Hallo Syndicate Members,
Greetings from a “Completely-Satisfied-Kraut” ; ) ; )
Indeed. ; ) My beloved Nationalmannschaft made the Semi-Finals! That’s all that
we Krauts truly care about. I’ve beaten this point to death. I’ve routinely
smacked the shit out of this point with a dirty phallic object. I’ve regularly
reminded all of you that the German Populace is entitled to a minimum of six
summer football matches. We need to wave our flags a bit come Summertime. We
need to show support for our football team. We need to take pride in our
nation. 
Whether or not they actually get to the finals is almost
irrelevant….ALMOST. Of course we’d love to watch the European Championship
Final on a “Fußgänger Fan-Mile”. German “Public Viewing” is second to none.
We’ll still remain satisfied with our placement in this tournament irrespective
of the result against France on Thursday.
The French own this chapter of the Syndicate. It was this
bookie’s great pleasure to dedicate it to them via pictorial references to the
Charlie Hebdo Protests.
We’ll still do everything we can to beat you. Tooth and
Nail. I just won’t be disappointed if we lose. My Fatherland fields “The Best
Football Team in the World”. No discussion. Should we lose, we’ve still got “The
Best Football Team in the World”. ; )
With a memorable “Win, Place or Show+” assured for the
remaining four teams, let’s take a moment to eulogize those came oh so close.
8th Place-Iceland
Congratulations to the “Ancient Norwegians” on their
improbable run, but your friendly bookie must allow himself a backhanded gripe:
The Ice-ssons had no business being in the Quarterfinals. Sure we all enjoyed
the stunning visual support furnished by the Icelandic fans in support of their
“Strakanir”, but Sunday’s fixture didn’t come close to impersonating a football
match. Germany vs. Italy was a full-fledged Heavyweight Boxing Title Bout.
Iceland vs. France was more akin to a Fly-Weight End-of-Day sparring session.
Seeding Issues need to be sorted out. Similar problems arose
last Summer in the Women’s World Cup—another tournament that expanded from 16
to 24 teams. I’m doubly aware that there’s no way to construct a perfect
algorithm and that the seeding pots are meticulously calculated. Moreover, I
accept the fact that every tournament’s “luck of the draw” will produce
Enjoyable Cinderella Stories. Nothing seriously wrong with that in the final
analysis.
It’s just that Lars Lagerbäck’s Rustic Eleven never really
stood a chance against a European Juggernaut like the French. There was
literally zero chance that they could hope to prevail against such polished and
professional players. It may make for a great story—and your friendly bookie
may have pocketed some solid money from the “Bandwagon Jumpers”—but it was pure
fantasy against undeniable reality. As a person who genuinely wants to see the
appeal of the sport grow in the States, I remain concerned that Americans will
dismiss football once they realize that Europe’s “Elf-Fairy Micro States”
aren’t carrying rucksacks full of magical pixie dust.
I honestly fear something similar might happen to Wales
tomorrow. Everyone loves the story, but the final result might turn out
extremely lopsided. For football’s sake, let’s hope not. I’ve personally been
re-reading the Syndicate’s 2004 Euro Chapter. Doing my best to remember the
fascinating and enchanting manner in which the Greeks topped Europe in that
year. Er…I’ve also been watching more than my fair share of Leicester City
re-runs.
I WANT TO BELIEVE!
We might actually see these guys in Russia. They’ve been
drawn into a very soft qualifying group. It’s possible.
7th Place-Belgium
Let’s assess the fate of the so-called “Golden Generation”.
Eden Hazard and Romelu Lukaku are only 25 and 23-years old respectively. Kevin
De Bruyne, Divock Origi, and Christian Benteke are also young, though the
demands of the Premiership’s schedule may age them prematurely. Vertongen and
Vermaelen are likely finished, but Alderweireld, Denayer, Meunier, and Jordan
Lukaku are just getting started. I’d be very surprised to see the Red Devils
fail to qualify for Russia. I’d also be shocked if they didn’t return with an
even better team, given the great status of their Youth Program.
Getting guys like Marouane Fellaini, Dries Mertens, and
Moussa Dembele out of the way may be just what this team needs to finally catch
fire. Getting Radja Nainggolan out of Serie A wouldn’t be a bad idea either.
They’ll return. The “Golden Generation” lives on for at
least another two years.
6th Place-Poland
Tough luck, Polska. It really looked as if they had finally
turned that corner. Lewandowski’s brilliance made one think—if only for a
fleeting moment—that a return to the Glory Days of the Late Seventies and Early
Eighties might be possible. One always feels deeply for nations who didn’t relent
over the course of a grueling 120-minute match. Penalties remain 25% skill and
75% luck. Your friendly bookie feels that way about every shootout, including
the one his Fatherland just narrowly escaped.
Blaszczykowski, Piszczek, Jedrzejczyk and Grosicki are in
line for retirement. Time to rebuild around Milik, Kapustka, and Szczesny.
Lewandowski isn’t in any danger of slowing down soon. He’s just one of those
players who will boost his own standards well into his mid-thirties.
The “Red-White Eagles” will have to fend off the Romanians
and Danes if they wish to make it to Russia. Not exactly an easy path.
Nevertheless, they should be able to do so easily enough, provided they rebuild
their defensive back line and cultivate the potential of the above-mentioned
youngsters.
We shall see. This Kraut is rooting for you!
5th Place-Italy
Deep respect for what Conte put together. Can’t wait to see
how he fares at Stamford Bridge this season. In some respects, it’s sad to see
a talented tactician like Conte relinquish his international duties. The
Giampiero-Ventura-Era now officially begins. He has to rebuild his striking
corps, find a new goalkeeper, and figure out a way of
re-recruiting/re-incorporating Italy’s most talented foreigners back into his
side.
He truly has his work cut out for him, especially in a
qualifying group that also features Spain.
Let the “rebuilding project” begin! Bring Balotelli back
into the fold as soon as possible. ; )
WEDNESDAY, JULY 6th
Wales vs. Portugal
vs. 
This one can’t get here soon enough. We need to know. We MUST know! Can Bale and his crew of “Championship Also-Rans” pull off the massive upset? Will one of Real Madrid’s Super-Strikers outclass his club counterpart? Will we behold a piece of “true history”?
WE MUST KNOW!!
It all comes down to the lineups. Your friendly bookie
invested some time in figuring out how the space will be used. His verdict
follows.
We’ll begin with the Navigators. Santos has little choice
but to maintain his 4-3-1-2. Ronaldo plays on the left. Nani technically finds
himself deployed alongside him, but fulfills more of a “short-striker” role in
practice. The Suspension of William Carvalho affords Santos the chance to place
Renato Sanchez directly behind the big boys. The new Bayern-Signee earned this
honor after his last performance.
Adrien and Joao Mario may be guilty of some slow-footed work
over the course of the tournament, but there’s only a solution to one half of
the equation. Joao Moutinho can fill in on the left, but Mario must keep his
place on the right. Danielo get’s deputized as an anchoring defensive
midfielder. The back four stands unchanged.
The Welsh response?
Clog up the midfield with a conservative 5-4-1. The suspensions of Aaron
Ramsey and Ben Davies will hurt, but placing Jonathan Williams, Joe Ledley, and
Joe Allen should ameliorate the pain. Chris Gunther and Neil Taylor should have
license to move forward, but only if Ashley Williams stays put directly in
front of Wayne Hennessey.
The Welsh Dragons can only carry the day if they close ranks
quickly and consistently.
Slowly but surely tiring out the Navigator Attack is their
only chance.
Let’s hope it works.
Projected
Lineups:
“The
Navigators”—(4-3-1-2)
C. Ronaldo Nani
|
Renato Sanchez
|
Joao
Moutinho Joao Mario
|
Danielo
|
Cedric Jose Fonte Pepe Eliseu
|
Rui Patricio
|
“The
Cyd Dragons” (5-4-1)
Gareth Bale
|
Hal Robson Kanu
|
J. Williams
J. Ledley J. Allen
|
C. Gunther J. Chester J. Collins N. Talyor
|
Ashley Williams
|
Wayne Hennessey
|
Prop
Bets (as always, feel free to offer your own)
Over/Under— 2 Goals
120 Minutes—Straight Up
Penalty Shootout—2 to 1
THE
LINE: Portugal +1 Goal
THURSDAY, JULY 7th
Deutschland vs. France
vs. 
I’ll reiterate my firm belief that Germany has the “Best Football Team in the World”. Were fixtures decided on the basis of statistics printed on paper, my Krauts would roll over the hosts easily. Matches aren’t decided on paper, brothers. Ze French will be buttressed by the dynamic support of their awesome crowd. The audience absolutely has the potential to carry them. Never doubt the power of the “hometown fans”.
Having done my level best to figure out where Didier
Deschamps is going with his lineup selections, I’ll project a highly-pragmatic
4-2-3-1 with Giroud deployed alone up front, supported by Payet and Pogba.
Griezmann slips back and Coman takes Pogba’s role.
Matching Löw’s careful planning isn’t easy, but your
friendly bookie put on his French “Chapeau” and gave it a shot.
Kickoff. Bring it on. Let’s go.
Projected
Lineups:
“Les
Bleaus”—(4-2-3-1)
Oliver Giroud
|
Dimitri
Payet Paul Pogba
|
Antoine Griezmann
|
Blaise Mathuidi Kingsley Coman
|
P. Evra L. Koscielny A. Rami B. Sagna
|
Hugo Lloris
|
“Die
Nationalmannschaft” (4-1-2-3)
J. Draxler
M. Götze T. Müller
|
Meshut
Özil Toni Kroos
|
Andre
Schürrle
|
Jonas Hector
Joshua Kimmich
|
Emre Can Jerome Boateng
|
Manuel
Neuer
|
Prop
Bets (as always, feel free to offer your own)
Over/Under— 2 Goals
120 Minutes—Straight Up
Penalty Shootout—2 to 1
THE
LINE: Die Nationalmannschaft +1 Goal
GENTLEMEN, ENTER YOUR WAGERS
