A Football Report

Poland and Ukraine: the unlikely duo. This is the first of a two part series by John Ray on the history of Euro 2012’s respective hosts, allowing fans to become familiar with the two nations that will soon be placed under a microscope.

When top-scorer David Villa lifted the European championship trophy in 2008 it was clear that Spain had exorcised (at least some of) their demons and a seismic shift in the international game was on the way. In addition to the rise of the Spaniards, there was the arrival of the eccentric Andrei Arshavin, the breathtaking play of the Dutch in the group stage, and the “never-say-die” Turks. The competition in Austria and Switzerland ushered in a new guard in Europe as the competition has continually done.

Euro 2012 in Poland and Ukraine is sure to shape the footballing legacy of more countries. Both the host nations have been long preparing for the tournament and the 6 new stadiums, particularly those in Warsaw, Lviv, and Gdansk, look to celebrate their heritage in theatrical perfection. The excitement is quickly reaching a fever pitch with the ITV “dreams” advert and the new Nike promotion building up commercial fervor, and the lull without domestic football has made us yearn for the competition all the more. Unfortunately, Euro 2012 has also been met with early controversy as their have been fears of the racist right rearing its repulsive head that has led numerous black players’ families (particularly Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s) to stay at home. The jailing of ex-minister Yulia Tymoshenko has been criticized and resulted in a number of leaders boycotting the event.

The ability to overcome these concerns and stage a successful event will make Euro 2012 a watershed moment for both these countries moving forward and will hopefully continue an era of relative success for both of these countries domestically. The tumultuous histories and recent heights of Poland and Ukraine must be illuminated in order to understand this year’s competition and the significance that it carries for the countries producing it.  We begin with Poland: From their escape of imperial rule in 1919, the destruction of the country in World War II, the rebuilding of the football team under the glorious tenure of Kazimierz Gorski in the 70s, and the lull until today.

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By Matthew Richards

Things have changed since part one of this story appeared last week, and Yoann Gourcuff has been left out of the French squad travelling to Poland and Ukraine. Powering on regardless, Matt Richards reviews Gourcuff’s international career, with a focus on the recent omission, and his disappointing time at Lyon.

In his second season at the Stade Chaban Delmas, Gourcuff merely flirted with the heights he had previously reached. Bordeaux did, admittedly, enjoy a record win-streak early in the season, and reach the quarter-finals of the Champions League only to lose out to Olympique Lyonnais, but finished the season in sixth place; failing to qualify for European competition altogether. Three matches into the next season, L’Equipe reported that Gourcuff had informed the club of his desire to join Lyon. For his final match with Bordeaux, he came on as a substitute, assisting the game-winning goal in injury-time. Then he was gone.

In the previous months, his mind was elsewhere. So it should have been. Raymond Domenech called upon Gourcuff in France’s World Cup qualifying campaign, and he made a number of important contributions as Les Bleus finished second in their group, notably a 30-yard wonder strike to equalise against Romania. Gourcuff, when he was played, found himself filling the void left by Zinedine Zidane, though Samir Nasri and Mathieu Valbuena were capable of playing the same role. He started in both Dublin and Paris as France secured their place in South Africa in controversial circumstances, and the young midfielder was all but certain of inclusion in the final squad.

“We did [struggle in qualification], but I think that’s actually a good thing,” Gourcuff prophetically said ahead of the World Cup. “The adversity and criticism we received means that we are going to be even more together as a team. We went through some difficult times but we hope that’s in the past.”

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By Max Grieve

Imagine this for a moment. In little over a month’s time, England, having finished as runners-up in their group at the European Championships, are playing Spain for a place in the semi-finals. Roy Hodgson’s men are literally filling the face of the goal; Gerrard instructing a human-tetris formation between the posts and the bar — and it’s working. Spain, like Barcelona and Bayern Munich before them this season, are struggling to take advantage of their overwhelming dominance. Somewhere else, Gary Neville gurgles in delight. The whistle comes; then sounds again as the two sides begin extra time. There are no goals.

Germany await the victors in Donetsk, and with no way of separating the teams, a 14-year-old boy is called onto the field, his eyes blindfolded, and asked to draw lots. The stadium is plunged into a deafening silence. After a moment, the boy holds Spain’s name above his head, and the artists in London begin photoshopping Hodgson’s face into a root vegetable for the next day’s front page. England are out; Spain are through. And they were so close.

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By Ulysse Pasquier, writing from Montreal

It’s been a week and still even Rémi Gaillard can’t quite believe it. Who would have thought at the start of the season that Montpellier, the 13th budget in Ligue 1, would end up lifting the trophy for the first time in its history. The southern city is a cultural and university center in France and has celebrated sporting triumphs in handball and rugby, but never football. Promoted to Ligue 1 just two seasons ago, René Girard’s side defied the odds by finishing above big-spending Paris Saint Germain. With Manchester City leading an analogous enterprise as PSG and winning the Premier League, no one outside the French capital could complain about the success of a club focused on the development of young players and a sustainable budget.

Turn the clock back to 2007; Montpellier was in an abysmal state and fighting against relegation to the National league – the third division in France. That’s how far they have come, out of nowhere, very much in the image of their emblematic striker Olivier Giroud who was playing for Tours in Ligue 2 just a year ago and is now looking to book his place for the Euro with France. Montpellier’s victory was nothing short of miraculous and set the stage for a thrilling season. If you enjoy such underdog stories however, you may have to wait a while before it happens again in France.

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