Thanks to the weird covid season this tournament is also affected. Normally it would take please in June as always, but with the senior Euros having been moved, the U21 tournament suffered.

Apparently they decided to do a separate group stage this week, and the knockouts at the start of the summer in May/June before the Euros. Because of the short time from call ups to the start of the matches I expect less fluid teams than usual.

Generally love watching this tournament, its the right balance of upcoming players, premature stars, and more unknown players (to me) that become breakout players in the tournament.

They've also changed the rules of progression from the group stages and now the top two teams advance.

Group A
Hunagry (hosts)
Germany
Romania
Netherlands

Group B
Slovenia (hosts)
Spain
Czech
Italy

Group C
Russia
Iceland
France
Denmark

Group D
Portugal
Croatia
England
Switzerland

England are sending a strong group once again but will probably fail because Aidy Boothroyd is still manager.

Ben Godfrey (Everton), Max Aarons (Norwich), Curtis Jones (Liverpool), Calum Hudson-Odoi (Chelsea), Emile Smith Rowe (Arsenal) and Mason Greenwood (United) are the star names. Then there's a whole bunch of guys with a lot of PL minutes under their belts.

Could have had Foden, Sancho, Saka and Bellingham too but they're all with the senior squad instead.

Centre mid looks meh, though. No real stand out names there.

German squad is devoid of star players.

The best performers this season are probably Ridle Baku, right back from from Wolfsburg who's having a great breakout season, Berisha who's doing good at RB Salzburg, and Nmacha, striker at Anderlecht.

The only other regular Bundesliga performers are Thiaw (Schalke), Pieper (Bielefeld), Schlotterbeck(Union), Özcan and Jacobs (both Köln), Burkhard (Mainz) and Klimovicz (Stuttgart).

None of these players is a regular at a big clubs, the rest are playing in 2nd Bundesliga, Jahnelt for Brentford in Championship.

Then there's 16 year old BVB sensation Moukoko, who's not been getting too much game time thoughm, and former Bayern youth central midfielder Dorsch, who was very promising and is now starting at Genk in Belgium.

Top talents Wirtz and Musiala haven't been included, Wirtz will likely go with the senior team and Musiala isn't eligible for the tournament (and will get a senior start now too). Havertz at the senior team too.

Think the talent is not comparable to England or the other big nations. Can't see Germany achieving anything significant.

Italy's squad is also devoid of stars when compared to the last few teams.

It should still be competetive with a couple of interesting players, but most big names either graduated to the senior team or just became inelegible. Locatelli and Bastoni are promoted, is promoted Kean has covid and Zaniolo is injured, they would have been the two biggest players on the team.

Portieri: Marco Carnesecchi (Cremonese), Michele Cerofolini (Reggiana), Alessandro Plizzari (Reggina)

Difensori: Raoul Bellanova (Pescara), Enrico Delprato (Reggina), Gianluca Frabotta (Juventus), Matteo Gabbia (Milan), Matteo Lovato (Hellas Verona), Riccardo Marchizza (Spezia), Lorenzo Pirola (Monza), Luca Ranieri (Spal), Marco Sala (Spal), Gabriele Zappa (Cagliari).

Centrocampisti: Davide Frattesi (Monza), Giulio Maggiore (Spezia), Tommaso Pobega (Spezia), Samuele Ricci (Empoli), Nicolò Rovella (Genoa), Sandro Tonali (Milan).

Attaccanti: Patrick Cutrone (Valencia), Andrea Pinamonti (Inter), Giacomo Raspadori (Sassuolo), Gianluca Scamacca (Genoa).

The midfield should be the strongest area with 3 midfielders that can control a game quite well. Attack is kind of weak, Pinamonti has been forced to stay so he will be replaced with Colombo. The interesting ones are surely Scamacca and Raspadori, who should play together making a partnership that resembles Pelle and Eder with how much bigger one is than the other.

Jay29 wrote:England are sending a strong group once again but will probably fail because Aidy Boothroyd is still manager.

Ben Godfrey (Everton), Max Aarons (Norwich), Curtis Jones (Liverpool), Calum Hudson-Odoi (Chelsea), Emile Smith Rowe (Arsenal) and Mason Greenwood (United) are the star names. Then there's a whole bunch of guys with a lot of PL minutes under their belts.

Could have had Foden, Sancho, Saka and Bellingham too but they're all with the senior squad instead.

Centre mid looks meh, though. No real stand out names there.

Greenwood has pulled out. Todd Cantwell replaces him.

Just saw France are sending Kounde, Camavinga and Aouar. Meanwhile Spain look much weaker this year than they usually are.

Portugal look good. Backing them to win it tbh.

France look crazy good.

Are any of France's strikers good? Their mid and defense looks sacked.

rincon wrote:Are any of France's strikers good? Their mid and defense looks sacked.

Right winger Ikone is having a very strong season at Lille, who were leading the table all this time. Awesome player from the couple of games I saw and will probably be bought bysome big club soon

Edouard from Celtic is supposed to be pretty good too, no idea about the others (well apart from Diaby of course who's a starter at Leverkusen, hugely talented but very inconsistent decision making)

Very strange and both very disappointing and encouraging for different reasons start to the tournament for Italy.

Very much the better team and playing well in the first half, with a nice goal from Scamacca who delivered as the man to watch in attack.

Then quiet first half until the 80th minute, when a completely unforced collapse happened. Maggiore scored an own goal trying to head away a free kick. Minutes later Tonali got a direct red. Then at the end Marchizza was shown a second yellow leaving in Italy with 9 men. Tonali's red was more clear, for the rest the ref was kind of an ass.

Even with 10 it felt like we'd win, having way better chances than in the rest of the second half. Sala, Zappa, Scamacca and Bellanova should have won the match.
Rovella also came on and impressed.

In the end the result was a real missed opportunity that complicates the tournament. Now vs Spain two important players will miss. I expect them to win the match and the group.

Milan boys Cutrone and Tonali flops of the match.

can't really find the time anymore to watch or keep an eye on youth international tournaments... but damn, anyone remember how Illarramendi used to boss this tournament 8 years ago or so haha. I thought he was going to be the next great deep-playing 6 with abilities of an 8 a la Pirlo, Xabi Alonso. But then of course you realise he never had the physique and frame to make it in that position as the game became more athletic.

rincon wrote:Very strange and both very disappointing and encouraging for different reasons start to the tournament for Italy.

Very much the better team and playing well in the first half, with a nice goal from Scamacca who delivered as the man to watch in attack.

Then quiet first half until the 80th minute, when a completely unforced collapse happened. Maggiore scored an own goal trying to head away a free kick. Minutes later Tonali got a direct red. Then at the end Marchizza was shown a second yellow leaving in Italy with 9 men. Tonali's red was more clear, for the rest the ref was kind of an ass.

Even with 10 it felt like we'd win, having way better chances than in the rest of the second half. Sala, Zappa, Scamacca and Bellanova should have won the match.
Rovella also came on and impressed.

In the end the result was a real missed opportunity that complicates the tournament. Now vs Spain two important players will miss. I expect them to win the match and the group.

Milan boys Cutrone and Tonali flops of the match.

Rincon, ¡Creo que has vuelto a subestimar a los españoles!

futbol_bill wrote:

Rincon, ¡Creo que has vuelto a subestimar a los españoles!

I meant that I expect that Spain will win the next match and the groups.

Talk about lack of reading comprehension

@mole, if you are capable of reading my post you would see that I said HAD. I was referring to the original posts by Rincon. It was only after Italy lost the game, that he mentioned Spain! And also this is not the first time that he has underestimated us!

futbol_bill wrote:@mole, if you are capable of reading my post you would see that I said HAD. I was referring to the original posts by Rincon. It was only after Italy lost the game, that he mentioned Spain! And also this is not the first time that he has underestimated us!

When should I have mentioned Spain? My original post was about the tournament, my second one was about Italy. Maybe you confused Jay's post where he says Spain are weaker, with me. And Hans with mole?

#BoothroydOut

Don't know how many tournaments he needs to botch before he's replaced.

Jay29 wrote:#BoothroydOut

Don't know how many tournaments he needs to botch before he's replaced.

Sounds like our last coach Di Biagio, wasted a lot of great teams in these tournaments.

The France-Denmark match sounds like it was dreadful

France with almost 70% possesion, only 3 shots on goal total for both teams in the match, the highlights are almost non existent.

Good for Denamark to get the win I guess.

Di Biagio was another level of bad. I have no idea how he lasted as long as he did.

Devis Mangia I liked for his 2012 side.

Need more young fresh minds like that.

rincon wrote:The France-Denmark match sounds like it was dreadful

France with almost 70% possesion, only 3 shots on goal total for both teams in the match, the highlights are almost non existent.

Good for Denamark to get the win I guess.

It was a strange game. Both teams had quality, but highly organised blocks and nobody able to pick up the ball behind the midfield line. The one time they did, Denmark scored.

Dont know why France shoehorn Fofana in at rightback. when they have 2 CL caliber players who actually play rightback.

Cant understand not just playing a back 3 of Kounde, Fofana and Badiashile and let the fullbacks play higher up with the wingers playing inside where end up trying to dribble into when they could have already been there.

Deutschland

Dahmen - Vagnoman , Pieper , N. Schlotterbeck , Jakobs - Maier , Dorsch , R. Baku , Özcan , M. Berisha - L. Nmecha

Reservebank:
Grill (Tor), Schubert (Tor), S. Ambrosius, Leitsch, Raum, Thiaw, Janelt, Klimowicz, Stach, Burkardt, Krüger, Moukoko

Trainer:
Kuntz

Niederlande

Scherpen - Teze , Schuurs , Botman , Bakker - Harroui , de Wit , T. Koopmeiners - Lang , Gakpo , Kluivert

Reservebank:
Bijlow (Tor), Paes (Tor), Doekhi, Geertruida, Zeefuik, Dilrosun, Ekkelenkamp, Kadioglu, Reis, Boadu, Brobbey

Trainer:
van de Looi

Wirtz ? First team?

Robespierre wrote:Wirtz ? First team?

Yes.

Personally I think it's far too early for him and he doesn't deserve to go to the Euros, yet.
He should be at the U21. But Löw will be Löw, always making wrong decisions.

As a little spice for the Germany-Netherland match, Dutch right back Teze spat at Ozcan at a U20 game in 2018, causingan on pitch shoving match. He has never apologized, so let's see what goes on tonight

Not a very breathtaking game. Netherlands the better team.

England?