*Official Euro 2008 Qualifying Thread*

[Iplayboard]

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France and Italy were two of the top 3 teams in the world for the past ten years or so, saying they were better than portugal isn't really saying much [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Germany on the other hand wasn't (and isn't) no where near as good as any of the teams mentioned, imo. They are way overrated right now because of Germany's history and the fact that they did well in the previous WC.


PS: that doesn't seem like a good bet for me, at all [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

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I agree with you on Germany. In 2006 they played really well, but even football minnows such as Korea and United States have done well at home. In 2002 they benefited from a rash of upsets and only had to beat Paraguay, United States and Korea to get to the final, where they were outclassed by Brasil.

At the European Championships Germany have looked awful recently, failing to make it out of the group stage the last two times.

Still, Miroslav Klose is a great striker and Michael Ballack is much more comfortable in German colors than in Chelsea blue. Frings and Schweinstiger provide long-range scoring threats from mid-field. Germany waltzed through qualification and got good results in friendlies (England) and meaningless qualifiers fielding lesser-known players.

I think Germany is a bit overrated. I'd put them below Italy, France and Spain, but they are still contenders.