While the big guns all scraped into the last 16 after a scare or two for all from the brilliant Hungarians — 10 minutes away from a great draw against Portugal, holding France in Budapest before coming so close to sending Germany out in Munich — they were all breathing a sigh of relief.
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NewsTranscript
00:00Everton have appointed former Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez.
00:09Good morning and welcome to Golf News Kicking Back. I'm Imran and I'm joined as ever by Matt,
00:15Shamsir and Sahil. Today we're going to look back at some of our favourite moments of the
00:20tournament so far and then we're going to preview the quarterfinal matches coming up
00:24on Friday and Saturday. But first of all, three bits of managerial news.
00:29Everton have appointed former Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez.
00:38They've been moans and groans from both sides of the city, red and blue half of Merseyside.
00:44Guys, I want to ask your opinions on that in just a second. Tottenham have appointed Nuno
00:50as their new manager. The former Wolves boss has agreed I think a two-year deal
00:54takes over the sacked Jose Mourinho. And it looks like Crystal Palace are going to be appointing
00:59Patrick Vieira as their new manager, the former Arsenal captain. He was last employed, it was
01:06Nice, he was sacked by them in the last year. It looks like he's going to be taken over from
01:11Roy Hodgson who retired, he's 90 years old now. So that's all interesting things happening there
01:19on a managerial front. But back to my club Everton, we've appointed Benitez. I think it's
01:26the most ridiculous thing ever to happen to our club and there's been plenty of crazy things
01:31happening there. I mean this isn't just for the obvious Liverpool connection, I mean I'm not too
01:38fussed about that. But I just think the game's passed him by, I don't think he's a good manager
01:42anymore. I think there's better options out there and we've gone for him. It's really upset the fans,
01:49I mean I still can't believe I've been reading all about this and seeing the pictures and seeing him
01:53putting the scarf up and around his neck and posing with the badge and everything. It just
01:58looks completely wrong. What do you guys think of this? First and foremost I think you're completely
02:05wrong. I think he's a great signing. I think that Benitez, you will be eating humble pie. I mean
02:15when we carry these video chats into the Premier League next season, you're going to be going,
02:21oh my goodness I was completely wrong. He's got an allure, he's going to bring top players to the
02:28club, especially if Ancelotti takes Calvert-Lewin and James away with him. But the key to Everton is
02:44they can't go back to Sean Dyke or an average English manager. They need to keep that stellar
02:52guy in charge and Benitez is the answer. He was available, he was up for the challenge and he put
03:00his hat in the ring and he basically says, let's forget about the divide. There is no divide anymore
03:07because if Everton want to compete with Liverpool, they have to get a lot better.
03:14They're not there right now and Benitez is the man to at least get them contending into
03:21the quarter-finals, semi-finals of the Europa League to start with and then get them maybe
03:25into the top four, which is a big ask. Even Ancelotti couldn't do that. But after getting
03:34a guy like Ancelotti in, you've got to stay high and they've kept it high. The animosity from the
03:46people in Merseyside have been idiots from both sides. Most sensible people, there's not many in
03:53Merseyside, have said that this is a good idea. There is no animosity from Liverpool. They say
04:04they're wishing him well. Even LFC have said themselves that they wish him well. Everton
04:10have got no problem with his previous. I think that you will be very surprised and I think it'll
04:19be a very, very good idea. I've just got to jump in, Matt. You're right, he's proven he's a good
04:24manager in that. But the fact is, we just won't be able to accept him. The majority of the fans,
04:30even if he does well there, he's always going to be the guy that came from Liverpool that won them
04:34the Champions League, won them the FA Cup, got them to another Champions League final.
04:38If he wins you out Europa, all will be forgiven, surely?
04:45I don't know, mate. I really can't say. I mean, it'll be a period that
04:49me personally, I'm going to just want to forget it. Even if you win something and do well,
04:54it just won't fit. It's like putting square holes in a round thingamajig, you know that phrase?
04:59Yeah, I think you're going to be surprised.
05:03I have to say one thing. I agree with Matty on the footballing reasoning side of it,
05:09because he's a good manager. He had a bad phase when he moved to Real Madrid, then he moved to
05:14Napoli. But then he broke that shackles and he had a very good stint at Newcastle,
05:20but with nothing spent, he did a wonderful job there. But then for the money reason,
05:25he moved to China. But now he's coming back, yes. As a manager, he's still good,
05:30he's still capable of doing the job rightly, because I still remember his small stint at
05:36Chelsea Football Club where he won the Europa League, though we still don't love him.
05:41This is the thing I'm talking about. Apart from the footballing reason, there are other things.
05:45There are emotions. That is the most valuable thing in football. Yes, he might even take you
05:52to the top four next season, but that is not enough, man. You need to have that connection
05:57with the fans. That's what football is all about. Football is all about having the connection with
06:02the fans. This guy will be under massive pressure. Like what Matty mentioned, if he gets going from
06:06the minute go, it's good. But if there is a small little blip in his managerial career, the fans are
06:12going to be on the head of him. He'll not be having peace of mind. I still think… We have discussed
06:19this many times. Fans are for football. Football is meant for fans. And if the fans are not liking
06:25it, it shouldn't be a point. That's it. Because footballing reasoning, I can understand. But the
06:30emotions, I don't know, man. I don't know. It's a ridiculous appointment. One of the most bizarre
06:35appointments ever. It really is. And honestly, I think we're going to be looking for another
06:40manager as soon as October, November time. I think he's put so much pressure on himself now
06:46by even accepting this job. Why did he want it in the first place? I've got no idea.
06:50You know, if he hasn't done well after five games, if he hasn't won all five games, honestly, I think
06:55the fans are just going to insist that he's gone. He's going to be… I think he's going to be the
07:01first managerial casualty of the new season. I really don't think this is going to work.
07:06I completely disagree.
07:07Yeah, I think we've set ourselves back. I mean, I necessarily…
07:10I think he's going to be manager of the season.
07:14I would love it, mate, because that means we've done well and we've progressed and we've hopefully
07:18finished inside the top five, maybe won some silverware.
07:22This is going to be, you know, 2020, sir, isn't it?
07:26He is a good…
07:27It's just going to be a period that we're just going to want to forget. Simple as that. It'll
07:30never be remembered. Rafa Benitez is Everton manager. And again, I say this not just because
07:34of the Liverpool side. I mean, there's far better managers. Tottenham have gone for Nuno.
07:39I think that's a good appointment. I would have been happy with that.
07:43You know, Chris Parrott's taken a chance with Vieira. I wouldn't have gone down that route if
07:47we had done something similar.
07:48Frank De Boer.
07:52Frank De Boer is available.
07:55I think he'll stay available for some time.
07:59I think you'll see him on BN Sports very soon.
08:03Yeah. Giving his tactical craziness.
08:09Explaining his decisions.
08:10Right.
08:10All right. Let's move on. That's enough about the Premier League.
08:14Euro 2020 began with 24 teams, as we know. We're now down to eight.
08:18And there's been loads of highlights in the tournament so far.
08:22But honestly, for me, I still can't… When I think of Euro 2020, the first thing that comes
08:27to my mind is just the Christian Eriksen collapse. I mean, that was a real… It could have been a real
08:31tragedy. Thank God he's fine now and he's a lot better. But when you think about Euro 2020 so far,
08:38what jumps to mind? What's been your biggest highlight?
08:41Well, I mean, obviously the Eriksen moment you've just mentioned there.
08:46Thankfully, in a very strange, almost paradoxical way, it took the glean off that idiot that tried
08:56to do the parachute jump. That's been forgotten about. And it should be. There's no place for
09:04things like that. No idiot stunts like that. It's like back in the 80s, you had the shooters running
09:10on the pitch. Let the guys go on with the game. They're trying to do something. Let them go on
09:15with it. What happened to Eriksen was harrowing, I think, for everybody that even has a partial
09:23love for the game. Thankfully, he's pulled through. I think we're still coming to terms
09:33with it. And the repercussions, it was like, if this can happen to one of these guys who's
09:39obviously just gone through a clean medical, moving from Tottenham,
09:47more has to be done. More has to be done to protect the guys, and not just in football,
09:53but in all sports, to make sure that they are not going outside their limits, shall we say,
10:01and there are no defects or anything like that that may be getting missed right now.
10:10Because Christian, thank goodness he's OK. But it's concerning that that got missed.
10:18Or it could happen to anyone at any time. But you still need to do more checks, I think.
10:28The key moments for me were the... I know that we've not even spoken to Saheel yet,
10:35but he's going to talk about Spain, surely. The comedy moments have been brilliant.
10:44David Marshall getting lobbed from the halfway line.
10:48The Bravka. Even the error by Simone for Spain.
11:00It's been great. I don't think that there's been a Euros that hasn't lived up to
11:05its reputation, like this one. The bloopers reel is longer than the action reel,
11:10and the action reel has been brilliant. Even if you look as recently as Zinchenko's goal,
11:15absolute fractionation goal, they just keep coming. And we've had nine or ten on goals already.
11:27It's been absolutely brilliant. To pick one, I would say the Bravka.
11:35Mostly followed by Spain and Marshall.
11:40OK, Saheel, go ahead with your Spain.
11:43Oh, no, no. I like the Spain national team.
11:51I like watching Spain. There's a reason why they're a funny team. They're the most entertaining team
11:54to watch. They miss sitters, they score the most funny own goal of the tournament. It's fun towards
12:00Spain. So I don't hate them or anything. Look, I'm wearing my jersey. Spain, come on.
12:05But like one moment, like a proper moment, which I just got off my seat, was the Sterling opener
12:12against Germany, you know? Yeah. Did you expect England to score in such a big game? You're right.
12:21I never expected England to score in such a big game, you know? And they scored. And also Kane
12:27had scored. So, you know, that 2-0 win over Germany was like super special. Because I
12:34have been supporting England for a while and they have not done anything in major tournaments. Yes,
12:38they came in the semifinals, but they lost to Croatia, who are not a high-profile team,
12:42you know? So they beat a high-profile team in a major tournament after quite a while.
12:49I don't remember when, unfortunately. But, you know, this was one moment and maybe the
12:54and one funny moment. Come on, let's be honest. The Unai Simon own goal, like,
12:58come on. You concede such goals and nine goals in a Euro 2020. That's just a mess up. This is like
13:04the highest form of the league and you're scoring nine own goals. That's not good. And two was in
13:10the Portugal game only itself with Diage and Guerreiro. But in the end, you know, that
13:15England game against Germany will just, I'll never forget it for the rest of my life. Yeah,
13:20that's a good one. Shamsir, what about you, man? What's been your best highlight so far?
13:25I think when Sahil was talking about the own goals, I think we'll have to give the golden
13:30boot to the own goals because they have already scored nine. I don't think anyone can surpass them.
13:35It's that kind of a tournament, man. And like Matty mentioned, all those moments, you know,
13:41for me, you know, what I love about this tournament is the underdog stories. You know,
13:45it's absolutely incredible, especially Hungary, then Goran Pantev moment. I love that, you know,
13:53then what Switzerland has done, what Denmark are doing, you know, Denmark can do even the
13:58unthinkable, you know, the way that they're going and the things that are panning out
14:02on their path, you know, it's absolutely incredible. We all love the...
14:07What, Matty? What did you say? They did it in 92.
14:12Exactly. They did it in 92 without even qualifying. Yeah. But, you know, like these
14:19are the stories that I love about this Euros, man. Absolutely incredible. Then apart from the
14:24Parachute story, I loved one Pichinveda story, actually, you know, she was actually promoting the
14:30coin, cryptocurrency. That was one story. I love that moment as well.
14:39But, you know, all these things, you know, the fans are back. That is the most important thing.
14:44The fans are back. Biggest difference. You're right. We saw 65,000 in Budapest.
14:50What else you want in a football pitch, man? That's the most important thing.
14:55It just makes everything feel so much better. The games come alive. Literally, they come alive,
14:59you know, with all the colour, the atmosphere, the noise. It's been brilliant. But another little
15:04funny one, since we're talking about all the funny ones, was Ronaldo and the Coca-Cola balls. I mean,
15:09that was Coca-Cola Billions apparently as well. Allegedly. But I have a different opinion on that.
15:19I think Coca-Cola got an advertisement with that because they might be having a small blip, like,
15:24okay, four billion blip at that time. But everyone around the world watched Coca-Cola now. It's an
15:30advertisement for them. It was back the next day. It was fine. On a serious note,
15:38like, you think like Ronaldo should have done that, you know, because of sponsors,
15:41such tournaments can be taken. Ronaldo should do such things, you know, because sponsors,
15:45you know, for this tournament's taking place. I don't think it's the right thing to do. I know,
15:49it's not the most healthiest drinks. But you should have not done that. You should respect
15:53your sponsors. Because of them, the matches happen. Right? Exactly. Yeah, the sponsors are
15:59the guys that made him a millionaire. Yeah. Yeah. But it's ironic now. I mean,
16:03when you look at all the major sponsors for all the major sporting tournaments,
16:06they're all fast food joints, and, you know, soft drink companies and all that. It's ironic,
16:12but... Or if you put your Everton shirt on, and you can see that you've not got a gambling site
16:19on there. You know, these things are just... It used to be. It's a car buying site now. We're
16:26selling used cars now. Good. Is that not what you do in the transfer market?
16:33Probably. Let's move on to some of the biggest shocks. I know we all fancy teams like Portugal,
16:41Germany, I suppose, Netherlands. But the biggest shock of all has got to be France
16:45being knocked out by Switzerland. I mean, did we expect that at all?
16:51Well, the thing for me was... And it was a moment of inspiration that I wrote a
16:57Pulitzer Prize-winning comment on it.
17:02Champshire pointed out yesterday that the group of death is all gone.
17:09Germany are gone. France are gone. Portugal are gone. And I said, the only guys that can
17:14hold their heads high out of that group are actually hungry. The rest of them, they've all
17:20flopped in the round of 16. And that's not acceptable for anyone, any of those three.
17:27If you look at the likes of Ukraine, Denmark, Czech Republic, Switzerland, all being in the
17:32last eight, there's no way in the world that Portugal, Germany and France should be accepting
17:37that. And heads have to roll. But obviously, we've seen the Netherlands coach Frank de Boer,
17:43no surprise, already lost his job. But I think, obviously, Joachim Löw and Hansi Flick has got a
17:52big problem there. With the World Cup's only, what, 18 months away, 17 months away? Something
18:00like that. There's major rebuilding has to be done. France are probably in the best position to
18:07regroup. Portugal, they've got to stop demanding, or sorry, stop one guy demanding he kicks every
18:19ball. As we did the start, the crazy start of one free kick in 50 or something like that.
18:25Yeah.
18:28Germany, yeah, let's just, that's a wholesale change. You've got to get rid of all the old
18:36boys, get building, as Shamsir said yesterday, get building around Werner and Abbotts and people
18:44like that. And get a team that the average age is 23, 25, not 45, you know, because Thomas Miller's
18:54the same age as me, man. And they've got major problems. Portugal, Ronaldo, if they keep relying
19:09on him, they're just going to feel again at the World Cup. You've got to say, do you know what,
19:14give the ball to Bruno, give the ball to these guys, and Ronaldo, take a step back or do a bit
19:20of Zlatan and just step away from the game, you know, go and make your money elsewhere with your
19:28adverts. To me, Portugal's problem was Ronaldo. Germany's problem was Joaquim leaving and old
19:43guys and France's problem was they took the eye off the ball. Netherlands' problem was they just
19:50weren't good enough. And I think that accounts for most of the big teams that are out so far.
20:01Yeah, I agree with Matthew on the German thing. We have already predicted that Joaquim Lowe
20:08should have gone like four or five years ago, at least after the World Cup debacle. But now
20:13they have little time to rebuild. But yeah, they can rebuild because there are a lot of talents in
20:18that country. They can become a force again, which is a no-brainer. Then for Portugal,
20:25yeah, they have to rely on someone else for all these free-kicks, penalties. And also,
20:30if they play, if they give Ronaldo a bit part-play and they can use him in like 30 minutes,
20:3640 minutes cameos, they can do a world of good. And also, they need a managerial change as well.
20:41Because with all the talents that they have, they should be playing better. Because they shouldn't
20:45be playing two defensive midfielders. Yes, it's all about winning. They won it that way. But now,
20:51that is not the team now. They have a plethora of talents which they can utilize. So Portugal
20:56needs a managerial change and a change of thoughts, especially with Ronaldo. They should be
21:02using him as a big part-player. He's still a great player. There is no doubt about that. This is for
21:08the future of Portugal. Then for Netherlands, no comments. Because you're appointing Frank
21:17De Boer and expecting a miracle. Then what will I say, man? That's ridiculous. They need to get
21:22someone capable like Koeman. Then they have a chance.
21:26Koeman changed the money to Barcelona and that was their downfall.
21:30Yeah, yeah. Ever since he moved to Barcelona, they didn't look like the team. Because they were
21:36gaining momentum. But to keep the momentum going, you need someone as good as Koeman. Not someone
21:43like De Boer. Anyway, Dutch has got talents. They can actually do good if they get a good manager.
21:50Next, the France thing. I think it was down to their spirit. The team spirit. And the fights
21:58within the squad that let them down. Otherwise, we are hearing stories about Rabiot's mom having
22:04a fight with Pogba's mom, Mbappe's dad. These kind of things you are hearing in the newspaper.
22:09So, these things are like… It shows that there is no unity in the squad. They are just blaming each
22:15other. If they can sort that out, I don't think Joshoms can do that now. So, maybe they will have
22:20to look for someone like Zinedine Zidane who is an absolute master in all these things. And yeah,
22:26so these are the things they need to do. And we are happy that the group of death is dead and
22:31buried. So, let's move forward. Available on gulfnews.com.
22:37I mean, Imran had said one point like, were you shocked when France lost? No. I did not expect it,
22:45but I was not shocked that they lost. From the start, group stage, they were nothing great.
22:51And as Shamshir said, there were problems in the squad. You are absolutely right.
22:56Why there were problems? Because all of them think they are big stars. They are. And they were
23:00thinking they are ahead of the game. Like each of them must be thinking, I am the best. I am the
23:04best. I am the best. Like Adrian Rabiot, he has been having problems a lot. Attitude problems since
23:10a lot of time. Like in the World Cup, he was kicked out of the French squad. If you guys
23:13remember, the manager kicked him out because he was put in the standby. And he had appealed like,
23:19why am I in the standby? And the French manager said, no, get out then. You don't want to be,
23:23then leave. So, this is the problem in France. I feel like everyone thinks they are too big.
23:27And now they paid the price. They are out. They lost to Switzerland. They are doing penalties,
23:32which makes it even more worse. So, yeah, I am not shocked that France are knocked out. And as
23:37for Germany, since last four years, they have not been doing much, unfortunately. The World Cup,
23:43as you know, they got out of group stage here. They lost to England. So, I mean, I don't really
23:47care. England won. So, I am happy. And Portugal, I don't think it is only just a one-man show.
23:54You know, all others are influential in the team. You know, yes, that free kick part,
23:59I completely agree. They should just give it to someone else. You know, there are many better
24:02players, Guerrero, Fernandes, who didn't have the best of tournaments. I completely agree on that.
24:07But there is more to come. He is still... Well, had Bruno taken the penalties, then surely,
24:12he would be the star man. You know, they just gave them all to Ronaldo because he was chasing
24:17the record. Bruno was not influential in the game also. Yeah, fair enough. For Man United,
24:22he is so influential. Not only because of penalties. You know, he creates...
24:25Because he likes to dive. Yes, yes, you know. I am teasing you. I am teasing you, Sahil.
24:33Sahil, I like one thing. You know, Pogba does so well for France and Bruno does the opposite.
24:40Pogba does the opposite for Man United, guys. Come on. He has done... He was pretty decent
24:44for Man United. He scored some belters of goals for Man United this season. He has been all right.
24:50We will get on to that in the Premier League pre-season
24:53curtain-raiser, which will be coming up very soon after the Euros.
24:57Yeah, that is going to be good. That is going to be good. All right, let us talk about... We have
25:01talked about some of the teams that have disappointed. But who has really caught your
25:04eye? For me, it has got to be Inter League. I mean, just from the way that they play football,
25:11always on the front foot, always looking to attack. I mean, that is the way I like to watch
25:14football. I mean, there is no right or wrong way to play football, as we all know. You know,
25:18you can play defensively. You can play with one up front. You can play how you like. The
25:22object is to... The objective is to win the games. But the way they play, it has been such a breath
25:26of fresh air. It is not just been for the last four games, by the way. I mean, Manchin has been
25:30there for some time now. They have had this incredible 30-31 game. I think 31 games unbeaten
25:35now. 11 successive wins. It was 10 clean sheets before they conceded that goal against...
25:41in their last game. But they are just so refreshing to watch. You know, the way they play,
25:46they are all, you know, getting forward. They all know their jobs. They cover each other.
25:49The depth of the squad there as well. I mean, who has caught your eye there?
25:56Well, I mean, first of all, obviously, they are doing the Ruud Gullit sexy football.
26:02You know, they are playing front to back, back to front, all the way around. And they are just
26:08loving it. Absolutely loving it. They are just enjoying themselves. But most of the teams enjoy
26:15themselves. They end up not winning the trophy. It is the business boys that win the trophy.
26:21Yeah, no, Italy have definitely caught the eye.
26:25Belgium, very good. Very good. Very efficient. They have overcome injuries. They have overcome
26:32COVID. They have overcome broken, fractured cheeks. They are still just doing their thing.
26:41It hasn't seemed to put them out of their stride. And I think those two should be in the final,
26:46but obviously they are not because they are facing each other in the quarterfinals.
26:51The other team that has caught my eye as a slow burner has to be England.
27:02Every game, they are getting better and better. They had the blip against Scotland.
27:06But they put that behind them because they knew it was Scotland. They knew it was Wembley. They
27:11knew it was a big game. They didn't lose. They didn't concede. And they have still not conceded.
27:17And then they have just got better and better. They went on to the next game very efficiently.
27:24They went on, no thanks to Hurricane again. And then they won 1-0. They went on to the
27:30last 16, won 2-0. And yeah, I think that they are burning perfectly. If they can go over the
27:38wee trip to Rome, then they are going all the way, I think. And I expect them to meet
27:48a gamble here, Italy, in the final. Because I think Italy will be belted.
27:54Yeah. For me, yes. Obviously, Italy have been absolutely relentless both in attack and
28:04defence. They play as a unit. We have told this many times. The passion, that's what
28:10drives them. From the national anthem, the way they sing it. Right from that, we can see the
28:17passion running through the veins of each and every player. So, I love that. I love seeing that.
28:22And apart from Italy, I think Denmark. Denmark have caught my eyes, really. Because
28:29you are having such a desperate moment. Such an unfortunate moment happened. And the way
28:38that they recovered from that, that is incredible. And they are scoring goals for fun. They are
28:44enjoying their football. They are absolutely enjoying their football. And there is an extra
28:47motivation within them to do well for Christian Eriksen. I think that will take them all the way.
28:54That's what I am calling for. I think they are going to the final.
28:56You are going to win it.
28:58No, they are not going to win it. They will go to the Wembley. That's it. They will go
29:01to the Wembley.
29:02To the semi-final, huh?
29:06Even to the final. To the final, I am saying. They will defeat England in the semi-final.
29:11I think it's going to be Italy versus Denmark and anything can happen. But I am rooting for Italy.
29:16So, we have got Italy-England, Italy-Denmark. Sahil?
29:20I am going for Italy-England. Come on. Don't knock my hand out, please.
29:26Thank you. Always follow the sensible idea. That's my advice.
29:31You know what? You can see how Denmark are playing. Yes, England are doing their business
29:37perfectly. There is no comment about that. You will have to blame England for not reaching
29:42the final. Because they will have only themselves to blame. Because the path is clear for them.
29:46It's a golden path to the final. It's Ukraine and Czech Republic or Denmark. They should
29:53beat them. Of course, anything can happen in football. But they should beat them. But
29:57this is what I am saying. The extra motivation that is running through the veins of the Danes
30:01is absolutely incredible, man.
30:03The veins of the Danes?
30:06The veins of the Danes, yes.
30:08And see, that extra motivation, that's what football is all about. They are very passionate
30:15about it. They are playing the free-flowing football. They don't really care whom they
30:20are facing. Whether England comes. England will be the one with the pressure. Because
30:24Denmark can play their football. Because England will have the expectation of winning the thing.
30:28It's coming home. Every taxi boy you can ask, they will be like, it's coming home, it's coming
30:32home. But it's not that easy. Denmark are going to give a tough, tough thing to them.
30:39And I think they will reach the finals.
30:41Just to make your statement better, the last time England played Denmark, Denmark beat
30:45England. Harry Maguire has come out. So, the benefit of the doubt.
30:51Yeah, see, that's the point.
30:52I am sure everyone will thank you for that.
30:57But Shamsi, you made a very good point. Even I started to believe that they could go
31:02quite far. They scored four goals in the last couple of games. They've
31:06suddenly just woken up. And they could be the new dark horses of the tournament.
31:11I think the original ones probably were Turkey. Just got to talk about the biggest disappointment
31:16so far. I mean, Turkey came into the tournament. They beat France 2-0 in one of their qualifying
31:23games. That team is full of players from the top European leagues. But they went out. They
31:29didn't get a single point. They had a minus, I think, eight or seven goal difference. And there
31:35was no positives at all whatsoever for Turkey. I mean, they really were the biggest disappointment
31:41of the tournament, weren't they?
31:43Yeah, I don't even recall that they even scored a goal. Did they score a goal?
31:48They scored one.
31:49They scored one. Okay, okay. They scored one. It's so memorable, I can't remember.
31:55They were massive flops. They came in, maybe again, a little bit of France syndrome. They
32:03thought, yeah, we'll get through. Third's good enough. We don't even need to bother here.
32:08And then all of a sudden, they're out without a point. Big flop. But then, I have to say,
32:18Germany are a big flop as well, because even guys like North Macedonia were doing fine,
32:30getting a goal, getting a result here and there. But Germany, two own goals, got them
32:41past Portugal. And that was really the only result of note. They didn't really do much else.
32:47Max Hummels got an own goal in the first game against France. And they were really, really
32:53relying on a late, late winner against Hungary. And then they were absolutely limp against
33:00England. To me, they've been the biggest disappointment.
33:04Yeah, for me, yeah, like what we mentioned Turkey, but you know, I have to mention one
33:08thing, you know, like the dark horses that I've mentioned before the tournament were Italy,
33:12and the surprise packages were Denmark. Both are doing well, and both are going to reach the
33:16finals. So I'm going to be very happy with that. But then the biggest disappointment,
33:21apart from Turkey, you know, it is France, hands down. You know, they were everyone's
33:26favorites, man. And they're just getting knocked out in the round of 16. That has to be the biggest
33:31disappointment.
33:35Totally, I agree. I was gonna say France only, like, okay, Turkey,
33:39disappointing. Minus seven goals is not a joke, to be honest. You know, that's really bad.
33:44But okay, France is a much more high profile squad. And I definitely think France, that they
33:49didn't lose to any like Belgium, or you know, Portugal or something. They lost to Switzerland.
33:53Switzerland are not great in the group stage also. Definitely France, hands down for me,
33:58look at that squad. And still the round of 16, France for me.
34:03Very true, very true.
34:04What about you, Emran?
34:06I said, yeah, I was, well, I didn't expect Turkey to, you know, to go and win it. But
34:11I thought they'd get out of the group. I think I did tip them to...
34:15At least get a point.
34:17Yeah, get out of the group, I thought, man. I thought last 16 at least and, you know,
34:20play some good football because, you know, with Yilmaz up there, you know, they've got some good
34:25players on that team, but they just failed to show up completely. But they did score one of
34:29the best goals of the tournament. I forgot the fella's name.
34:32The one that I forgot.
34:34Yeah, I forgot his name. A lovely 25 yard into the top corner. We've had some great goals,
34:39by the way. I mean, obviously, we think of the best goal of the tournament. I think everyone's
34:43going to just say Czech Republic's Patrick Szyk. I mean, it was just incredible from the halfway
34:48line, you know.
34:49I had to bring it up.
34:50Sorry, sorry about that. I had to bring it up. Unfortunately,
34:54happened against you. You always get the worst luck. But then Pogba scored a great goal the
34:58other night, didn't he? I mean, it counted for nothing in the end, but lovely goal. 30 yards,
35:02top corner. What's been your, if you can remember, your favourite goal so far?
35:07I think if you were to ask 20 different pundits, you'd get 20 different answers.
35:12There's been so many. You know, whether it's Dubravka's brilliant own goal, or
35:19like you say, Szyk against Scotland. There's way too many to choose from.
35:28The big difficulty is how do you whittle it down to even five?
35:32And Zinchenko's goal was great for Ukraine the other day as well, on the volley.
35:43See, you've put me on the spot now, I'm trying to think.
35:56Alright, okay. I'll do the easy one. I'll say Szyk against Scotland.
36:01I'll put Shami on the spot.
36:05For me, the most incredible goal was, yes, of course, you can talk about the Szyk goal,
36:09but technically the most brilliant goal was Benzema's goal. That was absolutely outrageous.
36:16I have no idea. You know, he has no right to do that. No right to do that. Because
36:22the ball was like two yards behind him. And he took that under his control with that outrageous
36:27touch. Technically, the most brilliant goal that was. And then the team goal, I think,
36:33the Italy goal where Locatelli scored that with one-touch volley to Berardi. Then Berardi crossed
36:39it. That was an absolutely incredible goal. That was also the pass of the tournament,
36:44I would say. It has to be. It has to be. It has to be the pass of the tournament. Then
36:49even the Belgium goal against Denmark, where there was one team goal with, I think it was
36:55Debrewan as assist. These were the goals. You can just choose one moment and see that goal,
37:01but there are a lot of things behind it. Especially the technicality and everything.
37:06So, I would go with Benzema's goal. It has to be the goal of the tournament so far for me.
37:10Because that was technically absolutely outrageous.
37:13Sahil, for you?
37:14I mean, we've said Szyk, Pogba, Benzema. But there are two underrated goals. You remember
37:19KDB's goal against Denmark. That left-footed strike. That was a pretty shout.
37:23Off the bench as well. Off the bench.
37:25Fizz did it. And one goal against Wales. Not bad. Good curve from outside the box. That
37:32was a pretty underrated goal. So, there are some shouts we have to give to these guys.
37:38Even Morata's goal was absolutely incredible.
37:41I was about to mention Morata. Yeah, that was a great goal. It was such a tight angle.
37:47And the pressure.
37:48So much pressure on them. Yeah, so much pressure on them.
37:51And the pressure after missing so many big chances.
37:54You've been watching Sahil laughing at Spain so much. And he had all this pressure on him
37:58just watching our videos.
38:02We've mentioned some really good players here. So, let's talk about some of the players that
38:05have stood out in the tournament. I mean, for me, when I think about it, before the
38:09tournament, we were thinking of the people like you mentioned Belgium, Lukaku, who I
38:14think is going to really come to life now. I mean, they've got Italy in the quarterfinals.
38:19That's going to be a really hard one. But I think Lukaku's been really good in that
38:24last game against Portugal. He was, okay, he didn't score a goal. That's not important
38:27though, because what he did for the rest of the team for that game, for the whole 90 minutes,
38:31I mean, he's just a big, barren ram. He's a goal machine. We know that. He's been really
38:36good. I think for Italy, apart for Lucatelli and Insigne and Immobile, I think Jorginho's
38:42had a really decent tournament so far. He's kept things ticking along really nicely in
38:47the midfield, you know, again, breaking up play, winning the ball back, playing it forward.
38:52He's been really good. Wijnaldum had a really good tournament for the Netherlands, you know,
38:57scoring goals, the captain performances, playing really attacking, playing really well. He
39:04was another really good performer. Who do you think stood out for you guys so far? There's
39:08going to be obviously loads more games coming up, but until now, who's really caught your eye?
39:13Well, to me, I think that, yeah, obviously Lukaku is the star player so far. He was
39:22absolutely tantamount to that victory the other day, even though he had no assists,
39:27no goals, if you look at it on paper. But everything he did was geared towards that
39:34win. And it was hands down, he was the man of the match. I completely disagree with Wijnaldum
39:40because of the last game. He was completely anonymous, as were the rest of the Dutch guys.
39:46But I think at times like that, you need guys like Wijnaldum to step up, having had a great
39:51tournament. And he didn't. No one did. And yeah, no, he's not a standout for me. The other guy is
40:02Evraheim. Everybody was talking about Harry Kane's goal scoring problems and everything else. You've
40:07got your number 10 behind you there, Evraheim. Everton boy with a Sterling shirt. It's weird.
40:19But yeah, no, but when the chips were down, Sterling game after game after game as a guy
40:27to come up with the results. Yes, it's taken Southgate to finally bring on the players
40:34without being crude. And bring on the Grealishers and the guys that can change the game.
40:41But Sterling's on the end of it every time. And he has been great because he's not an out and
40:47out striker. He's a winger, really. But every single time Kane has flopped, he's stepped up
40:53and he's produced the goods. And he's been brilliant. I think that that will give confidence,
41:01a power of good. I would even say, maybe it's time to let him go. Maybe move him on,
41:06get somebody in. At this stage, I would say, you keep him at all costs.
41:13Yeah, I agree on Matty with Raheem Sterling. Because the thing is that all the abuses and
41:19all the criticism he was having. And he shrugged it off. And he produced absolutely brilliant
41:24tournament so far for him. And apart from Sterling, like you guys have mentioned Lukaku,
41:29I don't want to mention it again because that's the same thing I want to tell. But there are two
41:33other players who I really want to mention. One is Spinezzola for Italy. And the other one is
41:38Mahle for Denmark. These two guys have been absolutely incredible. Even Hoiberg for Denmark.
41:45But for Spinezzola, what he gives is, he gives a different outlet. That's incredible, man. You can
41:51see your left-back using your right foot and dancing around that left-hand side. That's an
41:56incredible joy to watch. And he has been instrumental in many of those games for them.
42:00And he's going to be instrumental for them for the rest of the tournament as well. And for Mahle,
42:06he has been a revelation. We have seen him for Atalanta. But he has been an absolute
42:10revelation for Denmark. Ever since they moved to three at the back, he has been dancing all
42:16around both flanks. He has been playing in the right and left. And he's been scoring goals.
42:21Incredible watch. And Hoiberg has been pulling the strings together for Denmark. And
42:26especially after missing the penalty in the first game, he has been good. That shows the temperament
42:32of the boy. He's very tenacious. You know how he plays his football. It's incredible to see
42:39all these guys. So, I'm going with three players. Hoiberg, Mahle and Spinezzola.
42:44I'm going to throw another name in there quickly just before Sahil jumps in. Jordan Bickford,
42:47I think, who surprised me the most. I mean, I'm one of his biggest critics. Like I've said before,
42:52he's always messing up for Everton. But I think he deserves a lot of praise there.
42:56Sahil, who stood out for you?
43:00I mean, I liked, you know, you guys mentioned, in the start, Imran, you mentioned Locatelli.
43:04He was the star in the group stage for Italy. And I guess when one star player we know is KDB,
43:12when he came back for Belgium from injury, he made a huge, huge difference. So, I guess I have
43:17to say KDB. You know, he's made an impact for Belgium. Scoring foreign goals, assisting. So,
43:23I know he's the big man. He's a big player. But yeah, KDB has been the main man for me, I think.
43:35The beauty is that you can mention all the players in that Italian squad. Not even the team,
43:40the squad. Even Pessina, who came in for injured Pellegrini. He has chipped in two goals. All
43:46important goals. So, you can mention all the players in that Italian squad.
43:50They've been tremendous. They're really amazing.
43:52They're the best in all of France, surprisingly.
43:56Don't get excited now. We're running out of time here, guys. Let's get to the
44:00table finals. Let's get to the quarterfinals tomorrow. Switzerland are playing Spain.
44:05Switzerland were amazing against France. They're going to be full of confidence now,
44:08getting into this one. But Spain, they're scoring loads of goals now. They're scoring for fun.
44:12I'm going to go 2-1 Spain. What do you think?
44:142-0 Spain. They've got their shooting boots on.
44:20Spain versus…
44:21Switzerland.
44:22Who was it? Switzerland, yeah. I'm going with Switzerland. Oh, sorry. Chaka is out. So,
44:28going with Spain, yeah. Chaka is out.
44:30Who's playing? I'll go with him.
44:33Going with Spain now.
44:342-2 and then extra time. We'll see. 2-2 and extra time. We'll see what happens.
44:40Yeah, I think you're right. We could be seeing a lot of games going all the way now. And the
44:42other one, the big one, I mean, this one should have been the final, what many people think.
44:45Italy against Belgium. One of them has to go home early. Italy have been saying so good to watch,
44:52attacking and all that. I still think there's a lot more to come from Belgium. They've shown
44:57glimpses of what they can do. But I don't know. I think we might need penalties for this one.
45:02And then it's a lottery. But I don't know. I don't know. I think it's going to be a
45:07lottery. But I don't know. I don't know.
45:12Well, I called Italy going all the way. If I know, say 1-0 Belgium.
45:19Okay. For me, it all depends on KDV's and Hazard's fitness. Because Romelu Lukaku can't
45:27do it all alone. And if they are all confirmed, then there is no chance for Belgium. Yeah,
45:34of course, Romelu is going to give them a fight. But Italy as a unit is going to be
45:37too strong for Belgium. And I'm going for a comfortable Italian win against Belgium.
45:42Is it possible both teams can get knocked out so that England can have an easier route?
45:49England versus England in the final.
45:51On a serious note, without KDB, I think, come on, it should be 1-0.
45:56I think they might at least start them on the bench.
46:00All right. And moving on to Saturday, two more quarterfinals then. We've got Czech Republic
46:04against Denmark. It will be great, like we've been saying all along, for Denmark to go all the way,
46:08you know, semi-final or the final, just for Eriksen. But the way they're playing as a team,
46:13they've been really good. I don't know. I think I can see them actually getting to the semi-final.
46:18I'm going to go 2-1 to Denmark.
46:21This is the game that's got nil-nil written all over it.
46:25Extra time penalties.
46:28Penalties. Penalties. Penalties. And then it'll be 1-0 in penalties and sudden death.
46:33No one's going to score. No one's going to score. And then after that, no one's going to score.
46:39So, I say Denmark on pens.
46:41Okay. For me, Czech are a very robust side. And they're very difficult to beat. But Denmark
46:47have that extra motivation in them. And I'm going with Denmark. I think they'll win that game.
46:52And there is another thing. The voodoo. The Cristiano Ronaldo voodoo is there.
46:55Patrick Szyk has been scored four goals. So, they have to get knocked out.
47:00We'll see. Sahil?
47:04I don't know, man. Let's just go for 1-0 Denmark. Again, Kasper Dahlberg will score. Let's see.
47:12Really convinced there, Sahil.
47:14All right. And last one is England against Ukraine. I mean, we've got to push on now.
47:19We beat Germany on paper. That was a hard one. We've got over that obstacle.
47:24This is the best chance that we're going to have to get to the final. We've mentioned
47:28the teams ahead of them in the semis. And I think we might even start with Grealish
47:33in the team. I think Southgate might be a bit more attacking. I guess Germany,
47:37obviously, was being a bit cautious. Understandable. But I guess Ukraine,
47:40I really don't see too much of a threat. I'm going to go comfortable 2-0. And I mean,
47:45a fifth clean sheet for Pickford.
47:49For Pickford, not for England.
47:51OK, OK. First of all, we are not we.
47:59Of course we're we. This is we.
48:02No, no, no. You say I, not we. Three guys here are not English.
48:12Just keep your eye on me.
48:14Yeah, no, no, no. But I always root for England. I don't know why,
48:19because it's funny to see them lose, I guess.
48:23Yeah, no, you'll win. I think you're bang on 2-0.
48:27Yeah, I think Ukraine don't have the quality enough to pose a threat to England.
48:35Yeah, I think England are going to win like 2-0, 3-0. But they have to start Grealish,
48:41man. They have to start Grealish.
48:43I'm going to go for 4-1 victory. England are going to concede, but they're going to score 4-0.
48:47Don't worry about that.
48:48Oh, confidence.
48:53That means only one thing. Ukraine are going to win.
48:56Oh, gosh.
49:03Depends on who scores the goals for England.
49:07Well, that means England are right, because they've got the four-goal chance.
49:10Yes.
49:13All right, let's see how they all get on. That's enough for us for today. Thanks to my guests.
49:17Head to girlsnews.com for all the latest news. We'll be back on Saturday
49:21with another show. We'll see you then.