyne, Iniesta, Ibrahimovic.
The UEFA Euro 2016 boot battle: Adidas vs Nike
The UEFA Euro 2016 is finally here. All of those long and, very much at times, boring qualifiers have led to this point. Viva La France! And we’re covering all of the juicy goals, epic wins and of course all of the fabulous football boots on display at the 2016 Euros. So why read our coverage of the Euros? Well apart from the fact that it will guarantee to be hugely different to any other co...[Read More]