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I think the lack of an England and a Scotland automatically demotes it to the bottom of the pile in this part of the world. I assume at the time everyone told us it was shit for that reason and it remains the legacy.

Yes, that probably has a lot to do with it - that and a lousy final.

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What was the last genuinely good final, then? 2006 was an excellent contest, certainly the best recent WC final, as 10 and 14 were horseshit in comparison to what we ought to have had. For Euros, 2000, 96, 92 and 88 produced performances worthy of the occasion, but the last three have been very underwhelming.

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The first one I watched properly was Spain 82. Even though I was 8 in 1978, I didn't like fitba then, didn't get into it for another couple of years. I think everyone looks upon their first ever WC with a lot of fondness (unless you're a wean and your first one was SA2010 I suspect)

 

Anyway, probably either France 98 or Brazil 14 for me as the best ones. The one in Brazil tailed a bit near the end, but the group stages was one great game after another. 

 

As far as Euros go, Euro 96 was top class, and I enjoyed Euro 2000 as well. 2004 was pretty poor but it had that magic moment of Zidane trolling England by scoring twice in the last minute, that'll live with me forever, cementing his place as my favourite footballer of all time.

 

So aye, that. 

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What was the last genuinely good final, then? 2006 was an excellent contest, certainly the best recent WC final, as 10 and 14 were horseshit in comparison to what we ought to have had. For Euros, 2000, 96, 92 and 88 produced performances worthy of the occasion, but the last three have been very underwhelming.

The 2006 final wasn't very good at all.

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As well as championing 94 as really pretty decent; I'd like to propose that those nominating 2006 be waterboarded.I can honestly think of virtually nothing to commend that tournament.

Got to disagree mate, Argentina vs Mexico in the round of 16 game was a great game, Maxi Rodriguez scoring a stunning volley to settle it 2-1 in extra time!

Semi Final between Italy Germany, maybe the best tournament game I've seen live, gripping as f**k all the way through, end to end and two great goals to settle it.

Think maybe it was the case that I was 14 when it was on and it was the first WC I could properly appreciate and watch every game of and the stadiums were class as well with Olympic stadium Berlin and westfalenstadion Dortmund producing great settings an atmosphere for games. It's all about opinions I suppose.. Some people probably loved 2010.. Or maybe not 😮😂

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Depends what you mean by 'good'. The 2003 CL final gets dogs' abuse, largely from idiotic clowns who think 4-3's are automatically great games. 2006 definitely enters this category, very tactically and technically an excellent matchup. In contrast with 2010, where the Dutch disgracefully ditched what got them to the final and made no discerable effort to win the fucking match. That it's been 30 years since we've had more than three goals in every final bar one, there has to be entertainment derived from somewhere.

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That it's been 30 years since we've had more than three goals in every final bar one, there has to be entertainment derived from somewhere.

For a lot of years, World Cup finals were pretty much goalfests. That only came to an end in 19990 and it's not really changed much since, although France obviously got a few.

Obviously, some of those date back to times when goals were more freely scored anyway, but in the late 70s and early 80s, although World Cup finals tended to yield goals aplenty for both sides in good matches, European Cup finals were generally awful 1-0 jobs.

I'm not sure if that's because English sides kept winning them.

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Very possibly, they didn't accumulate seven out of eight EC's by being gung-ho and ultra-committed to flowing, attacking football.....notice England's absence from World Cups around the same time, it's obvious enough they didn't possess anything like the talented sides they had from 82 onwards. Heysel obviously had its effect, but the period you mention wasn't the halcyon period Bayern and Ajax/Feyenoord provided the FGR or Holland with during their dominance.

In terms of WC finals, France frankly wouldn't have been able to look themselves in the eye if they didn't thrash Brazil, who were absolutely zoned out from the occasion. Brazil in 02 ought to have stuck more past the German side deemed so poor, it launched the blueprint which produced the current mob. Those two are maybe the exception to the other recent ones (90- present), perhaps the myth that finals, by definition are fraught occasionsis just unfortunately true. It's just that no one told Italy, Argentina or Holland.

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20 years and 1 week to the day since we last played in the Euros  (18 June 1996, Villa Park, v Switzerland)

 

Ally McCoist the last Scotland player to score at the Euros.

 

Anyone at that game?

 

 

1728188_w2.jpg

Yes, thousands of them in fact.

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Good to see some people fighting back on behalf of USA 94.

It was the first one in my lifetime that we didn't qualify for so I thought I'd hate it but ended up loving it. Unfortunately another one with a shite final albeit an exciting ending. Felt bad for Baggio missing that penalty as he almost single handedly dragged Italy to the final with some top performances and goals in the knock out stages
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It was the first one in my lifetime that we didn't qualify for

Me too. I turned 24 during it.

Incredible really to think that we just routinely reached the finals for so long.

Pretty incredible too that we never got beyond the groups in all those tournaments.

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I actually couldn't be arsed watching the last two games yesterday. Football fatigue well and truly kicking in now.

This tournament really needs some cracking 3-2, end-to-end games in the knockout stages. On paper Italy v Spain - now on - should be good.

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