Euro 2024 starts off at full pace
Football
Football teams seen in action so far during the opening weekend of the UEFA European football championship have upped the tempo compared to recent years, local football pundits says. Hosts Germany opened their campaign of the tournament with a highly impressive 5-1 win over Scotland on Friday night.
It was not only a performance that would be remembered for the great goals, but the atmosphere was electric.
“I think the German team has set the bar high and we can expect them to go far in the competition,” former Citizens FC coach Bertus Bock noted.
“What captured my attention the most was the fact that the teams played at a higher pace which is not so common in international football.
“This is what we love to see and hope that it can continue going forward.”
In the later match on Saturday, Hungary felt the wrath of a Switzerland team in top form.
The Swiss displayed impressive ball control at most times – an aspect former Brave Warriors goalkeeper Maximilian Mbaeva admired.
“Well, the Switzerland team looks like they mean business after their first match.
“We know that they are probably not commonly considered among the favourites, but I was impressed with the way they handled themselves in the first match,” Mbaeva said.
Next up Spain won their opening match with the swagger of the team that they have been for so many years.
The Spanish team dominated Croatia with a 3-0 win to lay down the marker in their group.
They looked the better side on paper with some great youngsters and their performance on the pitch spoke volume of the expectations they have in the tournament.
Italy also gave a good account of themselves during their 2-1 victory over Albania.
“It was indeed a good opening campaign for the teams we expected would do well in the tournament.
“As fans we can hope to see more of the bigger teams declaring their intentions early on,” Mbaeva said.