Today is the day we’ve all been waiting for!After numerous games and not so much thrill and excitement that they brought us, it’s time for the EURO 2024 quarter-finals. The two opening games, on Friday, are like the sweetest sweet in prospect, as football giants face off in Stuttgart and Hamburg.SPAIN vs GERMANYFinals before the finals. Many would say that those two teams have shown the most since the start of the tournament. Both sides finished the group stage on top, with Spain not conceding a single goal in the three opening games against Croatia (3-0), Italy (1-0) and Albania (1-0).The Round of 16 started roughly for Luis de la Fuente’s slot, as they conceded early on against Georgia but managed to bounce back swiftly and brush aside the charming minnows (4-1).Spanish word for stabbing your friend in the back? JoseluThe Red Fury plays a fast and aggressive game, with a midfield setup comprised of Pedri, Rodri and Fabian Ruiz, making sure the ball moves quickly and to the wings to mesmerizing 16-year-old Lamine Yamal and another youngster Nico Williams, 21. Along with veteran Morata in the central attacking position, those two ballers make sure Spain are a pure joy to watch. Plenty of crosses, link-ups, and shots have made Spain the most attractive team in the tournament, and the Germans will have to put on their best display if they want to reach the semi-final.Euros are actually SouthEuros: secret ingredient of success is – olive oil!?On the other hand, Julian Nagelsman’s squad was also impressive to some point. After destroying Scotland (5-1), and routinely walking past Hungary (2-0) in the group, they shared spoils with Switzerland (1-1), thus showing the first signs of weaknesses.What followed was a quite frantic Round of 16 clash against Denmark, which they won 2-0 thanks to Kai Havertz and Jamal Musiala. Still, it was anything but a knife through butter for the hosts. That was a warning ahead of the do-or-die battle against Spain.Julian Nagelsmann: „My focus is not on Yamal. It‘s on Jamal.“ pic.twitter.com/MooFfvWa5l— Tobi Altschäffl (@altobelli13) July 4, 2024 Even maths and stats confirm that the Germans and Spaniards are the most powerful teams in the tournament. These are the teams with the most goals scored (10 and 9) and with the most successful passes (92.2% and 91%). Germany is the second best in terms of how much time they had the ball in their possession, with 62%, while Spain is fourth with 58.5. Only Portugal are untouchable in terms of possession, with an incredible 65.2%.PORTUGAL vs FRANCEAnd that’s the perfect intro for the other quarter-final match-up between Portugal and France. Unlike the Spaniards and the Germans, those other two have been quite a disappointment so far. Despite the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Rafael Leao, Bruno Fernandes, Joao Cancelo, Bernardo Silva on one, and Kylian Mbappe, Marcus Thuram, Antoine Griezmann, N’golo Kante and Theo Hernandez on the other – they’ve barely shown us anything.Mbappe hides no respect and fandom ahead of Ronaldo clashLes Bleus scored just three goals, with two of those being own goals against Austria and Belgium and a goal from the penalty spot against Poland. The Portuguese looked determined and mighty only against Turkey (3-0) in the group stage. After a 2-0 loss to Georgia, CR7 and his teammates struggled a lot against Slovenia in the 1/8 finals. If it wasn’t for fantastic goalkeeper Diogo Costa, they would be already out of the competition.Forget about Ronaldo, Costa is Portugal’s hero!Just like France, who were lucky enough against Belgium in the previous round as Jan Verthongen’s own goal put them out of misery.But all that is now in the past – finally, it’s time for a classic.EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP – 1/4 FINALSFriday19:00: (2.75) Spain (3.20) Germany (2.90)22:00: (3.45) Portugal (3.10) France (2.45)Saturday19:00: (2.35) England (3.20) Switzerland (3.55)22:00: (1.65) Netherlands (4.10) Turkey (5.80)***odds are subject to change***
