RONALDO NETS IN REAL WIN

Real Madrid has defeated Rayo Vallecano in a La Liga match played at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on Monday. Madrid won the match by 2-0. This was Madrid’s 15th win in the ongoing La Liga. But, this victory didn’t help Madrid in moving up in the points table. Madrid is still at the third position with 52 points in 25 matches.

This victory was incredible because Madrid played with only 10 players for more than 70 minutes in the match. Sergio Ramos was shown two yellow cards in a space of 2 minutes and was sent out of the ground in the 18th minute.

But, in spite of losing Ramos so early, Madrid didn’t let its opponent dominate. The Blancos played attacking football and never looked like struggling even with 10 men.

Madrid took the lead very early in the match. The first goal was scored by Alvaro Morata. Kaka passed the ball to Ozil who was on the right hand side. The German midfielder back passed the ball to Morata who easily tapped the ball into the net to give Madrid a 1-0 lead.

Madrid’s lead was further enhanced by Sergio Ramos who scored a fine goal in the 12th minute. Mesut Ozil’s shot off a free kick came to Ramos who smashed the ball into the post with a great header.

Rayo Vallecano came close to scoring a goal on a couple of occasions, but, they couldn’t finish them well and eventually paid the price for those lost opportunities.

In the post match press conference, the manager of Real Madrid Jose Mourinho said, “This was really a great effort by the boys especially after losing a player like Ramos so early in the match. The team should be proud of this victory.”

Real Madrid will face Deportivo La Coruna in its next match on Saturday.

Final Line-Up Revealed

After last night’s playoff second-legs, we can finally reveal who has made it to the Euro 2012 Poland-Ukraine European Championships!

Portugal (with Cristiano Ronaldo, Nani, et al) WILL be there after demolishing Bosnia 6-2. The Republic of Ireland did all their hard work in the first leg, beating Estonia 4-0, before holding on to a 1-1 draw away from home for a memorable night in Irish football.

Croatia also benefitted from a great first leg over Turkey, with a 0-0 at home enough to secure them a place at the Finals. The Cezch Republic complete the line-up after a 3-0 win over Montenegro.

The Finals Groups will be drawn on December 2nd, and here are the 16 teams in full…

Ukraine
Poland
Spain
Holland
Germany
Italy
England
Croatia
Russia
Greece
Sweden
Portugal
Denmark
France
Czech Republic
Ireland

Who has Qualified for Euro 2012?

With the European Championships almost upon us, its time to take a look at which of Europe’s great and good teams will be playing at Euro 2012…

Hosts

As the hosts, we can guarantee that both Ukraine and Poland will be there!  It should guarantee full stadiums, and real passion from the local fans.

Group Winners

There are 9 group winners who will be at the Finals.

Germany romped home in Group A, with Russia taking the guaranteed spot in Group B – though it was a close fought contest with the Republic of Ireland.  Italy dominated Group C, and qualified with 3 games left to play.  France and the Netherlands qualified from Groups D and E as expected, but there was a shock winner of Group F, with Greece taking the top spot ahead of Croatia and Israel.

Group G was won by England, Group H was nudged by Denmark ahead of Portugal, and Group I was won by the current European Championships Champions Spain.

Best Placed Qualifier

With 8 wins and just 2 losses, Sweden were unlucky to finish in second place in their group.  As the second-placed team with the most points, they were lucky enough to qualify automatically anyway!

Four Places Left

The last four places at the tournament have yet to be decided!  A two legged playoff between the teams below will complete the line-up at Poland-Ukraine 2012!

Bosnia and Herzegovina vs Portugal
Turkey vs Croatia
Czech Republic vs Montenegro
Estonia vs Republic of Ireland

Platini Praises Poland

UEFA President Michel Platini has praised Poland for their efforts at getting the stadiums and infrastructure ready in time for the Finals Tournament in June 2012.

Speaking to the UEFA website, he said that Poland had made great strides in getting ready for the Championships, and he was looking forwards to watching the action in Warsaw.

“I am please” said Monsieur Platini.  “Not only the stadiums but the whole infrastructure – roads, airports, train stations, which will be very useful for the people in Poland and Ukraine after UEFA Euro 2012. Today I would like to thank the Prime Minister for the government’s efforts. Everything is going well and we are looking forward to welcoming all visitors next year for a great celebration.”

Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk reciprocated the praise, to Platini.   “I remember that after the decision that Poland and Ukraine would be organising Euro 2012, the people in Poland were not as optimistic as Mr Platini. Today we know that he was right.”

Poland will co-host the event with Ukraine from June 8 to July 1, and nine months ahead of the tournament the government estimates that preparatory work is about 80 percent complete.

Hosts Announced

Poland and Ukraine have been awarded the Euro 2012 Championships, with their joint bid proving successful ahead of both France and favourites Italy.

Whilst Italy garnered a few votes from the UEFA Executive comittee, their was an overwhelming majority who voted in favour of giving the tournament to the joint Ukraine and Poland bid.  The two Eastern European countries received the backing because UEFA is committed to helping members of its football family to develop.

Poland and Ukraine have both agreed to spend over £2 billion on new roads, hotels and stadia, which should help turn both countries into World Class football destinations.

The Finals will take place in June and July 2012.