Yesterday and today, football fans took a break from watching Euro 2024 matches. But this does not mean that there are no important news from the tournament. We will tell you about them in our traditional roundup.
Turkish defender suspected of fascism
Demiral shows the “grey wolves” gesture during the match against Austria
Photo: Hendrik Schmidt/Picture Alliance via Getty Images
Merih Demiral scored a brace against the Austrians and became the fourth defender at the European Championship to score a brace. The result is a well-deserved award for the man of the match. But Demiral went from being a hero to quickly becoming an outcast. The fact is that after the match he showed the “Grey Wolves” gesture, associated with the extremism of the Turkish ultranationalist party. What’s more, his compatriots in the stands began to repeat after him.
UEFA officials could not ignore it and started an investigation. Especially after the reaction of Armenia, which has long had a score to settle with the “wolves”. Merikh himself does not at all believe that he behaved badly. Quite the contrary. “I had the idea to celebrate the goal in a style associated with Turkishness. I am proud to be Turkish, so after the goal I felt that I had to do it. I am glad I did it,” he said.
Immediately after Demiral’s gesture, the Interior Ministry of the host country of the Eurozone condemned him and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan personally flew to Germany. That’s how serious it is. According to Bild, Merikh will be suspended for two matches.
More details about what happened:
Scandal at the Euro Cup due to a fascist gesture. The Turkish star insulted the Armenians and not only
Bellingham has already been punished for an indecent gesture
Bellingham celebrates goal against Slovakia with ‘wave in groin’ gesture
Photo: Bradley Collyer/PA Images via Getty Images
The Real Madrid midfielder played the day before and couldn’t contain his emotions either. This is understandable: with a spectacular scissor kick he equalised the score in the match against Slovakia, a minute and a half before the end of added time. And then he lowered his hand to his groin area and waved it there.
UEFA considered Jude’s behaviour disrespectful and sent him a letter asking him to explain everything. “This is an internal playful gesture towards some close friends who were at the game. Nothing but respect for the way the Slovak national team played today,” the midfielder commented on the episode. “UEFA Kyfolomov, leave our player alone!” – the famous journalist Piers Morgan spoke out much harsher.
There was a risk of disqualification, but in the end, according to Bild, the Englishman will go free with a five-figure fine. The payout is around 20,000 euros. The punishment is clearly simpler than that of Demiral. There is still no politics involved here.
Booo
Euro 2024 is a tournament of scarecrows. It’s time for the main question to be answered.
England’s matches are bad for your health
It was not for nothing that Morgan defended Bellingham, because English fans do not really get much satisfaction from the boring game of their favourites. And it is now known that the matches of the British national team have a negative impact on the health of its fans. This statement was made by world-famous cardiologist Dorian Darmore for The Sun:
“Watching their matches provokes negative emotions in fans, including anxiety and disappointment, which increases stress levels and puts the heart at risk. The offensive tactics displayed by the Spanish team, on the other hand, evoke positive emotions and improve well-being, among other things, thanks to the influx of endorphins. It is not possible to achieve such an effect in fans watching a defensive match,” Darmore is categorical.
Well, instead of drinking alcohol, which British fans are known for, they seem to be required to carry bottles of valerian tincture with them. Because there is little hope of a quick turnaround for the England team.
England was very close to collapse:
Bellingham’s diving goal saved England! The coolest comeback of Euro 2024
The stewards attacked the fan in the crowd.
Portugal and Slovenia met in the round of 16 of the European Championship in Frankfurt and the local stewards turned out to be extremely hostile. A video of them beating a fan in a crowd was leaked online. It does not show how it all started. But it would be strange if the stadium workers attacked the victim for no reason.
German police did not overlook the incident. “We are aware of the video and are investigating a case of alleged assault,” Frankfurt police officer Binto Londa told Reuters. UEFA added that they are also following the situation.
In general, German law enforcement officers are already having a hard time. Thousands of Turkish fans took to the streets in Germany to celebrate their victory over Austria in the round of 16. In Gelsenkirchen, firecrackers flew towards the police and one of the officers was injured. Now the police will probably stampede through the Netherlands against the Turks in the quarter-finals.
This was the best match of the Eurocup playoffs:
The best match of the Euro 16! A Saudi Arabian player ruined the playoffs
Tedesco will not be fired from Belgium’s national team after Euro 2020 failure
The Belgians had a mediocre tournament and, despite being one of the favourites, managed only one victory in four games. Yes, they were kicked out of the tournament by France, but it was quite possible to take first place in the group with Romania, Slovakia and Ukraine, having received an easier opponent in the playoffs. The Romanians beat the Netherlands; against Belgium, unlike the French, they would not be favourites.
Domenico Tedesco
Photo: Isosport/MB Media/Getty Images
In addition to the failed match, Belgian coach Domenico Tedesco also recalled the conflict with Thibaut Courtois, which left the Real Madrid goalkeeper out of the lineup. Despite all this, the sporting director of the Belgian Football Federation, Frank Vercauteren (the same one who coached Krylia Sovetov) expressed full confidence in the former Spartak player: “Domenico signed a contract until 2026, so there are no questions about his departure. The situation is clear,” the official said in conversation with the Championship.
Belgium has a very strong age composition. A generational change is looming and that, it seems, will be Tedesco’s concern. Unless the management changes its mind, of course.
We reveal the salaries of Tedesco and other Euro coaches:
How much are national team coaches paid for Euro 2024? Southgate is a real paradox!
Joselu and Kroos had a funny trash talk
Tony announced his retirement after Euro 2024, meaning that every Germany play-off game could be their last. The Germans will face Spain in the quarter-finals. The legendary signing of the two brightest teams in the tournament was duly fuelled by a joke from Kroos’ former Real Madrid teammate Joselu: “I hope this is Tony’s last game. We have a tough game ahead of us against a strong opponent. I spoke to him a lot and he gave me a lot of advice. He is a key player for the German national team. I hope he retires after Friday’s game. We want to do this.”
Kroos reacted with restraint: “It’s normal that I said that, because the Spaniards want to win the tournament. I will do everything I can to prevent this from happening. They want to win a trophy, we have the same objective. I understand what Joselu meant. The most important thing is that he didn’t want my career at Madrid to end.” Apparently, he saved a full response for the match itself.
The atmosphere is so tense that the German national team’s training sessions are monitored by mounted police. People passing by are accompanied by security officers who play loud music on their mobile phones, thereby drowning out the shouts of Julian Nagelsmann and his players.
Before the match, the media were also furious. It reached the point of insults.
“I hope this is Kroos’ last game.” How excited he is before the Spain-Germany match
Mbappé joined Griezmann. Deschamps did not appreciate it
The French are having a tough Euro: they are not showing the most spectacular football, scoring few goals and often talking politics. They do not receive much praise for this, and Antoine Griezmann in particular. As the most star French player, Kylian Mbappé defended him.
Kylian Mbappé and Antoine Griezmann
Photo: Matt McNulty – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images
“He has been a bit tense lately. I think this is unfair. Especially considering that this criticism is coming from the country. [Франции]He’s going through a difficult time, but we have to support him, because Antoine has done a lot for the team. He’s under attack, it hurts me a little. [из-за этого]”Griezmann always gave his all for the French national team and had the right mentality. Support him because he is an important player for us,” said Kilian.
What did Deschamps do in response to this? He said that Griezmann should not be pitied! “He is not depressed!” snapped the French team. And at the same time he responded to those who accuse him of being strict: “Are we too strict with Marcus Thuram? I am not here to judge what you write or say. It is important that I tell the player. Antoine, Marcus, there are positive aspects in your game, but there are also things that can be improved.” The coach clearly has guts!
And the possibility of hacking football, of course:
France has pirated football. It reached the quarter-finals of the European Championship without a goal in play!
