The New Countdown

In nine minutes, we will be 321 days from my next Leila Josefowicz concert! Here’s a little taste of what it will be like:

Euro 2008 Picks

I’m going to a wedding so I thought that I had better get on the record, so we may look back and laugh:

Group A:

1. Portugal – Ronaldo and Simao coming up the wings is just terrifying to anyone who is not Italy or France and maybe Greece.

2. Turkey – This is one of my upset picks… Turkey had a great domestic league season and some of their players abroad, even though Emre is condemned to life in Newcastle-like, are quality.

3. Switzerland – If you ever tell friends that soccer is a great and beautiful sport, and then you show them Switzerland, you’ve lost them forever… as a friend.  Still, I see a couple of home draws in their future.

4 Czech Republic – This team is always more fragile than they look on paper, and I just feel that Rosicky’s injury is going to spell disaster.

Group B:

1. Deutschland – They are great up front and weak in the back in my view, but they should have no trouble in this group unless  the rivalry factor with Poland rears its head.

2. Croatia – Not only did Arsenal ruin their own season, but the injuries of Rosicky and Eduardo have done great damage to the Czech’s and Croat’s respectively. Still the overall team speed of Croatia should triumph over the other two.

3. Austria – I can only name two Austiran players, but they are the hosts, so I will take them to beat..

4. Poland – Just not impressed, nor have they been impressive for some time.

GROUP C:

1. Italy

2. France

3. Romania – Mutu is amazing, and I think that they might sneak third out of being the forgotten team in the group.

4. Netherlands – not convinced they can score on the teams above
GROUP D:

1. Spain – they’re always fine in the group stages…

2. Russia – they’re well organized, their pro leage has really come on strong, and I really like that Pavlechenko kid up top.

3. Greece – amazingly well organized, but not more organized than Rusia and not good enough to beat Spain.

4. Sweden – their stars seem to be aging and fading.

QUARTERS:

Portugal over Croatia – Portugal show up better for big games than little ones, or so it seems to me.

Germany over Turkey – This one could be surprisingly close… or unsurpisingly dominated by Klose (I apologize)

Italy over Russia – the Italians want to follow the unprecedneted back-to-back glory of ‘98-’00 France, they’re good enough to do it too, especially with the form of Luca Toni coming into this tournament.

France over Spain – … and here’s where Spain always crashes out. Honestly, the four best teams int he tournament are probably France, Italy, Spain, and France’s second 11.

SEMI-FINALS:

Germany over Portugal – to be honest, I’m deciding this based on the quality of finishing from Germany’s strikers and the better central midfield of Germany (see: Michel Ballack). With a different draw, I think neither of these teams would even smell the finals, as I wouldn’t rate either as near as strong as Italy, Spain, or France, but they got remarkable draws in remarkably easy groups to pave the way for one of them to make the finals.

France over Italy – revenge? These teams have both been too awesome and played too many major games against one another to call any one match a “revenge match.”  I think France have a very slightly better overall squad, and I thought they were unlucky not to win the World Cup – I say it swings their way this time. All I can say is that, even though this would mark the fourth time they met in this tournament, and it would be a World Cup Final and a Euro 2000 Final replay, I still sit here htinking to myself, “God, please make this semifinal happen.”

FINAL:

France over Germany – much like the 2002 World Cup, Germany will be exposed for riding an easy draw to the final (the knockout round draw of Paraguay, United States, South Korea will NEVER be topped in its lack of difficulty ever again in world football history… all the more shocking that they should have been out to the USA in the quarters)

It’s not very daring, but I have a feeling that after Euro 2004, we’re going to have a pretty by the numbers tournament, especially with such abysmally weak host nations unable to act as wild cards. While the predictions are not out there, I think it will produce some great games, and I cannot wait to too see them.

Now it Feels More Real

My first date with the new city’s strings?

I really hope so, I love the Scheherezade.  Here’s a clip of it from youtube, be amazed by the performance of the young soloist!