Euro 2012: Spain wear tag of boring for lack of excitement and goals | Rob Smyth

Spain are control freaks who hold on to the ball and keep opponents from scoring by wearing them down

Who thinks Spain are boring?

Approximately 50.00% of the football-watching population. It's the philosophical debate that has defined Euro 2012. Mark Lawrenson says if they win it will be "a bad advertisement for football". Boris Becker says they're boring. In Italy, the Corriere dello Sport says they are "terribly boring".

And are they boring?

That depends. If you equate goals with excitement and interest, then Spain's games are boring. The average of 1.8 goals in each of their matches is 25% lower than the tournament average of 2.4. George Graham would surely approve.

They play without a striker?

Sometimes they play Cesc Fábregas as a "false No9", a nominal striker who wanders all over the pitch.

Nobody denies they are brilliant …

Everyone accepts they have achieved an unprecedented level of technical excellence. It's just that some people like salt in their paella.

So what's the counter argument?

That Spain are one game away from becoming the first side to win three major tournaments in a row. That they play a brand of sophisticated, aesthetic football that transcends conventional notions of entertainment and maybe even goalscoring.

Goals win games, surely?

Yes but Spain usually only need to score once to win a game. They keep the ball so well that they hardly ever concede chances, never mind goals.

It's all about control?

That's the essence of their philosophy. They are control freaks. If they have the ball, you can't score. It's the ultimate example of attack being the best form of defence. Tiki-takanaccio.

Why don't they shoot more?

They believe wearing teams down in this way minimises risk and is the most efficient means of winning games. The approach has become more extreme. At Euro 2008 they had 33 passes per shot; at the last World Cup it was 44; this time it has been 58. Arsène Wenger called it "sterile domination" when Barcelona did it to Arsenal.

So they only care about winning, not entertainment?

Some would argue that, in their own pure way, Spain have become the thing they used to criticise: a team who prioritise winning over glory, entertainment and even fun.

If we do conclude the games are boring, whose fault is it?

Some say Spain's, for their endless foreplay. Some blame their opponents for parking the bus. A minority think it is the consequence of two different but equally defensive approaches.

But there isn't much middle ground?

Not really. Few things engender an evangelistic fervour quite like an arthouse/blockbuster debate. You are a philistine if you don't like Spain or a pseudo-intellectual if you do.

So what happens now?

Like Spain, we go round in circles. There is no right or wrong answer. Boredom is in the eye – and the yawn – of the beholder. Rob Smyth Read More [category Sport][tags Euro 2012, Spain, Football, Sport]

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• Russia striker scored six goals in 12 games for Fulham

Reading have confirmed they have agreed personal terms with the Russia striker Pavel Pogrebnyak and are awaiting a work permit application to finalise the transfer.

The Reading manager Brian McDermott revealed earlier this week that a deal for Pogrebnyak had been struck, and after the player passed his medical the club say they anticipate that the deal will be completed in the coming days.

"Reading as agreed terms with Pavel Pogrebnyak to join the club," read a club statement. "The player has already completed a medical and the deal is now only subject to the player obtaining a UK work permit. Reading anticipate completing the signing within the next seven days."

Pogrebnyak is out of contract this summer and it has been reported Reading have offered him a four-year deal worth around £65,000 a week.

The 28-year-old spent the second half of last season on loan at Fulham from the German side Stuttgart, scoring six goals in 12 appearances, but rejected the offer of a permanent deal with the Cottagers.

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Whittaker enjoyed a successful five years at Ibrox following a £2m move from Hibernian, winning three Scottish Premier League titles, two Scottish Cups and three Scottish League Cups. Hughton said: "In Steven we have a player who is very versatile – he can play anywhere across the back four and anywhere across midfield, so there's plenty of versatility there.

"It's probably a good time for him. Sometimes it is time to move on to a different club and go there with a lot of enthusiasm and he has international experience too. He has of course been used to playing at a very high level when he was at Rangers and in a lot of big games with a passionate crowd behind him. So the stage of the Premier League is certainly one that won't faze him with his experience."

Whittaker, who also appeared in Rangers' 2008 Uefa Cup final defeat by Zenit St Petersburg, said: "All of my experience to date has been in Scotland so I am really looking forward to the challenge of playing in the Premier League, I'm very excited about it. When I spoke to Chris Hughton I was very impressed with his plans to progress Norwich City and everyone I've spoken to in the game has had nothing but praise for the club and the city of Norwich."

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The Tottenham winger Gareth Bale has suffered an injury that will rule him out of Great Britain's Olympic football squad, according to reports.

Bale was widely anticipated to be included in the manager Stuart Pearce's GB team for the Olympic tournament starting at the end of next month.

But it is understood the 22-year-old Wales international has suffered a recurrence of an old back and hip injury after pulling up while running.

Bale is understood to be reluctant to risk aggravating the problem further, with Tottenham's Premier League opener at Newcastle just seven weeks away.

The player, who earlier this week pledged his future to Spurs by signing a new four-year contract to 2016, is believed to have already informed Pearce of his decision to make himself unavailable for selection after taking medical advice.

Bale had been held up as a likely star turn for Team GB, and his absence will come as a further blow to fans already shocked by Pearce's controversial decision to omit the former England captain David Beckham from his squad.

Bale has previously made little secret of his desire to represent GB at the Olympics, and last year he risked the wrath of the Welsh FA by posing in a British Olympic team shirt without their permission.

The Welsh, Northern Irish and Scottish FAs have been vocal in their opposition to providing players to a British team since the Games were awarded to London, although the Welsh have long been resigned to a number of their players taking part.

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Turkey had been favourites to host the event but their bid has hit difficulties due to a desire to host the Olympic Games in Istanbul in the same year.

And Platini has confirmed a radical alternative is now being considered.

"The Euros in 2020 could be held all over Europe," said Platini. "It could be either one country and 12 stadiums or one stadium in 12 or 13 cities."

Platini confirmed a final decision would be taken in January or February next year.

"This matter will be discussed very seriously," he added.

Platini gave further details on his ideas around the 2020 tournament.

He said: "We are not going to wait until we know whether Turkey are going to get the Olympics. It creates a problem for us. We do have other candidates. Everyone has the possibility to host it. It is easier to go from London to Paris or Berlin than Cardiff to Gdansk. It would be four games per venue. It is a great debate."

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Euro 2012: day 23 – live!

• Press refresh for the latest or turn on the auto update
• Email tom.bryant.casual@guardian.co.uk with your thoughts
• Get all the latest Euro 2012 news here

12.11pm: Gareth Southgate, who knows a thing or two about missing penalties (and, indeed, on cashing in on the fact), has called on England to appoint a sports psychologist in an effort to avoid yet more penalty shoot-out pain at major tournaments.

"I'm a big believer in sports psychology," he said. "Every major tennis player would work with somebody, every major golfer too, then everybody tells me 'football's different' but I can't see why. I'm sure it would have benefited me, definitely. It's not about luck. It is about performing a skill under pressure. I wasn't able to do that. I was going into the darkness. We need strategies for dealing with stress."

11.37am: Full(ish) story on Michel Platini's suggestion that Euro 2020 could be staged across all of Europe is here.

11.29am: Peter Ferry emails asks this: "Does anyone know the last time that two teams were both captained by goalkeepers in a major final (be it international or club football?)" And, since I'm trying to write breaking news pieces, look after the site and sub athletics copy, I'll throw this one over to you, dear readers.

11.24am: On the subject of how much it might cost fans to travel to 12 or 13 countries to watch their teams play, Mr Platini has reportedly said this: "There are low-cost airlines these days."

11.20am: News from Uefa's Michel Platini, a man trunbling along rapidly in the clown shoe-sized footsteps of Sepp Blatter:

Uefa president Michel Platini today revealed that Euro 2020 could be held "all
over Europe...in 12 or 13 cities". The idea would be to get rid of the notion of a host country and, instead, let the teams trot about all over Europe. "This matter will be discussed very seriously," he added, tweaking his big red nose.

Morning: First up - w quick round up of some of the stuff on site you may have missed.

Here's Sid Lowe on Andrés Iniesta:

Opponents look for him, surrounding him. Team-mates look to him, too. Vicente del Bosque has an almost allergic aversion to singling out players or elevating anyone above the others. So it means something when he says, as he did before Spain's second game: "Hopefully Andrés can be decisive – as he always is."

While here's tactics guru Michael Cox on the Pirlo conundrum, and how Spain and Italy might approach the final:

Whereas both England and Germany appeared surprised at Andrea Pirlo's influence, Spain recognised his threat. "In Pirlo," Xavi said before the tournament, "Italy have a genius with the ball."

Here's Richard Williams on a final to go down in history:

This is the tournament that defies you to look away. If 20 million people tuning in to watch the drama of England playing Italy in a quarter-final seems remarkable, the figure of 12m Britons switching on for Italy's semi-final with Germany on Thursday night is astounding, particularly with Rafael Nadal on the other channel.

Finally, read Marcus Christenson on how Antonio Cassano has battled back from fearing death to playing in the Euro 2012 final:

He did not want to listen to the team doctor, who kept urging him to go to hospital. "We argued for half an hour," Cassano recalled later, "before I agreed to visit the hospital. And that is when I started to have trouble speaking and thought about seeing my son again."

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Olympic torch route, day 43: West Bromwich's blind footballer shines for Team GB

Darren Harris's sporting dedication has taken him to Beijing in judo and now London 2012 for the five-a-side

This summer, I'll be watching as much Olympic and Paralympic coverage as I can muster from the comfort of my sofa. I did attempt to order tickets in the ballot, so it's not for a lack of trying – well, actually, it is.

Early last year I made it over the first hurdle, registering on the London 2012 ticket site. I even just about whittled down which events to go for. But at the last minute, reservations (of the wrong type) set in, and I decided not to purchase tickets for a myriad of reasons.

These were: the expense of paying for tickets and travel to the London venues; the dilemma of which events to choose; the challenge of selecting the number of tickets, and which days to pick; and the fact that London is going to be so very crowded.

I'll be honest, though. The real reason I did not apply is because only tickets to the men's 100m finals would have sufficed – so clearly, my application would always be in vain, because I was never going to win one of those golden tickets.

Ironically, I had a powerful incentive to travel to London, to watch an event other than the 100m finals. But, due to my dithering, I even missed the window to buy tickets to see my multi-talented and rather inspirational cousin, Darren Harris, represent Team GB in the five-a-side football tournament for visually impaired athletes.

Darren made his England debut back in 1996, was made captain in 2002 and played until 2007 – when he decided to concentrate on judo at the Beijing Paralympics (I told you he's a multi-talented sportsman). These days he plays football for West Bromwich Albion, which runs the Blind Centre of Excellence. The team won the 2011-12 blind football league and Darren has won the "golden boot" two years in a row for being top goalscorer.

Darren grew up playing football in Wolverhampton but, by the time he started secondary school, his sight had considerably deteriorated. He did not let that deter him. "Through sport," he says, "you learn skills which are transferable to other areas in life – such as managing expectations, adversity, public scrutiny and being accountable for your actions."

Having studied mathematics at the University of Sheffield, he gave up his IT job in 2004 to become a full-time professional athlete – despite many people advising against this alternative career path. Certainly, it hasn't been an easy journey: in the early days, there was less assistance and financial support for blind football.

When I speak to Darren about his accomplishments, he is always very humble, and places a lot of importance on giving back to his community (he mentors young people through the Dame Kelly Holmes Legacy Trust). He believes sport is beneficial in boosting the morale of a group of people – even a nation.

So whatever your view about the torch relay – which passes through West Bromwich this evening, on its way to my home city of Birmingham – remember all those talented individuals like Darren, who commit themselves to years of training and preparation, only to have one short moment to make their efforts pay dividends.

It's a daunting task to be the best in the world. If only I'd had just a fraction of their dedication when I was applying for my tickets.

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Euro 2012: Mario Balotelli dedicates Italy v Germany goals to mother

• Striker scored twice as Italy defeated Germany 2-1
• 21-year-old sets sights on winning golden boot

Mario Balotelli dedicated his match-winning performance in Italy's Euro 2012 semi-final against Germany to his adoptive mother.

At the final whistle, the Italy striker embraced Silvia Balotelli, who brought him up from the age of two after he was born in Italy to Ghanaian immigrants.

"After the game, when I went to my mum I said 'these goals are for you'," he said. "I waited for this moment for so long and I wanted to make my mum happy.

"Tonight was the most beautiful of my life – but I hope that this Sunday is even better."

Balotelli's double was enough to see Italy through to a meeting with the holders Spain in Kiev.

It extended Italy's remarkable record against Germany in tournament matches, the 2-1 win meaning the two sides have now met on eight occasions and the Azzurri have never lost.

"With Spain we are the two best teams in the tournament," said Balotelli. "Can we win? I'll tell you on Sunday."

Balotelli broke the deadlock when he rose to power home Antonio Cassano's 20th-minute cross.

His second was a belter, striding clear of the Germany defence to collect Riccardo Montolivo's superb through ball before blasting an unstoppable shot past Manuel Neuer.

It took Balotelli to three goals for the tournament and he is now favourite to win the coveted Golden Boot prize.

"In the final I hope to make it four," he said. "I will try to score another goal but in football you can do that a lot and still never score. Sometimes you need a bit of luck."

Balotelli's efforts earned the praise of the Italy manager Cesare Prandelli.

"He was excellent, like the entire team," said Prandelli. "I really believe that a team needs to have an idea of the way they play, and he really subscribed to this playing style.

"He ran into space high up the pitch, was always available, and put in a very good performance this evening."

For the Germany manager Joachim Löw, it was another shattering disappointment.

Despite reaching the last four for the fourth tournament running, they are still to end their wait for a trophy, which stretches back to Euro 96.

"We've had two great years," said Löw, whose side suffered their first defeat since the World Cup semi-final against Spain two years ago.

"The team has really developed well. We won 15 games in a row but lost today against an incredibly strong Italian side, with a strong axis and two great strikers.

"There's no reason to doubt ourselves. Our team was the youngest team here. Even though there's disappointment today, we played a wonderful tournament and I am sure we will be able to cope with this defeat." Read More [category Sport][tags Euro 2012, Italy, Mario Balotelli, Football, Sport]

Schmeichel on Spain win

Denmark goalkeeping legend Peter Schmeichel gives his thoughts on the Spain/Portugal Euro 2012 semifinal.Read More[category Sport]

Leeds, the Promised Land

An eloquent staging of Anthony Clavane's award-winning book has much to say about the UK today, and not just Leeds. Mick McCann was at the Carriageworks

Central to this play is the simple question, how do we fulfil our potential? After we've found love or looked after our kith and kin, filled our bellies and established a safe base, it's the great human question. This Red Ladder Theatre Company production asks the question through two individuals based in Leeds during the 1970s, and as a result asks it of the city itself.

This review has the potential to go two ways, do the safe, formulaic, parochial, slightly dull name check of the individuals who came together, a (usually kind) appraisal of their contributions and a quick run through the plot, maybe touching fleetingly on a theme or two. After all, it is community theatre in a regional city.

The second way, and the most likely from me, a writer not a theatre critic, is a pseudo-working-class hero, northern rant about how Britain is set up to enable people from certain socio-economic – and often geographic – backgrounds to achieve, necessarily, at the expense of others. How the UK's third city, Leeds, is underinvested-in, undervalued and under-represented in London, where the world is often evaluated and reflected back to us.

The play was very funny – like a smutty Alan Bennett in places – well written and pacey, the songs strong and relevant, choreography and set design excellent. It was laced with complex and cleverly worked through themes, half of which I probably missed.

Based on some of the subject matter of Anthony Clavane's award winning Promised Land this piece of 'community theatre' would put to shame many professional productions. The amateur cast were brilliant. Talk about art mimicking life: the two leads, Lynsey Jones and Paul Fox, were so good that they must be wondering, just as their characters are, about making a break and pursuing their artistic dreams.

I'd advise caution. Although you have the talent, most successful actors, artists, critics, writers, publishers, comedians, producers, film directors, journalists, makers of popular music, influential people at the BBC etc. come through public schools and Oxbridge. Cultural expression is often strung via connections. Although some others, such as Anthony Clavane, do break through, Britain is not a meritocracy. In Britain 2012, where you are born most often dictates where you will die.

And there lies another of the play's themes, breaking down the walls that act as barriers to our achieving. Be positive, don't be timid, be bold and keep striving. In the words of Leeds United's famous manager Don Revie: 'Keep fighting.'

Here we have the two main characters in a love story, presenting the opposing sides of a northern dilemma. The working class, female lead, Caitlin, sees a Leeds exemplified by Leeds United, full of prejudice and narrow-minded people who lack ambition. The only way she can fulfil her hopes of being a singer-songwriter is to get on the train to London. The middle class, male character, Nathan, sees a city with a rich history, full of potential, opportunity and inspiration, and would rather stay, fight to build and nurture the city, pursuing his dreams of being another of the great Leeds writers.

The nuances and contradictions of this dilemma are played out and explored. Nathan embraces Caitlin's idea of standing and fighting for what you believe in and then feels the disappointment of her leaving him and getting on the train. She sees him as being spineless and lacking ambition whilst he sees her leaving as hypocritical. As she left I wanted to shout, 'Don't worry love, you'll find prejudice and narrow-mindedness down in that there London as well.'

Half of the play is set around 1900 when Leeds had the biggest Jewish community outside London. It's in this period that other main themes are played out. There is a determination to stay and build the 'promised land' but how much should incomers assert themselves? A question faced by any immigrant community. A recurring motif, emotionally embraced by the cast, is that 'Leeds was built by the sweat of strangers'. this is probably truer of Leeds than any other British city bar London, and as the UK's fastest growing city, it still is. Leeds is informed and shaped by 'incomers'. It always was and I hope it always will be.

As the play concludes we discover that Nathan has broken down that wall, succeeded in his quest to become a writer and we are actually watching a play that he wrote.

So to turn to Leeds now; how is the city that 'strangers' built? It is a beautiful, dynamic, independent, exciting, cosmopolitan, multi-cultured, diverse, constantly developing city full of 'high art' and proper art. The list of awards and recognition on Wikipedia includes 'the UK's Favourite City', 'Best Place in Britain to Live', 'the UK's best shopping destination', 'Number One City for Clubbing'. We and the city's ancestors have achieved this despite the London political and cultural elite clinging on to power, money and influence like Gollum at the bottom of a dripping cave stroking a ring.

Like any city on Earth, Leeds still has poverty and alienation but has it nonetheless reached the Promised Land? I'd argue that, like a dream where you can't quite achieve something, you never will reach it. but the striving creates it, on a distant hill and this future will be 'built by the sweat of strangers'.

The Promised Land is at the Carriageworks theatre, Leeds, until tomorrow, Saturday 30 June.

Mick McCann's encyclopaedic How Leeds Changed the World leaves very little out. Read More [category Sport][tags Leeds, Leeds United, Theatre, Alan Bennett, Society, Judaism]

Euro 2012 paper review: Italy hails Mario Balotelli with odd headline

Tuttosport's decision to run a Balotelli headline stating 'We made them black!' risks controversy amid air of celebration

The day after Mario Balotelli's brace sent Italy into the Euro 2012 final, Tuttosport's front page features a picture of the striker with his shirt off and the headline "Li abbiamo fatti neri" – "We made them black!" – which does seem a questionable choice of phrase to use next to a picture of a black footballer, but is an idiom meaning something along the lines of "we beat them black and blue".

Elsewhere, Italy has not had many opportunities of late to celebrate superiority over Germany, and they were certainly not about to waste the one handed to them by Balotelli last night. Angela Merkel takes a particularly personal beating, with the front page of Libero featuring a picture of Mario Balotelli leathering a ball featuring the superimposed face of the German chancellor. The headline is "Vaffanmerkel", a corruption of the German leader's name and an Italian phrase suggesting in no uncertain terms that the subject go away immediately. "Grande Italia!" they add. "Germany were dominated and liquidated with two goals from SuperMario Balotelli." Il Giornale has a similar theme. Their front-page headline reads "Ciao Ciao Culona" – "Bye bye, fat ass". "It's not Monti but Balotelli, who with a brace destroys Germany and sends us into the final. Mrs Merkel, it's you who is leaving the Euro."

The Gazzetta dello Sport's front-page headline is "Siamo noi!" – "It's us!". "The whole of Italy is partying," they scream. In the Corriere dello Sport, it's "Giganti d'Italia" – Italy's giants. Corriere Della Serra and La Repubblica both lead with the latest news of Mario Monti's European negotiations, but that doesn't mean they're not excited. In the former, Mario Sconcerti describes last night as "perhaps Italy's finest performance since the war". "For the first time we played as if we ourselves were Germany," he writes. "We played as if giving freedom to the talented midfielders and two diverse attackers came naturally to us. Now losing to Spain would be a massive pain. We do not deserve it. The Spanish play, but we are inventing a new European football. It is our time." La Repubblica think it was "the perfect game" and "Prandelli's masterpiece."

"The midfield, with Pirlo – playing well enough to be considered a serious contender for the Ballon d'Or – pulling the strings, was again the focal point," write Gazzetta. "Yet again, the defence proved they're airtight. But it was in attack, where Italy have had something missing throughout the campaign, that Italy managed to step up a gear. Balotelli was the difference between the sides, but Cassano was also exceptional. Next up are Spain who, especially if they play the way they played against Portugal, don't look so scary now."

In Germany the talk is of nightmares and shattered dreams. Morgenpost devote their front page to a picture of Balotelli and the single word "albtraum" – "nightmare". "Aus! Aus! Der Traum ist Aus!" blubs Bilde – "Gone! Gone! The dream is gone!" "Again no great German victory. Again, no title," they report. "The last one we won was in 1996, 16 years ago." Sixteen years? Our heart bleeds. Come back in half a century and we might give you some sympathy. Anyway, we digress.

"And once again we lose to the Italians. The fact remains: in a tournament, we cannot beat them," they continue. "And our beautiful run of 15 competitive victories is broken. Oh, how bitter it tastes! Jogi, where were was your golden touch this time? Löw gambles, but what worked so well against Greece was wildly off the mark against Italy. Gomes and Podolski are total failures, and both need to be frozen out in the near future. Against Italy our Ozil tornado was just a gentle breeze – and the rest was not up to much. Schweinsteiger is an example – he has been nowhere near his World Cup form, and when it mattered he was very poor."

Die Welt insist "the script of the defeat carries Low's handwriting". "He chose the wrong tactics and the result was this bitter elimination." "History repeats itself," writes the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. "Italy remain Germany's nemesis. Low's squad rotation doesn't work, and Balotelli's goals put the Italians in the final." Sueddeutsche Zeitung insist: "The German team must ask itself why they once again produced a mistake-packed performance at the end of a major tournament." Read More [category Sport][tags Euro 2012, Mario Balotelli, Italy, Germany, Football, Sport, Media]

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Euro 2012: day 22 – live!

• Press refresh or turn on auto-update for the latest
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• Keep up with all our breaking football news here
• Full coverage of the tournament here

11.26am: There's a play on about Leeds United! Read the Guardian's review here. NB you actually have to be in Leeds to see it.

11.24am: Rob Conway has penned a song for Mario Balotelli. It is to the tune of Enya's Orinoco Flow. Before this email arrived I had no idea that anyone have even thought about Enya's Orinico Flow, let alone sung it, for at least 15 years. My mistake. Anyway, the lyrics:

From Milan to Japan, We are on the Mario Flow,
Ballatelli's on the Telly and he's gonna score a goal,
Oh Mario Mario Mario! Oh Olay, Olay, Olay!"

Repeat until punched

11.11am: Highlights of Franz Beckenbauer's column in today's Bild: "The first-half performance was a mystery to me after we performed so confidently in the four games beforehand. The first 45 minutes were deeply disappointing. That was not the true German team. They seemed completely lifeless ... I think we have too much respect [for Italy]. The talk about the curse of Italy seemed to paralyse the players."

11.05am: Euro 2012 news! Portugal's Pedro Proenca will referee the final in Kiev on Sunday. Proenca, 41, took charge of last month's Champions League final between Bayern Munich and Chelsea.

11.04am: Looking ahead to the Euro 2012 final, you might want to brush up on your history. If so, check out our video histories of the two finalists, Italy and Spain. Thanks!

10.56am: And here's a Reuters story on Mario Balotelli and his mum.

10.56am: A couple of Guardian links for you: here's my Euro 2012 newspaper review. It's amazing what Italian newspapers get away with – not just voicing the questionable idea that Mario Balotelli "made Germany black", but inviting Angela Merkel to do one and calling her a lard-arse, all of which happened on today's various front pages.

10.53am: He also says: "My loan spell with Arsenal will be officially over tomorrow. I want to say again a big thanks to the fans and the club for the opportunity and the great support and I wish this club all the very best!" Sorry. It's the only news I've got.

10.52am: Twitter-based football news! Yossi Benayoun tweets: "Good morning and have a nice day everyone"

10.44am: Hello world! Simon Burnton here for the next few hours, looking forward to, um, something happening.

10.38am: And that's all from me. Back to the tennis. Please be upstanding for Simon Burnton.

10.23am: "You're not wrong about the Italians being supercool," says Simon McMahon. "My favourite moment of the tournament so far was the look on Pirlo's face a split second after his penalty against England as he realised that he had hit it perfectly and that Hart was on his way down, arms and legs flailing. Just the faintest hint of a smile. Nothing more. Coglioni, I think the Italians call it."

10.01am: Italy are just cooller than Spain, aren't they? Balotelli, Cassano, Diamanti, Buffon, Pirlo. They've got every base covered. Forza Italia!

10.00am: Mrs Balotelli and Son.

9.58am: And Cesare Prandelli has had this to say about Balotelli. Balotelli's efforts earned the praise of Italy manager Cesare Prandelli. "He was excellent, like the entire team," said Prandelli. "I really believe that a team needs to have an idea of the way they play, and he really subscribed to this playing style. He ran into space high up the pitch, was always available, and put in a very good performance this evening."

9.50am: Mario Balotelli has said his goals in Italy's win over Germany last night was for his mum. Mummy's boy.

After the game, when I went to my mum I said 'these goals are for you'. I waited for this moment for so long and I wanted to make my mum happy. Tonight was the most beautiful of my life - but I hope that this Sunday is even better. With Spain we are the two best teams in the tournament. Can we win? I'll tell you on Sunday. In the final I hope to make it four. I will try to score another goal but in football you can do that a lot and still never score. Sometimes you need a bit of luck."

9.47am: Mario Balotelli did what?!

Morning. Hello. I've spent the last four days Doing Tennis, and apparently there's been a football tournament going on. I thought that ended last Sunday after England's heroic draw with Italy? No? They carried on regardless? That bloody Platini. So, having seen the square root of bugger all this week, what have I missed? Will this be Cristiano Ronaldo's tournament? Or will Germany finally make good on their potential? All those questions, and more, answered right here in your live and exclusive and live rolling Euro 2012 live and exclusive live blog! Read More [category Sport][tags Euro 2012, Football, Sport, Italy, Germany]

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German tears roll, Klose considers future

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Redknapp backs Becks' omission

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Italian press revels in Balotelli brilliance

Italys press on Friday celebrated the national sides 2-1 semi-final win delivered thanks to the double by stratospheric striker Mario BalotelliRead More[category Sport]

Brazil or bust for Loew

With a contract until the 2014 World Cup in Brazil coach Joachim Loew has said Germany has a bright future despite their Euro 2012 semi-final exit at the hands of ItalyRead More[category Sport]

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Talk is cheap, only titles matter, insists Loew

Germany coach Joachim Loew has admitted title talk is cheap after his young team showed plenty of potential at Euro 2012 but came up short when it mattered in their 2-1 semi-final defeat to ItalyRead More[category Sport]

Murray: End Gers recriminations

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Del Bosque on verge of coaching history

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Didier Drogba to arrive in Shanghai by July 13

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Germans weren't clever enough, admits Lahm

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Bond and Jordan leave Spurs

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Enfant terrible Balotelli conquers man's world

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Spain still favourites in final, insists Prandelli

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Buffon enraged despite reaching final

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German fans stunned at Italian loss

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Super Mario does it for his mum

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Coe offers Becks role after Pearce snub

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Canada court lets C$19 billion cell phone suit proceed

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Google opens the order books for the Nexus 7 tablet

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Crushed Portugal should be proud - Ronaldo, Nani, Pepe

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Zidane at 40 and pitiful Panenkas

This week's round-up also features ultimate pole climbing from 1930, Batigol at Fiorentina and a cartwheeling slam dunk

1) Happy birthday to Zinedine Zidane, who turned 40 this week. Some collectors' items: the most outrageous outside-of-the-boot pass you'll see; first-touch filth – exhibits one and two – more remarkable opponent-bamboozling; going downtown for Bordeaux; coming off the bench to do this on his France debut; and showing future form against Marcel Desailly. Form that would get him immortalised in both The Simpsons and Family Guy.

2) It's Tour de France time, which means repeated airings of arguably the greatest sporting theme tune ever written. And as it's the brilliant Phil Liggett's 40th time covering Le Tour, a brief tribute: here's how Channel 4 celebrated his 20-year stint in 1992, plus his narration to the greatest Tour climbs of the 1990s and, rather cleverly, a Portland commuter's trip to work.

3) Antonin Panenka has been back in the news this week, courtesy of Andrea Pirlo's stones (and those of Sergio Ramos). But it doesn't always go so smoothly; here are five of the worst (the first of which from Armin Hobel cost his team promotion), plus Gary Lineker and Neymar shaming themselves while our man ZZ cuts it perfectly fine.

4) Slam dunking is all well and good, but can you do it while cart-wheeling?

5) A collection of Gabriel Batistuta's goals for Fiorentina between 1991 and 2000. Lovely.

6) It's the Clive James Formula One show from 1997, featuring an all-star crowd including John McCririck, Russell Grant and Chris de Burgh.

Our favourites from last week's blog

1) Rugby league try of the season? Ben Barba doing all the work for Josh Morris to cross the whitewash.

2) Ultimate pole climbing – 'new sport of 1930!' Reminiscent of our old favourite Bo-Taoshi.

3) You have to feel for Satoshi Motoyama, who spends two hours trying – and failing – to fix his Deltawing after being cruelly sideswiped out of the Le Mans 24 hours race.

4) David Coulthard catches a golf tee shot with a car.

5) Lee Dixon does not like being cut off. Especially when it's by Alan Shearer's 'punditry'.

6) Retro snow action from 1984 with Warren Miller's Ski Country.

Spotters' badges: CashPoint, Godinho, wiganschosenfew, richardsmall, spottylad, BlackCaeser.

guardian.co.uk © 2012 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Read More [category Sport][tags Football, Sport]

Euro 2012 paper review: Spain unites to hail their shining stars

History calls for Vicente del Bosque's men but first they may have to beat a Germany side that believes victory is in hand

So Spain are just one win away from becoming the first nation to win three consecutive international tournaments. Little wonder, then, that the Spanish press are in buoyant, expectant mood following last night's Euro 2012 semi-final victory over Portugal in Donetsk.

"La estrella de España sigue brillando" runs the headline in Marca: "Spain's star still shines." "Iker y Cesc repiten la historia" goes another: "Iker and Cesc repeat history," a reference to the side's goalkeeper and midfielder playing crucial roles in the penalty shootout win four years after doing the same against Italy at the quarter-final stage of Euro 2008.

Speaking of the penalty shootout, there is rightly praise for Sergio Ramos after the defender's eye-catching 'Pananka' kick. "Sergio Ramos se desquita del penalti fallado ante el Bayern emulando a Panenka ante Portugal," says Mundo Deportivo, making reference to the fact Ramos missed a penalty in Real Madrid's Champions League semi-final shootout defeat to Bayern Munich in April and, therefore, showed some guts to convert in style against Portgual last night.

Another man who also missed for Real in their shootout loss to Bayern was Cristiano Ronaldo, but unlike Ramos he did not get the chance to make amends in yesterday's game after being Portugal's fifth and ultimately unused penalty taker. Following the defeat to Spain, the forward insisted his decision not to step up earlier had nothing to do with what happened at the Bernabéu two months ago.

"Cristiano: 'No había fantasma por lo del Bayern'" is the headline in Marca: "Christian: 'there was no ghost from Bayern'".

Perhaps surprisingly, there is little noticable criticism directed towards Ronaldo in the Portuguese press, with most of the post-match reaction in praise of the spirit and endeavour shown by the national side against the reigning world and European champions.

"'Caímos como deve cair uma grande equipa, com honra e orgulho' vincou Paulo Bento" is typical of the headlines in Publico: "'We fell as a great team should, with honour and pride,' said Paul Bento." The Portugal manager may be asked in the coming days, however, why he did not insist that his team's captain and standout player took one of the earlier penalties against Spain, instead of leaving it to the likes of the clearly spooked Bruno Alves to put their neck on the line.

Euro 2012's other semi-final, which takes place in Warsaw this evening, sees Germany face England-conquering Italy. Quite rightly given the impressive nature of their team's displays so far at the tournament, the German press are in confident mood ahead of the fixture.

"Das Team wirkt auf alles vorbereitet, Selbstzweifel sind ab sofort nicht mehr gestattet," is the message in Der Spiegel: "The team is prepared for everything, self doubt is now no longer allowed."

Over at Bild, there is an even greater sense of destiny, built on the German tabloid's use of a palm reader to predict that Joachim Löw's side are all but guaranteed a place in Sunday's final.

"Palm expert Werner Giessing, 50, has analysed the left-hand of Löw," reads a story under the headline: "Jogi hat's in der Hand": "Jogi has it in hand." According to Giessing: "The hand image shows that Joachim Löw is on course to reach the zenith of his career and he will lead his team to the title."

First, of course, they have to get past an Italy side that, according to Gazzetta dello Sport, will attempt to match Germany stride-for-stride. A day after apologising for printing an offensive picture of Mario Balotelli, the Italian broadsheet reports that Cesare Prandelli, the national team manager, will send his players out to attack this evening. "It's risky, but it'll be a joy taking on a top team like Germany," Prandelli is quoted as saying. "We go into the game calm and relaxed, with the belief that we'll be able to play the way we've planned it."

Over at Corriere della Sera, there was a simple but eye-catching attempt to inspire Italy ahead of today's encounter, with the online version of the newspaper posting this morning a video of Italy's victories over Germany at major tournaments, most notably the 3-1 win in the 1982 World Cup final. Rousing stuff, indeed. Read More [category Sport][tags Euro 2012, Spain, Portugal, Germany, Italy, Football, Sport]

Ronaldo told to take fifth penalty

• Ronaldo admits pain of losing semi-final shootout
• But insists: 'I am happy with my own contribution'
• In pictures: the best images from the semi-final in Donetsk

Cristiano Ronaldo has expressed his frustration after Portugal were knocked out of Euro 2012 by Spain on penalties, but insists he was content with his own contribution.

After a goalless 120 minutes in the semi-final, Spain won the shootout 4-2 with Ronaldo, scheduled to take the fifth kick, looking on. The Real Madrid star was not at his best during the game, and missed a fine chance to win it at the end of normal time.

He told O Jogo: "It's always painful losing on penalties but penalties are always a lottery and the one who has the best luck wins. We're going out a bit frustrated because we could have gone to the final but we were unlucky.

"I gave my best as I always have done and that's why I am happy with my own contribution. We must be proud because we played well but we didn't have the luck we needed."

He later confirmed to the Portuguese TV network SIC: "I was going to take the next [penalty], but we missed two.

"It was just a question of me speaking with the coach. He said to me, 'Do you want to take the fifth one?' and I said 'yes'. Sometimes I take the first, the second or the third. I agreed to take the fifth.

"I hope Spain win the tournament now because I have a lot of friends there and I play there and it will be a tough final for them. It felt very normal playing against Real Madrid players. On the pitch we are not friends, but outside we are."

Asked why Ronaldo, the world's most expensive player, did not step up to take a penalty, the Portugal coach Paulo Bento said: "We had this plan and if it had been 4-4 and he would taken the last penalty we would be talking in a different way.

"We lost because Spain were more efficient in the penalties, but it's true that we did not have any luck in this tournament."

There was also confusion over the third penalty. Bruno Alves walked forward to take it but Nani suddenly appeared behind him, took it and scored. Alves then came back for the fourth spot-kick but struck the bar, handing the initiative to Cesc Fábregas.

"There was some confusion with Bruno Alves and with Nani, then Bruno took the penalty and it was decisive," the coach said. "Penalties could have been an advantage for us, but we lost the advantage after the first one … If I had to choose a way of losing I wouldn't choose this one but you have to lose some way, and Spain are a great team."

The Spain coach Vicente del Bosque has called for one last great effort from his players in the final against either Germany or Italy after Fábregas tucked away the decisive spot-kick.

Del Bosque told Uefa.com: "The players have played so many matches and they have to show their best in one more. It was a very even match but maybe we were a little better in extra time." Read More [category Sport][tags Euro 2012, Portugal, Cristiano Ronaldo, Spain, Football, Sport]