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You are here: Home / Sports / Quarter-final II: Germany v Greece

Reader Interactions

92Comments

  2. 2.

    SRW1

    From the changes he has made to the team Low obviously thinks the Greek wall will be easier to open up on the ground than via the air.

  3. 3.

    MikeJ

    Nothing like a stadium full of people singing Deutschlandlied and telling other people that they have it too good.

  4. 4.

    J. Michael Neal

    “Song of the Germans” isn’t a very inspiring title for a national anthem.

  5. 5.

    Steeplejack

    I think I read somewhere that however that smart octopus picks the team to win this game will predict how the Euro crisis plays out. Pretty sure it was on Krugman’s blog.

  7. 7.

    J. Michael Neal

    Also, I find it interesting, in all sports and not just here, that there is no restriction on the nationality of the coaches of national teams, just the players. It seems like a kind of arbitrary place to draw the line.

  12. 12.

    SRW1

    @J. Michael Neal:

    The origin of the song (and its title) goes back to the unification struggle before 1848. Maybe people looked a bit differently at the title than after the history of the 20th century.

  21. 21.

    Alison

    I realize it’s unlikely but would I ever love to see an upset here. Not because I specifically don’t want Germany to win, but upsets are just fun (when your country isn’t the one being upset, lol) and hey, the Greeks could use some good news, right?

    But then, in terms of my bracket…

  22. 22.

    SRW1

    @Raven:

    I think it was in the Guardian where they labelled it “bundes-tikitaka”, short-pass game in front of the wall.

  23. 23.

    J. Michael Neal

    I must say that, since the retirement of Giovanni van Bronckhorst, Bastien Schweinsteiger is my favorite name in football and one of the best in all of sport.

  24. 24.

    lol chikinburd

    This is going to be dismal. The linesmen have signaled an unforgiving interpretation of offside, further encouraging the Greek filibuster of the game.

  27. 27.

    J. Michael Neal

    @MikeJ: The bar is a *lot* higher if you legally change your name to something goofy than if you’re born with it. It’s not impossible to clear, but more difficult.

    Besides, I prefer the translation of “Pigclimber” myself.

  28. 28.

    pete

    Check out this early match report. Sample:

    German Manager Angela Merkel paced the touchline, waving a placard quoting Liverpool legend and economic genius Bill Shankly: “Football isn’t a matter of life or death — it’s much more a matter of convincing the opposing team to impose austerity measures on their players’ salaries in return for free shots at net.” In response, Greek fans belted out that age-old slogan football fans have screamed ever since the first player insured his feet at Lloyd’s of London, threw thousands of dollars at police officers when they ticketed him for driving his Lamborghini too fast, and called his agent to discuss swapping clubs so that he could secure a pay raise from 140,000 pounds per week to 210,000 pounds per week. The Greeks shouted: “It takes balls to play football and to hide your team’s debt through derivatives designed by major banks!”

  32. 32.

    bjacques

    Interesting fact: Von Dutch was neither German nor Dutch!

    I’m getting a bit worried. Germany are taking a lot more shots than Greece, and sooner or later one of them is bound to go in. Also, too, the German fans are doing the hand thing.

  33. 33.

    Amir Khalid

    @J. Michael Neal:
    Technically you’re correct, but my translation is more exciting.

    Heute ist die Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel da. Sie sitzt neben M. Platini. Also muss die Mannschaft gewinnen, um schwere Folgen zu vermeiden.

  44. 44.

    J. Michael Neal

    I don’t really know this sport, but Germany has seemed like by far the best team in this tournament so far.

  46. 46.

    Temporarily Max McGee (soon enough to be Andy K again)

    @Randy Paul:

    And that’s a good question!

    :D

    I think I pointed this out during one of Holland’s games: The phone books in my city have a higher percentage of surnames names beginning with “V” (and probably “D”, too) than the rest of your phone books. Many Van’s, Van der’s, Van den’s an De’s (a few Den’s, too).

    Being surrounded by the Dutch wouldn’t be bad if most of ’em weren’t dyed-in-the-wool Calvinists.

  48. 48.

    J. Michael Neal

    On the plus side for the Greeks, they’ve yet to be called for offsides . . .

  49. 49.

    Leeds man

    @Randy Paul: How many Duch have an English preposition in their names?

    In Dutch, its not a preposition, but a conjunction.

    [/pedantry]

  54. 54.

    Temporarily Max McGee (soon enough to be Andy K again)

    @Onkel Fritze:

    Yeah, but, ironically, the Christian Reformed Church will send missionaries into the midst of poor brown peoples who actively practice Islam, Hinduism and/or (ZOMG!) Roman Catholicism, but they don’t send ’em back to the Netherlands. That. imo. goes a long way in proving that it’s harder to sell a religion on its spiritual merits than it is to buy followers with stuff.

  57. 57.

    Amir Khalid

    Graun liveblogger Rob Smyth reckons Greece are playing a 9-0-1, with Gekas all by his lonesome up front.

  58. 58.

    lol chikinburd

    Germany were sloppy and complacent enough in the back all night that this was probably inevitable. So, back to square zero.

    …(ETA) That’s better.

  60. 60.

    J. Michael Neal

    Still trying to learn this game. Who would you pin that defensive breakdown on? Lahm? Boateng? Bad luck? Someone else?

  62. 62.

    Randy Paul

    From the Guardian MBM:

    GOAL! Germany 1-1 Greece (Samaras 55) She’s a man! The cripple is Keyser Soze! Ed Norton is Tyler Durden! And Greece have scored! What an amazing twist. Salpangidis, the beard to be feared, surged down the right onto a long pass and then played a magnificent low cross between the German defenders and the keeper Neuer. Samaras, sliding in four yards from goal, forced it gleefully through Neuer and then charged off to join an almighty Greek huddle. What an astonishing twist. “Greece have wiped the debt out!” screams Peter Drury on ITV. Oh, Peter.

  66. 66.

    Amir Khalid

    And Germany are back in front. Normal service has been restored, and — for now, at least — schwere Folgen have been averted.

  67. 67.

    J. Michael Neal

    The Germans sub, but maintain a proper conservation of umlauts.

    Edit: And are promptly rewarded for their good sense. Game over?

  69. 69.

    JCJ

    @Amir Khalid:

    Are Muslims able to cheer for Schweinsteiger?

    Ich bin davon sicher, dass die Mannschaft gewinnen wird.

    Ja, ich muß zustimmen!

  71. 71.

    Amir Khalid

    Half an hour to go, match delicately poised, et cetera. Germany hammering on the Greek door, but Greece threaten on the break.

    @JCJ:
    Sure we can cheer for Schweinsteiger, as long as we don’t try to eat him.

  72. 72.

    Amir Khalid

    And my superpower strikes again. As soon as I post a comment, the situation changes. I don’t know my own strength.

  78. 78.

    pseudonymous in nc

    The fat German lady is singing.

    That equaliser appears to have given them a sufficient kick up the arse to demonstrate why they should now be favourites to win the whole thing.

  83. 83.

    Onkel Fritze

    Second penalty in the tournament, both for Greece. That was unnecessary. Whatever.

  84. 84.

    J. Michael Neal

    @Mark S.: Actually, they did kind of fuck around for 55 minutes. Then Greece took advantage of a bit of the sloppy play and Germany stopped fucking around in a hurry.

  85. 85.

    SRW1

    @J. Michael Neal:

    I’d say Boateng for Bender was the one change that didn’t work. Not only because Boateng was involved in both Greek goals, but also because his technical limitations showed when he was the man on the wing.

  86. 86.

    Amir Khalid

    Accidental contact with the ball isn’t handball. That penalty was wrongly given.

  87. 87.

    Onkel Fritze

    So it’s going to be Germany-Italy in the semis (I’d love to play England, but that’s not gonna happen). This is going to be interesting – Italy traditionally wins that one. Should be different this time around.

  89. 89.

    SRW1

    And the group B teams eliminate the group A teams.

    The group C teams might do the same to the group D teams.

  90. 90.

    Haydnseek

    I was hoping for an upset, but of course there’s no substitute for quality. My Greek pal was offering me ouzo throughout the match; I told him I didn’t care for booze that tasted like Good N’ Plenty candy. He was only mildly offended, as he didn’t know what I was talking about. One thing is for sure. Germany won’t be dicking around in their next match, which will be against a team that actually deserves to be there. My Greek pal is now downing ouzo like it’s diet Sprite. I think he just remembered some of his foolish wagers. Root with your heart, bet with your head.

  91. 91.

    handsmile

    Thinking it likely that I would be seeing Germany in later rounds, I watched the match in a packed neighborhood cafe where I was one of only a handful not speaking Greek.

    Every time Angela Merkel appeared on the television screen, the place erupted with jeers and boos. Those moments helped to shatter the torpor that otherwise took hold of the patrons for all but the six minutes of the match that followed Salpingidis’ and Samaras’ textbook counterattacking goal.

    This match was even more one-sided than yesterday’s “contest” between Portugal and the Czech Republic. For instance, Greece completed a total of 69 passes in the first half. As Haydnseek alluded to above (#90), it’s a fair question (and one that should be put to UEFA on its decisions determining advancement from the group stages) whether Greece should have been in the quarterfinals at all. The vast chasm of quality between the squads was reminiscent of what took place in the match between Spain and Ireland. Though the resounding anthem sung by the Irish fans in the closing minutes of that match remains for me the finest occasion thus far of Euro 2012.

    To be sure, the Slovenian referee deserves nothing but plaudits for his act of mercy in awarding a penalty to Greece at match’s end. Unless German defender Jerome Boateng (who it must be said, had a horrific match overall) played without a right arm, there was no way that ball would not have struck him from behind, as Amir Khalid correctly observes (#86).

    Finally, what a joy to behold Mesut Ozil at work! It’s nothing less than a crime that he plays professionally for a club managed by The Eye-Poker. Surely life in Catalonia or North London would be ever so much more beautiful and satisfying.

  92. 92.

    Leeds man

    @Onkel Fritze: I’d love to play England, but that’s not gonna happen

    I’m one of the last English supporters to oversell England, but this is more about Italy. I think England could take them on a good day. Germany not so much. If he’s not taking our back four apart, I love watching Özil on the ball. Him and Messi – very different kinds of poetry in motion, but both sublime.

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