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The alternative award ceremony

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Euro 2024 is over, and here at the English arm of 90min towers, we are trying our best to forget how it ended.

But we’re sure history will look back fondly at this summer’s tournament. Nothing helps the memory of football like the passing of time, after all.

With the Euros officially wrapped up, let’s review it in irreverent style.

Player of the tournament

Yamal won the official Young Player award / Soccrates Images/GettyImages

Right, we’ll begin with the correction of an official award.

Rodri was named the Player of the Tournament. But that’s boring. You’re not tuning into a game to watch Rodri play, are you?

In however many years, the world will remember Euro 2024 for Lamine Yamal. He was the standout, he was the story, he was the catalyst behind Spain’s new, dynamic and ultimately winning style.

The real Golden Boot

TOPSHOT-FBL-EURO-2024-MATCH16-ESP-ITA

Oopsy / PATRICIA DE MELO MOREIRA/GettyImages

UEFA decreed there would not be a tiebreaker for the Golden Boot, and so there ended up being six joint-winners on three goals – Harry Kane, Dani Olmo, Jamal Musiala, Cody Gakpo, Georges Mikautadze and Ivan Schranz.

But the true winner of the award is that fabled man himself, ‘own goal’, who ended up scoring ten times. Bravo, sir.

Goal of the tournament

Jude Bellingham

Yeah, fair enough / Shaun Botterill/GettyImages

Jude Bellingham. Overhead kick. In the 95th minute to save England.

That is all.

Game of the tournament

Arda Guler

Arda Guler lived up to the hype / Eurasia Sport Images/GettyImages

Matchday one of the group stage in particular threw up some real corkers, and our pick of the bunch was Turkey’s enthralling 3-1 win against Georgia.

Mert Muldur sent Dortmund’s Signal Iduna Park crazy with a sublime volley to open the scoring, before debutants Georgia levelled through Georges Mikautadze.

Real Madrid starlet Arda Guler reached deep into his bag of tricks and pulled out a screamer to put Turkey back in front in the second half, and Kerem Akturkoglu iced the game in stoppage time, slotting into an empty net after goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili went up for one last corner.

Save of the tournament

TOPSHOT-FBL-EURO-2024-MATCH44-AUT-TUR

The hand of Gunok / JOHN MACDOUGALL/GettyImages

Turkey were involved in another thriller later in the tournament, facing an all-action Austria side who were fancied to make a deep run.

With seconds left to go in their last 16 tie, Turkey battened down the hatches to try and preserve their 2-1 lead, but their resistance appeared to be broken when Christoph Baumgartner popped up with a header at the back post.

Bouncing down went the ball, up again it went towards the far corner from whence it came. And there was the stretching arm of Mert Gunok to push it aside in Gordan Banks-esque fashion. On Turkey marched to the quarter-finals.

Surprise package of the tournament

Georges Mikautadze

Georgia, thanks for the memories / Visionhaus/GettyImages

Beating Portugal, giving eventual winners Spain a fright and all the thrills that preceded.

It was a true pleasure, Georgia.

Letdown of the tournament

Switzerland v Italy: Round of 16 - UEFA EURO 2024

Italy’s defence of the title lasted only four games / James Baylis – AMA/GettyImages

We’d be remiss to not give a dishonourable mention to Scotland, who fell flat on their face, arse over head, at the very first hurdle on their return to international competition in packed-out stadiums.

But the true disappointments of Euro 2024 were reigning champs Italy, who were eliminated at the last-16 stage by the most last-16-exit coded team in existence, Switzerland.

That’s basically a bye. And they blew it.

Funniest red card

Ilkay Guendogan, Ryan Porteous

Seems fine / Clive Mason/GettyImages

Oh, you weren’t getting off so easily, Scotland.

It was bad enough when the Tartan Army crapped their kilts and went 2-0 down early on against Germany in the tournament opener, but then Ryan Porteous was sent off for a reckless challenge on Ilkay Gundogan at the end of the half that ensured he would miss the rest of the tournament.

Masterful gambit, chaps.

Most deranged free-kick take

One goal in his last 60 free-kicks for Portugal now for Cristiano Ronaldo.

Leave the football before the football leaves you, a great man (Jamie Carragher) once said.

‘Streets Won’t Forget’ player award

Georges Mikautadze

We need to establish criteria for ‘Streets Won’t Forget’, here.

The recipient can’t actually be a world-beater or the like. That defeats the purpose of it – the world will already remember them.

Instead, they need to be below that superstar standard. Maybe even below an ordinary star. Maybe they’re just outright crap but are fun to watch.

We’re plumping for a player who comes somewhere in the middle of that – Georgia’s Georges Mikautadze.

‘Streets Won’t Forget’ team award

Ralf Rangnick

In a just and fair world, Georgia would win this category too. Unfortunately, the world is a cruel and awful place, therefore it’s morally easier to give the spotlight to someone else.

Austria, led by a rejuvenated Ralf Rangnick, lived up to their dark-horse billing and pressed other teams off the park. They were by no means lucky to reach the knockout stages and earned their spot atop the group of death.

Target man appreciation award

Niclas Füllkrug

Target men are sexy again / Alexander Hassenstein/GettyImages

If you want to know what kind of striker Niclas Fullkrug, you can judge him blindly on his nickname – ‘Lucke’, which is German for ‘gap’, referring to his teeth.

Crash, bang, wallop. Germany’s exit may have been prevented had they turned to Fullkrug as a go-to option earlier.

‘The Last Dance’ award

Luka Modric

If this was to be Luka Modric‘s last international tournament, then he at least signed off in style and with dignity.

For Croatia’s opening two group stage games, the midfielder looked every bit of his 38 years of age.

For roughly 50 seconds after missing a penalty against Italy, it looked like game over.

But he came roaring back with one last moment of magic, scoring within a minute of that skewed spot-kick. Croatia’s golden generation reverberated around him – which made it more fitting that Italy’s fatal equaliser came with him off the pitch.

The fake patriot award

Roberto Martinez

What’s going on here then? / Marvin Ibo Guengoer – GES Sportfoto/GettyImages

Noted Spaniard Roberto Martinez is the manager of Portugal.

Noted Spaniard Roberto Martinez singing the Portugal national anthem? I don’t know, that’s a bit dodgy, mate.

Most one-sided rivalry award

Lamine Yamal, Adrien Rabiot

Prior to France’s Euro 2024 final with Spain, Adrien Rabiot laid down the gauntlet to actual child Lamine Yamal, challenging him to “to show much more than he has until now.”

So in his final match as a 16-year-old, Yamal stuck one right in the top bin and knocked Les Bleus out. “Speak now!” Yamal roared into the camera post-match.

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Real to restore pride against AC Milan in Champions League clash

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Real Madrid will be aiming to bounce back from a heavy de­feat in El Clasico when they con­tinue their 2024-25 Champions League campaign with a contest against Italian giants, AC Milan, on today.

Los Blancos have picked up six points from their three European matches this season to occupy 12th in the Champions League table, while Milan have collected three points from their opening three games to sit in 25th position.

Real Madrid will be well-rest­ed heading into their European contest with Milan, as their La Liga contest with Valencia, which was due to take place on Saturday night, was postponed due to the devastating floods in Spain.

As a result, Carlo Ancelotti’s side have not been in action since their 4-0 loss to Barcelona on October 26, and are nine points off the top of the La Liga table after Barcelona’s 3-1 win over Espanyol Sunday evening.

Real Madrid must put league matters aside for the moment, though, and fully focus on the Champions League, with the reigning European champions bid­ding to move onto nine points in the Champions League table.

Ancelotti’s team have beaten Stuttgart and Borussia Dort­mund in the competition this season, but they lost in Lille last month, and a total of six points from three matches has left them in 12th spot, one point behind eighth-placed Sporting Lisbon.

Los Blancos are yet to hit full flow this season and have now lost two of their last five match­es in all competitions, but they will be expecting to record two wins over Milan and Osasuna ahead of the November interna­tional break.

Real Madrid have faced Milan on 15 previous occasions, with both sides posting six wins, but this will be the first meeting between the two sides since the group stage of the 2010-11 Champions League.

Milan have only ever won once at Bernabeu, which came in the group stage of the 2009- 10 Champions League, and the most famous meeting between the two sides took place in the final of the 1958 European Cup, with Real Madrid recording a 3-2 victory.

The last six meetings between the two sides have taken place in the group stage of the Champions League, with Milan posting two wins during that period, and the Italian giants will be aiming to secure an upset on Tuesday night.

The Red and Blacks lost their opening two matches in the league phase of this season’s competition to Liverpool and Bayer Leverkusen, before recording a 3-1 victory over Club Brugge last time out, a total of three points from three matches has left them in 25th spot.

Paulo Fonseca’s side will enter this match off the back of a 1-0 victory over Monza on Saturday, with the team bouncing back from their 2-0 home defeat to Napoli at the end of last month.

Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe are set to feature as the front two, but Luka Modric may be given the nod over Aurelien Tchouameni in the middle of midfield, with Ancelotti wanting more control in that area of the field.

Rafael Leao started from the bench against Monza, with the attacker only managing one goal during a disappointing start to the campaign, but Fonseca has hinted that the Portugal interna­tional will be in the XI against Real Madrid.

Emerson Royal and Ruben Loftus-Cheek are also expect­ed to earn recalls following the clash with Monza, while there should be a spot at centre-for­ward for former Real Madrid striker Al­varo Morata.

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AFCON 2025Q: CAF approves Accra Sports Stadium for Ghana vs Sudan

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The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has approved the Accra Sports Stadium to host the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier between Ghana and Sudan.

The Black Stars face the Falcons of Jediane on match day three of the qualifying series for the tournament to be hosted in Morocco.

Prior to the approval, CAF had directed the Ghana Football Association (GFA) to select an alternative venue for the game after the temporary approval of the Baba Yara Stadium was lifted.

CAF inspected both the Cape Coast Stadium and the Accra Sports Stadium last week before eventually turning down the former.

A statement from CAF on the approval read:

‘’Following a comprehensive review of the reports of the CAF independent inspection regarding the Cape Coast and Accra Sports Stadia, we are pleased to inform you that the Accra Sports Stadium has been approved to host the AFCON Qualifiers for Morocco 2025. Specifically, it will host the Group F – Matchday 3 encounter between Ghana and Sudan, which is scheduled for October 11, 2024.

“In light of this approval, we kindly request that the Ghana Football Association (GFA) and the stadium management team prioritise the necessary enhancements to the pitch and other critical areas of the stadium leading up to the match day to ensure an optimal experience for both teams and the attending fans.

“Please note that CAF will continue to closely monitor the readiness of the stadium for this match, as well as for future CAF-sanctioned events.”

The Black Stars are hoping to get their qualifying campaign back on track after failing to win any of their opening two games against Angola and Niger.

This fixture is scheduled for Friday, October 11, 2024.

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‘I no longer care about records

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Cristiano Ronaldo has revealed that he is no longer focused on being the best player in the world or chasing records.

Instead, the 39-year-old Portuguese star emphasised his desire to help his team and enjoy the game.

Speaking after Al-Nassr’s 2-1 AFC Champions League win against Al-Rayyan, where he scored his 904th career goal, Ronaldo reflected on his current priorities.

“It is not important anymore whether I am the best or not, I no longer care about that,” Ronaldo said. “I am used to breaking records, and I no longer look for them. The most important thing for me now is to enjoy and help Al-Nassr and my team-mates to win.”

Ronaldo, who joined Al-Nassr in January 2023 after leaving Manchester United, has already left an indelible mark in Saudi football, setting a new league scoring record with 35 goals in the Saudi Pro League last season.

Despite his personal achievements, Ronaldo’s focus now seems to have shifted towards his team’s success rather than individual accolades.

Looking ahead, Ronaldo hinted that he could retire with Al-Nassr, stating in August, “I don’t know if I will retire soon, in two or three years, but probably I will retire here at Al-Nassr.”

While Cristiano Ronaldo has helped Al-Nassr lift the 2023 Arab Club Champions Cup, he has yet to secure domestic or continental silverware with the club.

Despite this, the Portuguese legend has set a personal target of reaching 1,000 career goals before hanging up his boots.

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