UEFA Euro 2024 Preview Links

Jon The Blogcentric1 Comment

One of the crazy things over the past three years is watching a football tournament with decent time zones. For Qatar 2022, there were some games I had to wake up real early to see at a cafe for 7am! For the Women’s World Cup last year, they were in Australia and New Zealand so I had to be really lucky if I wanted to catch them at good times. I think the final was at 3am my time. I tried to wake up on time that Sunday but it didn’t work out.

For Euro 2024, the times of the games are better for me. The first nine days may have some games that start as early as 6am for me, but the rest of the games starting times are either 9am or noon my time. Just like previous years, I plan to see them in as many cafes as I can.

This blog is a fast reference to all the blogging I’ve done about the six Euro groups. The links are in the group titles and by them, I will list my predictions for teams I expect to qualify out of those groups:

Group A – Germany, Hungary and Switzerland the wildcard (WC)

Group B – Spain, Croatia and Italy the WC

Group C – England and Denmark

Group D – France, Netherlands and Poland the WC

Group E – Belgium and Ukraine

Group F – Portugal, Czechia and Turkey the WC

2024 Copa America: Group A Focus

Jon The Blogcentric1 Comment

Some of you may be wondering why would I do a focus on the groups of Euro 2024 but not on the upcoming Copa America? Actually I will do a focus on the upcoming Copa America in the United States. Looking back, I find it weird that I only did one set of blogs for a Copa America all the way back in 2015, but none since. About time I fixed that.

Ever since I first focused on the Copa America, which would become my only focus until now, there seemed to be a change every tournament. When I first did it in 2015, it was a twelve-team quadrennial tournament. The first major change came in 2016 when the Copa America decided to have a tournament to celebrate its centennial. And in the United States: a nation that’s not part of the CONMEBOL! In addition, a tournament of 16 teams!

For 2019, it looked like it would get back to normal returning to its quadrennial occurrence, hosted by Brazil and back to being a twelve-team tournament. Then the COVID pandemic happened. A Copa America returned in 2021, held in Brazil. This time, it was only the ten CONMEBOL teams competing in two groups of five.

Now it looks like the Copa America is to be contested in leap years, just like the Euro. After this year, the next Copa will be in 2028. Hard to believe the Euro final and the Copa America final are both on the same day! For the tournament of the Copa America, it will be a sixteen-team tournament with all ten CONMEBOL nations and six guest nations all from the CONCACAF. Fourteen stadiums across the United States will have games contested. It’s possibly because it can prepare itself for the World Cup in two years.

In Group A, we have the defending Copa champions, two more CONMEBOL teams and a CONCACAF team. So without further ado, here’s my look at the teams of Group A. Numbers in brackets are the latest FIFA rankings:

-Argentina (1): At long last, Messi has his Copa America and his World Cup. Over the last ten years, it became apparent that Messi can be a one-man team for Argentina. It needs to have other top players to be the best team in the world, and they’ve done it before in the past. The first breakthrough came when they won the 2021 Copa America against Brazil 1-0. That would pave the way for the Albiceleste’s win in Qatar. They’re still strong and they show little sign of slowing down.

Lionel Scaloni continues to be the manager of the team he’s managed since the 2018 World Cup ended. The squad for the Copa has not been announced, but Messi will definitely be there. Also anticipated to be named to the team is defender Nicolas Olamendi, midfielder Rodrigo de Paul, forward Angel di Maria and goalkeeper Dibu Martinez. Since their World Cup wins, they’ve won all but one game. Their only loss came from Uruguay back in November 2023. Argentina could have what it takes to do it again as long as their success doesn’t spoil them.

FUN FACT: Argentina’s win of the World Cup must have rubbed over to the other American teams. Seven of the teams at this Copa have an Argentinean coach!

-Peru (32): La Bicolor or Los Incas are an on-again off-again team. The current team is a far cry from their Golden Generation in the 1970’s and delivered a legend with Teofilo Cubillas. Nevertheless, they’ve shown a recent surge in prowess with a 4th place at the last Copa, runners-up at the Copa in 2019 and qualified for the 2018 World Cup.

Peru has been managed by Uruguayan Jorge Fossati for less than a year. The squad consists of top players like defender Luis Advincula, midfielder Christian Cueva, forward Pablo Guerrera and goalkeeper Pedro Gallese. In the past year and a half, Peru’s wins have all been outside the CONMEBOL: Dominican Republic, Nicaragua and South Korea. They’ve endured draws to Venezuela, Morocco and Paraguay and losses to six teams including Brazil, Germany and Argentina. This Copa America is another chance for Peru to prove itself and their team’s strength.

-Chile (42): It’s hard to describe how good La Roja are at any given time. When they’re on, they’re on. When they’re off, they’re off. They’ve been in nine World Cups and their best finish is third, but they always have the bad luck of meeting Brazil in the World Cup knockout rounds who would eventually end their run. Also they hit it big in the mid-2010’s when they won their first-ever Copa in 2015, repeated in 2016, but have finished out of the Top 3 since and last qualified for a World Cup in 2014.

Since the beginning of this year, Chile has been coached by Argentinean Ricardo Gareca. Top players include defender Mauricio Isla, forwards Alexis Sanchez and Eduardo Vargas, and goalkeeper Claudio Bravo. In the past year and a half, they’ve had wins against Cuba, Albania and Peru, a win and a draw against Paraguay, draws against Colombia and Bolivia, and losses to France, Ecuador, Venezuela and Uruguay. The Copa America is the arena for Chile to show how good they are and possibly chase another win.

-Canada (49): Les Rouges or the Canucks are one of the six CONCACAF teams here at the Copa America. Canada has struggled for a long time to be seen at a world level. In 2022, it qualified for its second-ever World Cup. The fun ended at the Cup as it lost all three of its matches and it finished second-last. Since then, Canada has been focused on getting serious as they will co-host the 2026 World Cup with the US and Mexico and want a team they can be proud of. Even here at the Copa, they will play the opening game against Argentina. You can bet they want to look good here too!

Since the beginning this year, the Canadian team has been coached by American Jesse Marsch. Canada’s squad for the Copa has not been named yet but it’s strongly believed the team will include defenders Alphonso Davies and Richie Laryea, midfielder Jonathan Osorio and forward Cyle Larin. Since Qatar 2022, Canada has achieved wins against Cuba and Panama, has had draws against France, a win and a loss to Jamaica, a draw and a loss to the United States, and losses to Japan and the Netherlands. Canada will get a good sense of where it’s at here at the Copa and just could surprise the Americas at all they can do.

My Predictions: While the 24-team Euro allows for the top two and third-placers based on a wild card system, the sixteen-team Copa America is strictly the top two. I think the two will be Argentina and Chile.

And there you have it. My introduction to Copa America 2024 and my look at Group A. Just when I thought my writing would take a break after my Euro 2024 group blogs ended, I was wrong!

UEFA Euro 2024: Group F Focus

Jon The Blogcentric2 Comments

It’s interesting there have been 22 World Cups contested but only eight nations have won the Cup. The Euro has been contested sixteen previous times and ten nations have won the Championship at least once. It’s a wonder who the winner will be this year. A lot of nations look poised to win but there can only be one winner.

For this my last blog before the start of Euro 2024, I will be focusing on the Group F teams as well as additional things about the upcoming tournament. So without further ado, here’s my focus on the teams of Group F:

-Turkey (40): It sometimes seems fair to assume the Ay-Yıldızlılar, or the ‘Crescent-Stars,’ are an on-again off-again team. They’ve only played in two World Cup and finished third in 2002, but never qualified again. Euro has seen better success as they’ve qualified for six tournaments, with this being their third straight Euro, and finished third back in 2008. Turkey do know how to come alive.

Turkey has been coached by Italian Vincenzo Montella, a 2002 World Cup player, after coaching a team in Turkey’s Adana League. Top players include defender Zeki Celik, midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu and forward Cerik Tosun. The squad for Euro has eight members under 25 so it’s a very young team. They’ve had wins against Latvia and Germany. They’ve had a win and a draw against both Armenia and Wales. They’ve also had a win and a loss to Croatia and losses to Hungary, Poland and Austria. Euro 2024 is a chance for Turkey’s current team to prove itself and possibly go further than expected.

-Georgia (75): Here at Euro 2024, the Jvarosnebi will be the one debut team. How did they do it? Despite finishing fourth in Group A which saw Spain and Scotland qualify automatically, Georgia had enough Nations League points to be among the twelve teams in the playoffs for the last three berths. Georgia was drawn into Path C where they would have to face Luxembourg in the semifinal and Greece in the final. In the semi, Georgia defeated Luxembourg 2-0. In the final against Greece held in Georgia’s capital Tblisi, it went scoreless in added extra time. On penalty kicks, Georgia won 4-2 and became the first-ever nation from the Caucasus to qualify for a Euro!

The team is coached by Frenchman Willy Sagnol who played in the 2006 World Cup final. The team has various players who have played in various leagues around Europe and North America. Top players include Guram Kashia, midfielder Nika Kvekveskiri and goalkeeper Giorgi Loria. In the past year and a half, they’ve had wins to Cyprus, Thailand, Montenegro and Luxembourg. They’ve also had a draw and a loss to both Norway and Scotland and losses to Spain. Anything can happen in football and it’s possible Georgia can provide another big upset here in Germany.

-Portugal (6): Here in Germany, the Seleção das Quinas qualified for their eighth straight Euro and ninth in total. This has been an incredible time for Portuguese football as they achieved a win in 2016, a runner-up in 2004 as hosts and to third-places. Not all is smooth sailing. Portugal definitely wants to do better than their Round Of 16 finish from the last Euro where they really underplayed.

Since World Cup 2022 ended, the team is managed by Spain’s Roberto Martinez. This Euro looks to be the last you might see Cristiano Ronaldo play. There’s loads of talk of whether he’ll make this the sixth Euro he scores a goal in, extending the record he set in the last tournament. Portugal is more than Cristiano Ronaldo. There’s also goalkeeper Rui Patricio, defender Pepe and midfielder Bernardo Silva. Since the World Cup, they’ve had a 2023 of straight wins against Slovakia, Iceland, Luxembourg and Bosnia-Hercegovina. This year, they had wins against Sweden, Finland and Ireland but also losses to Croatia and Slovenia. Euro 2024 is another chance for Portugal to rise to the occasion and shine.

-Czechia (36): Back when they were part of Czechoslovakia, they only qualified for three Euros but won in 1976. Ever since the Czechs and Slovaks went their separate ways in 1992, Czechia has qualified for every Euro! They even finished runner-up in 1996 and third in 2004. The Narodak, which is not their official nickname, are known for strong play but they’re also known for inconsistency. The biggest notice is that since the Czechs split, they’ve only qualified for a single World Cup.

The team is coached by Ivan Hasek who was just hired this year and who played for the last-ever Czechoslovakia team in the World Cup back in 1990. Top players include midfielder Tomas Soucek, defender Vladimir Coufal and forward Patrik Schick. In the past year and a half, they’ve had wins against North Macedonia, Armenia and Norway. They’ve had a win and a draw against Moldova and Poland and a draw and a loss against Albania. Germany is the stage offering for Czechia to prove itself and again show how good they are.

My Predictions: This is easy to predict but there are no guarantees. I think Portugal and Czechia will qualify with Turkey qualifying via the wildcard.

EURO 2024 EXTRAS FOCUS

The Logo

The logo for Germany 2024 is a unique design. It’s an image of the trophy in a background full of a multitude of colors. The colors are not just arranged for fun but mixed together to show the unity of nations. If you look close enough, you’ll see many flags or flag colors in the arrangement. Bottom left is Germany, the three up above can be either Italy or Hungary, France or the Netherlands in the three after that, Belgium in the three after that. You get the idea. There are even colors in the pattern resembling flags of nations that didn’t make it like Estonia, Armenia and Ireland.

The Official Ball

Once again, Adidas is the maker of the official football of Euro. It was unveiled in November 2023 and its name is Fussballliebe, meaning ‘love of football.’ It’s pattern-designed with back wing shapes and shapes of red, orange, blue and green. The many colors are there to show the qualified nations’ vibrancy to the tournament. Technology also plays a part in this official ball. This is the first UEFA to feature ‘Connected Ball Technology,’ where it contains internal electronic sensors, detecting movements and assisting referees in making decisions.

The Official Song

“Fire” – Meduza, OneRepublic and Leony: The song is a collaboration of an Italian electronica group, an American pop-rock band and a German pop singer. The song is an upbeat melody. The lyrics make hardly any reference to football. Instead, the lyrics focus on unity and triumph.

And there you have it. That’s my look at UEFA Euro Group F. That also makes it my last look at the UEFA groups. Tournament starts on Friday June 14th. Who will win? Will it be a team that’s won before? Or will it be a new team? It will all be decided in a month’s time.

WORKS CITED:

WIKIPEDIA: UEFA Euro 2024 – Symbols. Wikipedia.com. 2024. Wikimedia Foundation Inc. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UEFA_Euro_2024#Symbols>

UEFA Euro 2024: Group E Focus

Jon The Blogcentric2 Comments

Before I dive into reviewing the Group E teams, I’ll say it’s interesting when UEFA did its Euro draw, it did the draw before the three playoff berths had their teams decided. This is not the first major tournament to do so. Both the men’s World Cup of 2022 and the women’s World Cup of 2023 also had draws before playoff teams were decided. This must be a new thing to do draws before playoff teams are decided. One of the three playoff teams will be here in Group E.

So here is my look at Group E. Interesting note is that Ukraine shares its border with two other nations in this group:

Belgian Flag

-Belgium (3): For a long time, the world has been dazzled by the Red Devils. Starting back in 2014, Belgium went through their greatest era ever showing teamwork like never before and leading the nation to a third-place finish at the 2018 World Cup. Unfortunately, they choked in the Group Stage at the 2022 World Cup. Soon after, Eden Hazard, Toby Alderweireld and Dries Mertens retired from the national team and Roberto Martinez was sacked as coach.

Belgium’s success comes in waves. There’s a period when they’re one of the best and there’s a period where they slump. Their new coach Domenico Tedesco will assure the team isn’t heading into the slump phase. Despite a lot of retirees since Qatar 2022, veterans like Romelu Lukaku, Kevin DeBruyne, Axel Witsel and Jan Vertonghen will be in Germany. Since their World Cup disappointment, they have not yet lost a game. They’ve had wins to Estonia, Azerbaijan and Germany. They’ve had a win and a draw to both Sweden and Austria as well as draws to England and the Republic of Ireland. Euro 2024 is the opportunity for Belgium to redeem itself and possibly even chase their first-ever Euro win.

-Slovakia (48): It’s tempting to call the Sokoli an underdog team. Slovakia have only been to one World Cup back in 2010. This is their third consecutive Euro. Surely, they want to do better than their best-ever Round of 16 finish from back in 2016. It won’t be easy ever since their B status in the UEFA Nations League fell to a C.

The team is coached by Italian Francesco Calzona. The irony being Italy was the defending World Cup champions in 2010 but Slovakia ended all chances of Italy qualifying for the Round Of 16 with a 3-2 win! The team has stars like defender Peter Pekarik, and midfielders Juraj Kucka and Ondrej Duda. Play in the last year and a half has been off and on. They’ve had wins over Iceland, Wales and Bosnia-Hercegovina. They’ve had a win and a draw to Luxembourg, a draw to Norway and lost to Portugal. Germany is the opportunity for Slovakia to show Europe what they’re made of and possible deliver a surprise or two.

-Romania (46): It’s been a lot of difficulty for the Tricolorii to establish themselves in world football. Right after Communism was overthrown in Romania, their football came alive with three World Cup appearances in the 1990’s and even progressing past the Group Stage for the first time. Now it’s a struggle. Their last World Cup qualification was for 1998. Their last win of a Euro game was in 2000 despite participating in 2008 and 2016. Romani is hoping to get their reputation back after moving up to the B status in the Nations League.

Since 2022, the team has been coached by Edward Iordanescu. Their top players include midfielders Nicolae Stanciu, Razvan Marin and forward George Puscas. They’ve had a win and a draw against Belarus, Switzerland and Israel. They’ve also had draws to Bulgaria, Liechtenstein and Northern Ireland and a loss to Colombia. Germany is the stage to show the world what the current Romanian team is made of.

-Ukraine (22): A war can sometimes hurt a nation greatly, or a war can inspire a pride in a nation like no other. The Blue and Yellow is one team that knows how to play strong even as their country is going through a devastating war. The war caused a delay in playoff games for the qualification for the 2022 World Cup. It was postponed until June of that year, but Ukraine won over Scotland and then lost to Wales in the last match needed.

The Ukrainian team is managed by Serhiy Rebrov who played in Ukraine’s first and only appearance at the World Cup in 2006. Top players include defender Mykola Matviyenko and midfielders Taras Stepanenko and Andriy Yarmolenko and forward Roman Yaremchuk. In the last year and a half, Ukraine has delivered wins against Iceland, Bosnia-Hercegovina, Moldova and North Macedonia. They’ve drawn against Germany, had a draw and a loss against both Italy and England, and lost to Poland. You can bet Ukraine is ready to play hard and do better than their quarterfinal finish from the last Euro.

My Predictions: For this group’s qualifiers, I predict they will be Belgium and Ukraine. Slovakia will have enough points for third but not enough to get a wildcard qualification.

EURO 2024 MASCOT: ALBART

Euro 2024’s mascot is a teddy bear named “Albärt” whose name was voted on by the general public.

World Cup 1974 mascots Tik and Tak are tacky by today’s standards. World Cup 2006 mascot Goleo was confusing because a lion is more associated with The Netherlands or England instead of Germany. For Euro 2024, the mascot is an anthropomorphic teddy bear with a full football uniform named “Albärt.” He was introduced at the Germany vs. Colombia game in June 2023 but was unnamed at first. After his introduction, a public poll was released to choose his name. Choices included “Albärt”, “Bärnardo”, “Bärnheart” and “Herzi von Bär”. The winning name was revealed on July 5, 2023 with “Albärt” receiving 32% of the votes.

And there you go. That’s my look at Euro 2024 Group E and a look at the Euro 2024 mascot. That means only one group left to review! It is catching up fast!

WORK CITED:

WIKIPEDIA: UEFA Euro 2024 – Mascot. Wikipedia.com. 2024. Wikimedia Foundation Inc. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UEFA_Euro_2024#Symbols>

UEFA Euro 2024: Group D Focus

Jon The Blogcentric2 Comments

I’ll admit some of my talk outside the team talk in my last blog was pretty boring. For this blog, I will try something new. After my focus on the teams, I will give a focus on the ten venues that will be used to contest the games of this Euro. To save space and time, I will just talk about the venues with ‘fast facts.’

Anyways to start my blog off, here now is my look at the teams of Group D. Crazy thing is two teams in Group D played each other in the same qualifying group! Crazy that they meet again here! Who does these draws?:

– Poland (28): Poland is a team with a good reputation. The Orly or Biało-czerwon have finished third at two World Cups and weer Olympic champions in 1972. At Euro 2016, they made it to the quarterfinals for the first time. One of the problems with Poland is that the current team is big on talent but has a reputation of underperforming at big tournaments. They ended in the group stage at the last Euro and at the last two World Cups, they were out in group play in 2018 and out in the Round Of 16 in 2022.

Since World Cup 2022, the team has dropped Fernando Santos as coach and has gone back to a coach from their own nation: Michal Probierz. Robert Lewandowski, the most capped Polish player ever, is back, but Lewandowski can’t do it alone. The team has a lot of young talent 25 and under, but they also have some other established veterans like midfielders Kamil Grosicki and Piotr Zielinski and goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny. In play since the World Cup, they’ve had wins to Germany, Ukraine, Estonia, Turkey and Latvia. They’ve had a win and a loss to Albania and two cases of a draw and a loss to Moldova and Czechia. Here in Germany, it’s a chance to write another chapter for the Polish team.

-Netherlands (7): The Oranje are considered to be the best team in the world to never have won a World Cup. At the Euro, they won in 1988 and have finished third four times. Since 2020, they’ve been underperforming. Euro 2020 saw them lose their Round of 16 match to Czechia 2-0, and after winning all three of their group play games! The last World Cup saw them lose to eventual champions Argentina on penalty kicks in the quarterfinals. Even losses in their recent play are quite telling.

Since the 2022 World Cup, they’ve dropped Louis Van Gaal as coach and are now back to being headed by Ronald Koeman who has played in two World Cups and was a key part of Oranje’s win of Euro 1988! The team’s stars include defender Daley Blind, midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum and forward Memphis Depay. Since World Cup 2022, they’ve had wins against Scotland, Greece, Canada and Ireland. They’ve also had losses to France, Croatia, Germany and Italy. Anything can happen at Euro. Germany offers the stage for a possible second win.

-Austria (25): There was a time The Burschen were one of the top teams in the world. They made the semifinals of World Cup 1934. World Cup 1954 saw them finish third. They last qualified for a World Cup in 1998. Austria only competed in their first Euro in 2008 when they hosted. Since then, they’ve worked to come back as a stronger team. At the last Euro, they made it to the Round of 16 for the first time ever.

Austria is coached by Germany’s Ralf Rangnick who was hired in April 2022. The team members mostly play in clubs with Germany’s Bundesliga or Austria’s own Bundesliga. Star players include goalkeeper Heinz Lindner, midfielder Marcel Sabitzer and forward Marko Amautovic, who is Austria’s most capped player. Since World Cup 2022 ended, they’ve had wins to Turkey, Slovakia, Sweden, Estonia and Serbia. They’ve also had a draw to Switzerland and a draw and a loss to Belgium. Anything can happen this month in June and Austria has the opportunity to prove themselves again.

-France (2): One thing about the lats ten years has been about the rebounding of Les Bleus. Sure, they’ve won the Euro before in 1984 and 2000, but their excitement these last ten years have ben remarkable. Finalists in Euro 2016 which they hosted, World Cup winners in 2018 and World Cup finalists in 2022. Their play in the final of the 2022 World Cup should be admired since many members were recovering from food poisoning.

The team is coached by Didier Deschamps, a former player for the 1998 World Cup winning team, who has coached since Euro 2012. His coaching has a lot to do with France regaining their form as the best in the world. Star players include defender Benjamin Pavard, midfielder N’Golo Kante and forwards Antoine Griezmann, Olivier Giroud and Kylian Mbappe. Since the World Cup final, they’ve had wins over Ireland, Scotland and the Netherlands. They’ve also endured a win and a draw to Greece, a draw to Canada, and losses to Germany. It’s very possible France could win their third Euro here in 2024. It’s all about the team being all together.

My Predictions: That’s often it. Four great teams, but they will have to be ranked in the end. I think the qualifiers here will be France and The Netherlands with Poland being the wildcard qualifier.

VENUES OF EURO 2024

It should be no surprise that Germany should have the venues to host a twenty-four nation major football tournament on its own. A nation who Bundesliga could be a challenge to the Premier League can do it. Germany has ten venues. They range in age from a few years old to 101 years old! Of course some of the older venues have had renovations, even one completely demolished to rebuild, but they still stand strong. Four are in the North Rhine-Westphalia region (with very little travel time between them), one is in the former East Germany and one hosted an Olympic Games. For this Euro, all of them will have group play games and at least one knockout match as well. For most of them, their Euro capacity is smaller than their respective team’s game capacity because standing areas are not allowed in the Euro.

This focus here is a brief focus. My focus is only giving a brief telling of the venues and its main facts like which city, year first completed, capacity and tenant team. I’ll be starting with venues that will only go as far as the Round Of 16 progressing to venues playing additional knockout matches to the Grand Venue which is to hold the final for the cup:

Venues Up To Round Of 16

  • Cologne Stadium: City – Cologne (Koln)
    Year Opened: 1923
    Euro Capacity: 46,922
    Current Tenant: Viktoria Koln
  • Leipzig Stadium: City – Leipzig
    Year Opened: 2004
    Euro Capacity: 46,635
    Current Tenant: RB Leipzig
  • Frankfurt Arena: City – Frankfurt
    Year Opened: 1925
    Euro Capacity: 48,057
    Current Tenant: Eintracht Frankfurt
  • Arena AufSchalke: City – Gelsenkirchen
    Year Opened: 2001
    Euro Capacity: 49,471
    Current Tenant: FC Schalke 04

Venues For Further Matches

  • Dusseldorf Arena: City – Dusseldorf
    Year Opened: 2004
    Euro Capacity: 46,264
    Current Tenant: Fortuna Dusseldorf
  • Volksparkstadion: City – Hamburg
    Year Opened: 1953
    Euro Capacity: 50,215
    Current Tenant: Hamburger SV
  • Stuttgart Arena: City – Stuttgart
    Year Opened: 1933
    Euro Capacity: 50,998
    Current Tenant: V1B Stuttgart
  • Westfalenstadion: City – Dortmund
    Year Opened: 1974
    Euro Capacity: 61,524
    Current Tenant: Borussia Dortmund
  • Fussball Arena Munchen: City – Munich (Munchen)
    Year Opened: 2005
    Euro Capacity: 66,026
    Current Tenant: Bayern Munich

GRAND VENUE

  • Olympiastadion Berlin: City – Berlin
    Year Opened: 1936
    Capacity: 70,023
    Current Tenant: Hertha BSC

And there you go. This is my look at the teams of Group D as well as a look at the ten venues for Germany 2024. Only two more groups left to review.

WORK CITED:

WIKIPEDIA: UEFA Euro 2024. Wikipedia.com. 2024. Wikimedia Foundation Inc. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UEFA_Euro_2024>

UEFA Euro 2024: Group C Focus

Jon The Blogcentric2 Comments

Group C has an interesting allotment of teams. First, there are two Balkan teams. Second, there are two teams that met in the semifinals at the last Euro. I mentioned that Group B is commonly scene as the “group of death” because of having three of the best teams in the World, but this group looks like a group where anything can go. It’s possible any of the teams can be ranked anywhere in the end. So with our further ado, here’s a look at the teams from Group C:

-Slovenia (57): One thing about the Balkan nations is that they know how to pull surprises. Slovenia is one such team that knows how to surprise. From the tiny Balkan/Alpine nation of just slightly over 2 million comes a team that was last at the Euro in 2000 and has played in two World Cups. It’s even won against some big names like Italy and Portugal. Among the teams they’re playing here, they’ve never won against England or Denmark but have beat Serbia once.

The team, which is one of only two teams at Euro 2024 that doesn’t have an official nickname, has been coached by Matjaz Kek since 2018. Kek played with the very first Slovenian national team. The players play for various teams in Europe and North America. Stars are Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Jan Oblak, midfielder Jasmin Kurtic and striker Josip Ilicic. Over the past year and a half, they’ve had wins to Northern Ireland, San Marino, Portugal and Armenia. They’ve had a draw to Bulgaria, a win and a loss to Finland, and a draw and a loss to Denmark. Euro 2024 is a new chance for Slovenia to prove itself. They could be the minnows that break through!

-Denmark (21): If there’s one team that’s unpredictable, it’s Denmark: the lone Nordic team to qualify for Euro 2024. De Rød-Hvide were the surprise winner of 1992. They also delivered shockers in Euro 2020. The first was after teammate Christian Erikson suffered cardiac arrest. The team played on and ended up in the semifinals. Some say it was because of Eriksen that they had the spirit to go that far. The team would go on to return to the World Cup in 2022.

Denmark has been coached by Kasper Hjulmand since August 2020. Star players include goalkeeper Kaspar Schmeichel, midfielder Eriksen and defender Simon Kjaer. In the last year and a half, they’ve won against Finland, San Marino, Sweden and Norway. They drew to Switzerland and had a win and a draw to Slovenia. They’ve also had a win and a loss to both Kazakhstan and Northern Ireland. It’s possible Germany can be the place for Denmark to prove its team one of the best in Europe. A surprise win again like in 1992? Never say never in football!

-Serbia (33): It seems as though the Orlovi struggle to relive the glory days of Yugoslavia where they finished fourth twice at the World Cup and finished runner-up in two Euros. Ever since Yugoslavia split up in the 1990’s, it first started as Serbia-Montenegro which was a single Euro in 2000 and a single World Cup in 2006. On its own, Serbia has successfully qualified for three World Cups in four attempts but has only now qualified for its first Euro out of five tries.

The team has been coached by Dragan Stojkovic for over three years. The players play for various clubs in Europe and Arabia with most players playing for Greek teams. Their stars include midfielder Dusan Tadic and forward Aleksandar Mitrovic. The team has had wins to Lithuania, Cyprus, Sweden and the United States. They’ve had draws to Bulgaria and losses to Hungary, Austria and Belgium. It’s quite possible Serbia can make their Euro debut a bang and go further than most predict!

-England (4): People have a love-hate relationship with the Three Lions. They always bring the finest combined football talent in the world onto their team, but they often can’t play as a team. You figure a team as talented as England would have won a plethora of awards! One thing in the last eight years is England sure has changed as a team as there has been more team unity in play. The World Cup saw them in the semifinals in 2018 and quarterfinals in 2022. At the last Euro, England made it to their first-ever championship final. They scored five minutes into the game, but it was downhill from there as Italy equalized and it led to penalty kicks where England, of course, lost.

Despite their biting losses, the team has played with the most team unity it’s had in decades. You can thank coach Gareth Southgate for that ever since he became coach in 2016. All members play for Premier League teams except two, including captain Harry Kane who plays for Bayern Munich. England brings a team full of top players but it also brings in a lot of young talent too. Since World Cup 2022, they’ve had wins against Italy, Scotland, Australia and Bosnia. They’ve had a win and a draw against both Ukraine and North Macedonia. They only had two loss since the World Cup and they were against Brazil and Iceland. Euro 2024 could be another chance for England to clinch its first-ever win.

My Predictions: It never fails. At the end of play, all four teams will have to be ranked. I believe the qualifiers from this group will be England and Denmark. Serbia will be in third, but I don’t think they will have enough points to qualify.

And there you go. That’s another look at a Euro 2024 group. This time Group C. Hard to believe I’m halfway done! Well it’s in good time as Euro starts in a week!

UEFA Euro 2024: Group B Focus

Jon The Blogcentric2 Comments

It’s crazy how they arrange these groups. Sometimes you wonder how do they organize these draws? Especially if you look at Group B. Of all groups in this Euro, Group B is the one group that can best be called the “group of death.” Look at the roster of teams! Three of them are ranked in FIFA’s most recent Top 10! Not only that but three of those teams were also in Group C in Euro 2012! Coincidence? Hmmm.

For those curious about what happened in 2012, Euro 2012 was a case only the Top 2 qualified. Spain and Italy not only qualified, but they would go on to be the two finalists, which Spain won!

In the meantime, let’s see how the four teams of Group B stack up and which teams will be the qualifiers:

-Spain (8): La Furia Roja may often come across as the World Cup’s greatest underachievers but they do very little underachieving at the Euro. Just like Germany, Spain also has three Euro wins. They were also semi finalists in the previous Euro tournament. They continued their achievements last year as they won the UEFA Nations League. The two Nations League teams they played against last year, Spain will be facing again right here in group play! One thing to point out about Spain is they’ve had a habit of slacking off in the early stages of group play and they can’t afford to do it here!

Spain is currently managed by Luis de la Fuente who has managed the team since their Round Of 16 ouster at the 2022 World Cup. The team is a mix of young and old and most play in Spain’s La Liga. Since then, they’ve had impressive wins over Norway, Italy, and Georgia, drawn against Brazil and Croatia in the Nations League final (which they won on penalty kicks) , had a win and a loss to Scotland and lost to Colombia. Germany is another chance for Spain to excel and possibly win a record-setting fourth Euro trophy!

-Croatia (10): I don’t call Vatreni or The Blazers “the little nation that can” for nothing. A nation under 5 million people and they’ve finished in the Top 3 in three World Cups including third in the most recent World Cup of 2022! Euro play, however, tells a different story. Ever since their existence as their own nation, they’ve qualified for the Euro six out of seven times, they’ve progressed to the knockout round four times, but have never won a knockout match at the Euro. That’s something to take into account.

Croatia has been managed by Zlatko Dalic since 2017. The legendary Luka Modric is the team captain. He will be joined by greats like forward Ivan Perisic, midfielders Mateo Kovacic and Nikola Vlasic and defenders Domagoj Vida and Josko Gvardiol. Their play since the 2022 World Cup has included wins against Netherlands, Armenia, Portugal and Egypt, a win and a loss to Turkey and a draw and a loss to Wales. This Euro is a chance for Croatia to go further than they ever have at the tournament, and even possibly win. Don’t count them out.

-Italy (9): The Gli Azzurri have always been seen as a major powerhouse in football with their superb showings at the Euro and the World Cup. Now they’re an enigma. Ever since they won the World Cup in 2006, they followed it up with two straight outs in the Group Stage and they’ve failed to qualify for the last two World Cups. Their failure to qualify for the 2022 World Cup was especially shocking since they won the Euro 2020 eight months earlier and they looked like they were on their way to redeeming themselves.

Since then, the Italian system had to reform itself and they hired Napoli’s Luciano Spalletti as the national coach back in September 2023. The lineup for Italy’s team for the Euro consists of all but three players who play for Italy’s Serie A, eight members who were part of Italy’s Euro-winning team from three years ago and only one from the last World Cup team Italy sent back in 2014! The focus as of late has been getting new talent to rise. Since World Cup 2022 ended, they’ve acquired wins against the Netherlands, Ukraine, Ecuador, Bosnia-Hercegovina and even got revenge against North Macedonia who ended their World Cup 2022 chances! They’ve also had a draw to Turkey and losses to England and Spain. Euro 2024 offers a chance for Italy to redeem itself and regain its reputation as a football great.

-Albania (66): It’s tempting to dismiss the Kuqezinjtë as the weakest link of this group. You shouldn’t jump to conclusions. They’ve won a Euro qualifying game against Portugal in 2014, a friendly against France in 2015, a friendly against Wales in 2018, and both World Cup 2022 qualifying match against Hungary in 2021. Even in their first Euro back in 2016, they achieved a win over Romania. Although they’ve always lost against Italy and Spain and has never played Croatia, history has proven Albania can deliver a shocker. Even their play in the last year helped them move from a C status in UFEA’s Nations League to a B status.

Maybe their recent success is because since the very beginning of 2023, they’ve been coached by a Brazilian: Sylvinho. His coaching has led the team to five wins in eleven games and qualifying for only their second Euro. None of Albania’s team play in teams in their own country and most play in teams for Italy’s Serie A. They’ve achieved wins against Bulgaria, Azerbaijan and the Faroe Islands, a win and a draw to Czechia and Moldova, a win and a loss to Poland, and a loss to Sweden. Germany 2024 is an opportunity for Albania to deliver a shocker of a result and even qualify. Never rule Albania out!

My Predictions: The crazy thing about a group called “Group Of Death” is that eventually predictors will still have to rank first from fourth. It will be a close one which I feel will have the most draws. In the end, I will have to go with recent Nation’s League action and I feel Spain will top, Croatia will be second. Italy will be third but will have enough points and stats to qualify.

And there you go. That’s my look at the four teams of Euro 2024’s Group B. It may be seen by most as the “group of death,” but don’t rule out the other groups. They could have tight rivals too.

UEFA Euro 2024: Intro and Group A Focus

Jon The Blogcentric2 Comments

The 2024 UEFA European Football Championships, commonly referred to as Euro 2024, will be starting very soon! There will be a lot of differences from that of the previous Euro 2020. For starters, there will be no full-year delay because of a pandemic and there will be no regulated seating like it was in some stadiums. Secondly, it has returned to a single-nation hosting format. This year, Germany hosts and it will be held in ten different venues. All of the stadiums have been built long before but the Stuttgart Arena and Hamburg’s Volksparkstadion went through renovations or expansions in time for this tournament.

THE GROUPS OF EURO 2024

Qualifying for Euro 2024 was no easy feat as it would involve team’s play for almost a full year for some, starting in late-March 2023. Twenty of the teams would secure their berths by November of 2023 with twelve more nations needing to play in the playoffs in March of this year to secure the last three berths. Drawings of the groups were done through a system of UEFA”s Nations League rankings that don’t make too much sense. Russia was banned from the tournament because of their role in the Russo-Ukrainian War. Even the system of qualifying didn’t make too much sense. The top two of each of the ten groups would qualify; that made sense. Finishing third, however, didn’t guarantee qualifying for the repechage playoff round as Nations League points would supersede it in some cases. Some groups didn’t have any teams qualify for the playoff route, some teams that finished lower than third in their group would advance to the playoff round, and Group J had their 3rd, 4th and 5th place teams advance! The playoffs were the most straightforward as the twelve qualified teams were drawn into three groups of four and it was a knockout tournament with the last team standing in its group advancing and completing the last three berths.

GROUP A FOCUS

After all that, the twenty-four teams competing in Euro 2024 have been decided. Nineteen of the teams are returnees from Euro 2020, one team will be in its first Euro since 2000 and one team is making their Euro debut! Now to start with my look at each group’s teams and my prediction of who will most likely qualify form the groups. FIFA rankings are in brackets:

-Germany (16): They may be known as the DFB-Team or The Mannschaft, but Germany has one of the biggest legacies among European teams. It’s not just their World Cup success with four wins but at the Euro, they’ve won three times and qualified for an additional three finals! Nevertheless, it all feels like a distant memory as Germany have struggled these past six years. Disappointments include going out in the Group Stage at the 2018 World Cup, a lousy ranking in the Nations League and an ouster in the Round Of 16 at Euro 2020. This led them to drop longtime coach Joaquin Low and take on former Bayern Munich manager Hansi Flick. Troubles continued as Germany again was out in the Group Stage at World Cup 2022. After more lackluster results, Flick was dismissed in September 2023. To add further shock, it was announced this March the German team would switch their national kit supplier to Nike in 2027 from Adidas: a brand they’ve been with for seven decades.

Although Germany is going through tough times, this is not the lowest they’ve ranked on FIFA’s list. Their lowest ever is 22nd in March 2006, just three months before World Cup 2006 which Germany hosted. The team is now headed by former Bayern Munich manager Julian Nagelsmann. The only members of the 2014 World Cup winning team that are still there are goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, midfielder Toni Kroos and striker Thomas Muller. The rest of the team consists of a lot of young rising talent with other established members. 2023 was a bad year with losing six of their eleven friendlies. Ever since Nagelsmann was made head, they’ve had struggles with a 3-2 loss to Turkey and a 2-0 loss to Austria. They’ve also had some wins with 3-1 against the USA, 2-0 against France and 2-1 wins against both the Netherlands and Greece. This tournament will give Germany a chance to rebuild its reputation as a major world football force in the world’s eyes.

-Scotland (39): The Tartan Army is commonly seen as the hard luck team in major tournaments. Not only have they played in the most World Cups without advancing past the opening Group Stage, but they’ve also played the most Euros without ever advancing to the Group Stage: three in total! I remember one Scottish comedian saying they have the most creative ways in getting eliminated from major tournaments.

The team has been coached by Steve Clarke since 2019. His success in getting Scotland to Euro 2020, their first Euro in 24 years, helped keep him coach despite the team not qualifying for the 2022 World Cup. Most of the team’s players hail from either teams from the Premier League or the Scottish Premiership. They did an excellent job in their Euro qualifying play, winning all games except one to Spain. Play since has been troubling as they have drawn to Georgia, Finland and Norway and have lost to England, France, the Netherlands and Northern Ireland. Germany 2024 is another chance for Scotland to take its team to new heights and possibly their first-ever knockout round in a major tournament.

-Hungary (26): Sometimes it does seem like the days of the Magical Magyars are a thing of the past with being in two World Cup finals, winning three Olympic gold medals and finishing third at only the second Euro ever. As Hungary made the move from Communism to freedom in the late 80’s, it actually caused a decline in football as the fall of Communism caused financial problems for many Hungarian clubs including some of their bigger clubs declaring bankruptcy in the 90’s. The resurgence of Hungarian football started in the 2010’s with qualifying for the past three Euros starting in 2016.

The team has been coached by Italian Marco Rossi since 2018. The team has a wide variety of players that play for various leagues, but it has done a lot of promotion of its younger talent. In fact the team captain, midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai who plays for Liverpool, is only 23 years old. Since 2023 began, Hungary has had a great record, achieving wins against Turkey, Serbia (twice) and Lithuania, and its only loss coming from Ireland. Euro 2024 can be another opportunity to bring Hungary’s past magic back!

-Switzerland (19): Switzerland is often seen by many as a sleeping giant. La Nati have not had that much of a legacy but the team shows potential to achieve greatness at any time. They’ve qualified for the last five World Cup and have made it to the Round Of 16 in four of them. The first Euro where they qualified for the knockout round was in 2016 and in 2020, they made it to the quarterfinals.

Switzerland is coached by Yurat Makin, who became their coach in August 2021, shortly after Euro 2020. Veteran greats like Granit Xhaka and Xherdan Shaqiri will be returning, but the team will feature a mix of old and new talent. They were consistent in group play in Euro qualifying. They’ve managed wins against Israel, Belarus, Estonia and Ireland but they’ve also had losses to Romania and draws to Denmark, Austria and Kosovo. Germany could be the stage for the Swiss team to reach new heights.

My Predictions: And now is that hard part of the blog. Predicting the two or three teams that will qualify for the knockout round. I will say Germany and Hungary with Switzerland a wildcard.

And there you go! That’s my first blog for Euro 2024 where I do a group breakdown. More to come over the next two weeks.

My Predictions For The 2023 Academy Awards

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Once again it’s another year of seeing all the Best Pictures nominees before Oscar night! How do I do it? Actually how do I afford it? Anyways the Oscars are again to be held on the second Sunday of March. Jimmy Kimmel is back as the host. Its’ so refreshing to have a host back! Once again, I make my predictions for who I think will win. Here’s who I think will be the winners of the 2023 Academy Awards:

BEST PICTURE

Just when I thought Olly Gibbs and his tradition to do the image of the Oscar nominees ended last year, he does it again. Maybe he just likes doing it for fun! And of the love he gets for it!

Now about my blogging of Best Pictures reviews, a funny thing happened. When I started, I intended to divide the reviews into a blog of four and two blogs of three. Before I finished the first blog, I did a Word check for spelling, grammar and the word count. Each time I did a single movie review, I noticed each review was either close to a total of a thousand words or had already surpassed it. I published that four-review blog at first but as I was working on the second blog, I noticed the reviews for all three films were over a thousand words. I figured having blogs of three or more reviews would be too much to digest. Like seriously, would you read a blog that becomes over five-thousand words long? I didn’t think so. That’s why I did the single movie blogs after that! Glad I came to my senses!

Now the nitty gritty of the ten nominated pictures. Did you know if you only see the Best Picture nominees alone, you will have seen the films that make up a total of 71 nominations? That makes up almost 60% of the nominations this year! Four are comedies, four are depictions of people that existed or events that happened, most are releases from late in the year, two were the biggest hits of the summer, three are directed by women, and two were the biggest darlings of the 2023 Cannes Film Festival.

The Best Picture nominees have some interesting nomination statistics. All but one of the ten had their script nominated in the screenplay category while five of the films’ directors make up all the Best Director nominees. Eight of the films have acting nominations and 16 of the 20 nominated acting performances come from Best Picture contenders. The films make up all the Best Film Editing nominations. The nominated films own four of the five nominations for Cinematography, Costuming, Production Design and Original Score. The combined ten-set also own three of the five nominees in Original Song (with two Barbie songs nominated), Makeup and Hairstyling, and Production Design. The only category outside of Animated Feature, Documentary Feature or the short films categories where none of them got a nomination is in Visual Effects.

Without further ado, here are my opinions of the Oscar chances of the ten Best Picture nominees with links to my reviews in the title:

American Fiction –  In my review of the film, I declared it the best comedy of the year. It is a funny sad comedy. It lampoons the expectations of the white-dominated “liberal elite” on black literature or black arts. It taunts how most white people like to eat up certain common depictions of African-Americans, including negative ones. Monk and his plugging of the release of his pandering “gangsta” novel showcases it all well. It’s not an angry satire which one would expect from Spike Lee, but the comedy is sensible and you’ll laugh at the truthfulness. Despite how good it is, there are films with bigger buzz and bigger chances of winning the big award.

Anatomy Of A Fall – This is a courtroom drama story with a lot of intrigue. A suspicious fatal fall, a wife who’s a public figure and a bisexual, a husband who suffered from depression, a blind son who looks like he was given a sheltered life, a prosecutor who looks determined to win the case, a defense team who wants to make the facts clear, and a dog that could hold the key to the truth. All of which make for a story that will get one intrigued and all a great drama. I found the film worthy of a Best Picture win, but there are other films that have more of what it takes.

Barbie – This movie definitely had the biggest fanfare and the biggest advertising I’ve seen in a long time. As the movie made its way into theatres, it became beloved by critics and became the biggest box office hit of the summer! It even had enough endurance to make its way into the awards accolades. As you know, it got a good amount of Oscar nods but snubbed in the two most anticipated categories: Actress for Robbie and Director for Gerwig. I’m sure it will win two Oscars but its Best Picture chances faded fast.

The Holdovers – When was the last time a Christmas-themed film was nominated for Best Picture? Seems like eons ago. This is a charming story of three lonely people at a prep school spending Christmas together and it ended up being the best thing for all three. The film has its heartbreaking moments and its humorous moments. They mix well together and they give the other its own time. The film ends with the feeling of hope for all three. It’s one of the best comedies of the year but I see it having rough competition to win Best Picture.

Killers Of The Flower Moon –  Scorsese does it again! He takes a moment of historic infamy in the United States and makes an excellent depiction of the people and events. I don’t think it was worth being 3 1/2 hours long but it was a good story that keeps one intrigued and helped Scorsese nab his tenth Best Director nomination. Also despite Hollywood being known for its bad depictions of Native Americans, this film did an excellent respectful depiction of them. Although it looks like Best Pictures material, it’s missing a key nomination. This is the only one of the Best Picture nominees whose screenplay wasn’t nominated. I feel that will hurt its Best Picture chances.

Maestro – Biography films are usually loved by the Academy. It’s no wonder a film about Leonard Bernstein should appeal to the Academy. And for Bradley Cooper to direct, co-write and play Bernstein himself to boot! One thing this film succeeds in doing is it keeps from being the common biography film. It’s also about his wife Felicia, definitely about his music and it shows a hidden side to Bernstein most never new. This film is worthy of the Best Pictures win but there’s one other that has the right stuff.

Oppenheimer – You can describe J. Robert Oppenheimer however you see him. Brilliant genius? Imaginative? A pioneer? A hero? A killer? A communist? An unfaithful husband? An arrogant man? You be the judge. This film does more than show Oppenheimer and him leading the project to create the atomic bomb. It is three-dimensional in depicting the person. It does a great job of capturing his imagination. It also shows the aftermath of his work and how it haunts him for the rest of his life.

I make this film my Should Win and Will Win pick. Also I have to say if it wins, it will be refreshing to see a blockbuster back as the Best Pictures winner. To think the last time a film that grossed $100 million won Best Pictures is 2012’s Argo! Yeah, that long ago!

Past Lives – It’s very rare for a film about a slow, mostly quiet story can win people over. Often a story like that gets dismissed as “boring.” Also it’s not often for a story of something distinct with one’s culture can be embraced by different people. This film succeeds in getting people engaged with a quiet story of childhood lovers reuniting and the Korean element of In-Yun added in engaging to filmgoers. I admire it for being a story that gets people engaged. The problem for winning Best Picture is its only other nomination is for the screenplay. That eliminates its chances of winning Best Pictures right there.

Poor Things – There seems like every Oscar season, there’s at least one Best Pictures contenders that’s either odd or absurd or eccentric, but charming. This is the film for this year. Yorgos Lanthimos knows how to take the absurd and turn it into a charming story. Here he takes a story that appears like Dr. Frankenstein meets female empowerment. It’s a film that’s sci-fi, absurdist drama, romance and comedy rolled into one. Although it seems like Oppenheimer is a lock to win Best Pictures, this film and it’s late buzz looks to be the Most Likely Upstter. Who knows? Best Pictures surprise wins have happened before.

The Zone Of Interest – Another darling of Cannes 2023 starring Sandra Huller. Must be her lucky year. Of all the Best Pictures contenders, this is a film whose biggest storytelling assets aren’t the actors or the script. It’s about what’s happening around them. It’s what’s happening behind the walls. It’s a story that appears to have simplistic scenes but when you look back, those scenes tell a lot more. Also while this is not a Holocaust film that gives you what you want in the end, it does send a strong message at the end of the Nazi’s eventual fate. Great film and a deserving Best Pictures nominee, but I feel it’s missing some qualities to win Best Pictures, like standout acting performances.

BEST DIRECTOR

Should Win and Will Win: Christopher Nolan – Oppenheimer

We have a lot of super directors that are quite active. Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese and James Cameron come to mind. One director that should rank with them is British director Christopher Nolan. He’s had a wide array of films he directed to success. It started with 2001’s Memento, had his big Hollywood break with 2008’s The Dark Knight, taken further with 2011’s Inception and finally got his first Best Director nomination with 2017’s Dunkirk. I’m sure all of us can name at least one Nolan film we like. Finally he proves his mettle as Oppenheimer is the most renowned film of 2023. It’s won critics and audiences alike and has won the lion’s share of awards. Christopher Nolan’s time is finally now.

BEST ACTOR

Should Win and Will Win: Cillian Murphy – Oppenheimer

There’s a quote from Leonard Bernstein — another person who’s portrayal in a film earned the actor a Best Actor nomination — that went approximately “Art shouldn’t answer questions. Rather art should provoke questions.” I believe that’s what Cillian Murphy does here in Oppenheimer. Without a doubt, he gets into the character of J. Robert Oppenheimer, but his portrayal leaves you questioning how you should see J. Robert. Should you see him as a hero? A killer? An unfaithful man? An arrogant person? A backstabber? The movie is about that, but it is Cillian’s performance that helps make it.

BEST ACTRESS

Should Win: Lily Gladstone – Killers Of The Flower Moon
Will Win: Emma Stone – Poor Things

The buzz is all there. Lily Gladstone has won a ton of awards. Her performance of Mollie Burkhart who goes from loving wife to betrayed in the end had a lot to do with how great Killers Of The Flower Moon is. She even stole the show from Leonardo and made it her film. If she wins, she will become the first Native American actress to win an Oscar. Only thing is hot on her heels is Emma Stone in Poor Things. Emma’s performance of a woman with a baby’s brain who develops into a more empowered version of herself is also an excellent work. Emma has also clinched a few wins of her own like the Critics Choice and the Bafta. Something is telling me that despite Lily being highly favored, Emma will win.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Should Win and Will Win: Robert Downey Jr. – Oppenheimer

Very often, an actor or actress who’s famous for notable roles will get a lot of renown for playing a character completely different from what you expect. Robert Downey Jr. may be recognized by face but he will become unrecognizable through his acting as you watch. Just like Cillian Murphy will make you question how to see J. Robert Oppenheimer, Downey Jr. will also make you question how to regard Lewis Strauss. Should you see him as an enemy of Oppenheimer’s? Is he jealous? Does he feel betrayed? Or through it all, does he still hold an admiration for him? Downey Jr. succeeds in doing all that.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Should Win and Will Win: Da’Vine Joy Randolph – The Holdovers

Performances in comedies commonly get the short end of the stick come Oscar time. Da’Vine Joy Randolph’s performance as Mary Lamb is deserving of the win. It often seems unorthodox for a heartbreaking scene to be shown in a comedy, but we get it when Mary has that moment of heartbreak as she hurts over the loss of her son. It’s one of the most heartbreaking scenes of the year, but The Holdovers still manages to be a comedy. Even Mary seems like a role fit for a comedy as she learns to live again as she’s reunited with her sister. It’s her transformations from starting off living her daily life to going to one extreme of emotions to the polar opposite at the end as why she deserves to win.

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Should Win and Will Win: Cord Jefferson – American Fiction

One of the most interesting things to happen in this category is the screenplay for Barbie had mostly received its awards and nominations in the Original screenplay category. A script based on a doll doesn’t seem like an adaptation of any kind. Despite that and despite winning the Critics Choice award in the Original category, weeks before the nominations were to be announced, they announced they would make a running in the Adapted category. The Barbie script succeeded in getting nominated.

Despite that, it’s still the script of American Fiction from Cord Jefferson that has won most of the awards and deserves to win. I mean the lack of proper representation of African Americans in the arts world is enough to disappoint people and even outrage some. Something makes me think if Spike Lee were to do his own adaptation of Erasure, it would be an angry drama. But Jefferson turns it into a comedy and lampoons the whole system of how the mostly-white liberal scene treats an obviously-pandering novel before release. The more Monk panders, the more buzz and renown he gets. Jefferson succeeds in making a story of a serious topic look like the circus it can be.

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Should Win and Will Win: Justine Triet – Anatomy Of A Fall

If you’ve seen Anatomy Of A Fall. you too can get drawn into the story and never let go. It presents a fictional story you could see happening in real life and the big question of is the accused innocent or guilty? When you learn of the friction of the marriage, that will cause you to question even more. Meanwhile this is happening as the blind son doesn’t know what to think of his mother. Triet gives us a story that allows us to make our own judgement of the accused as well as through our judgement as the story goes, expose our own way of thinking and even possibly our prejudices. Even at the end, were still left with only our own judgement of Sandra as we reflect back. That’s why I feel she deserves to win.

ADDITIONAL CATEGORIES:

It’s usually in the major categories when I give my long-winded opinions. The only case I will give a long-winded opinion in the technical category section down below will be for the Animated Feature category. Only in very few categories where I feel I’m qualified to make such a judgement will you see me give a Should Win pick. So here are my picks for the technical winners:

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

This is the one technical Oscar category in which you’ll see me write a paragraph about since I’ve seen all three. For a look at my thoughts on all five, click here for my blog from yesterday. This year’s five contenders are a big mix. One is a Disney film or a Disney collaboration; it does seem like each year there need to be at least one Disney nominee. Two are foreign productions. One is from Netflix. Two are 2D animation and the three others with the latest 3D technology. Looking them over I give The Boy And The Heron my Should Win pick and Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse my Will Win pick. The awards race has been a tight race between the two but I think the Spider-Verse film has the edge.

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Should Win and Will Win: Hoyte van Hoytema – Oppenheimer

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

Should Win: Jacqueline Durran – Barbie
Will Win: Holly Waddington – Poor Things

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Will Win: 20 Days In Mariupol

BEST FILM EDITING

Should Win: Thelma Schoonmaker – Killers Of The Flower Moon
Will Win: Jennifer Lame – Oppenheimer

BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM

Will Win: The Zone Of Interest (United Kingdom)

BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING

Will Win: Kazu Hiro, Kay Georgiou and Lori McCoy-Bell – Maestro

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

Should Win and Will Win: Ludwig Goransson – Oppenheimer

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

Should Win: “I’m Just Ken” – Barbie
Will Win: “What Was I Made For” – Barbie

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

Will Win: James Price, Shona Heath and Zsuzsa Mihalek – Poor Things

BEST SOUND

Will Win: Oppenheimer

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Should Win and Will Win: The Creator

BEST AMINATED SHORT FILM

Click here for reviews and predictions in this category.

BEST LIVE-ACTION SHORT FILM

Click here for reviews and predictions in this category.

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT

Click here for reviews and predictions in this category.

JUST ONE MORE – MOST LIKELY OSCAR UPSETTERS

Once again with my predictions comes six possible upsets that I most think can happen tomorrow night. Remember that despite the big awards buzz and predictions and awards clout, nothing is completely guaranteed. Here are the six biggest surprises I anticipate, and they’re listed in category order:

  • Lily Gladstone for Best Actress for Killers Of The Flower Moon
  • Tony McNamara for Best Adapted Screenplay for Poor Things.
  • The Boy And The Heron for Best Animated Feature
  • Jacqueline Durran for Best Costuming for Barbie
  • Robbie Robertson for Best Original Score for Killers Of The Flower Moon
  • Guardians of The Galaxy, Vol. 3 for Best Visual Effects

And there you have it! Those are my predictions for the 96th Academy Awards. Hopefully the show will run as smoothly as it went last year and without incident! I trust Jimmy Kimmel will do a good job like he did last year.

Oscars 2023 Review: Best Animated Feature Nominees

Jon The Blogcentric1 Comment

This year makes it the first year I had the luck to see all five nominees for the Best Animated Feature. A lot of good films. Most are family-oriented but some have some adult appeal. Three are American made with one from Japan and one from Spain. Here are my reviews of the Best Animated Feature nominees:

The Boy And The Heron

Anime may or may not be to your liking. but Hayao Miyazaki makes anime films worth liking. If you’re familiar with Miyazaki, his film Spirited Away won the very second Oscar in this category. This film is his fourth film to be nominated in this category and his first in ten years when he went into retirement.

Here he ends his retirement to return with a story about a boy who lost his mother during World War II and doesn’t know how to deal with a new stepmother, an upcoming baby brother and a new school. He thinks he can fake a rock attack from a school bully to get out of his problem but a mystic heron who speaks to him has clues to how he can encounter his mother.

In many ways, this story is quite similar to Spirited Away. The path the boy Mahito takes is very similar to the labyrinth Chihiro in Spirited Away took. Both children begin the story as they face a difficult change in their life. Both children find a place that takes them to a supernatural world which they would find themselves imprisoned in and facing obstacles. Both would see imagery of beings that represent their parents or parent. In Mahito’s case, he’s led to an underground world led by a Heron and then to an image of who he thinks is his deceased moth, only to learn she’s made of water. It’s as Mahito learns he has to fight his way out of the society of parakeets that he’s able to come across his long lost mother, although she comes across as a different image.

Once again, Miyazaki succeeds in creating a world that is mystical, frightening and colorful. His films are known for capturing people’s imagination with mesmerizing imagery and dazzling colors. He’s one of few who know how to continue to innovate with 2D animation. His use of animal characters to represent the demons the child is trying to fight is present again here. With this film, it’s a human living inside a heron that is the one to guide Mahito with the ability to resolve with his new mother, fight his way out of the kingdom of parakeets and and meet his mother. The film shows Miyazaki’s magic is not lost. In fact it’s very active even after almost ten years of retirement. Miyazaki and Studio Ghjibli do it again!

This film has had a lot of awards buzz. For all the buzz in winning the Best Animated Feature Oscar, it’s seen by many as a rivalry between this film and Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse as the two most likely to win. This film has won the Golden Globe and the BAFTA. It also finished second at the Toronto Film Festival’s People’s Choice award, won many critics circle awards and was nominated for seven Annie Awards winning two. Although the Spider-Verse film, which I will review later, has more awards, this film’s big wins show it can upset.

The Boy And The Heron is one of the few animated films this year that can impress older viewers. It has what it takes to help the audience escape into a hugely imaginative world.

Elemental

In the 21st Century, it’s the team of Disney/Pixar who has delivered the most in animated films. Their films have won this category eleven times in seventeen previous nominations. They’ve done a lot to reshape the way animated films are done starting with 1995’s Toy Story. Their impact has been noticed by how other film companies do their films. So much so, Disney/Pixar is no longer alone at the top. Now they have rivalry from Walt Disney Studios whom have experienced a 3D renaissance with their films, DreamWorks Animation who pioneered Shrek, Sony Pictures Animation, Laika Studios and Netflix Animation.

I hate to complain to those that like this film, but it’s one Disney/Pixar film that isn’t all that innovative. We’ve seen their magic with toys in the Toy Story movies, insects in A Bug’s Life, monsters with Monsters Inc., fish in Finding Nemo, feelings in Inside Out and souls in Soul. Their past films have even been nominated for the Best Pictures Oscar. Here, I get the sense I’ve seen this before. It’s a case of the four natural elements of the earth trying to co-exist but those belonging to the fire element are most shunned and she falls in love with a water man. Something tells me I’ve seen better and more innovative from Pixar.

Despite this feeling like something common of expected from Pixar, it does keep Pixar’s reputation for quality and perfection in animation intact. Once again, we see Pixar deliver quality images without a glitch. Not even the appearance of the characters has an image of something out of place. On the topic of animation, Pixar again succeeds in taking the viewer to an incredible universe. Element City is a sight to behold and a world to mesmerize audiences, just like the worlds in their previous films have done. Also the story itself is another case of how Pixar can take a serious issue and turn it into a film enlightening for the whole family. Here, it’s  the theme of systemic racism and xenophobia. It’s an intense topic but this film succeeds in sending a positive message about overcoming prejudices.

It’s interesting with the awards clout this year. In almost every type of awards with the Best Animated Feature category, this film has not won but found itself a nominee or finishing second or third. The big shocker was at the Annie Awards. They earned six nominations at that awards but not Best Feature!

Elemental offers nothing really original or innovative for a Disney/Pixar film. It does, however, still keep alive Pixar’s reputation for delivering top notch animation, dazzling effects, and a good story. Pixar keeps on delivering!

Nimona

This is a unique story of how a defamed knight is rescued by a troubled shapeshifter girl who is just the friend he needs. This is one story that will catch you off guard as two unlikely people become the best of friends and what each other need to overcome their biggest obstacles. For Ballister, it’s to get his reputation, his freedom and his honor back. For Nimona, it’s the false image of her being seen as a monster: an image going back 1,000 years ago and bestowed by Gloreth. Both have social alienation in common. One is looked upon as a monster. The other is regarded with contempt for being a commoner trying to be a knight.

It’s also about a villain who will do whatever she can to control things and make things their way. She doesn’t want a commoner like Ballister as a knight while the queen is willing to break down that barrier. So she secretly gives Ballister the sword that will kill the queen. She also tries to keep the myth of Nimona being the black monster alive to all those in the town. Just as the truth is revealed, the Director won’t quit and will deliver one last seize of power.

Just like Elemental is great at creating Element City, Nimona does a great job in creating the kingdom. It’s a town that mixes in the tradition of knighthood with the technology of the modern world and the common imagery of future worlds. It’s also a place that will capture your imagination as you watch.

This is a story that’s great and entertaining. This is the third film from Big Sky Studios to be nominated in this category. This is also the third straight year an animated film shown on Netflix is a nominee in this category. Seems like Netflix has become a challenger for top animated films. Last year, they delivered the winner: Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio. Looks like Disney and DreamWorks have a future threat on their heels!

Nimona is an excellent enjoyable animated film. It offers a unique story that will have you laughing, dazzled and entertained.

Robot Dreams

Usually in this category, it’s common to have an independent nominee or two. This year, the independent nominee is the French/Spanish film Robot Dreams. It’s worth checking out if you are up for something different.

This is a charming two-dimensional story of a lonely dog in New York who’s lonely. He decides to buy a robot to be that friend. It works that summer as the two have a great time after great time. Then the robot is stuck in the beach and the beach doesn’t open until June 1st. During that whole time, the dog patiently waits while trying to make new friends. The robot still lies on the beach with colorful dreams and hopes of reuniting again. Then things take a turn for the shocking come spring. This leads to the happy ending you didn’t expect with the Earth, Wind and Fire song “September” reminding them both they’ll still be together one way or another.

This is not the first time an animated film without dialogue has been nominated in this category. This is one film that relies on facial expressions, body language, and the various images and sounds to tell its story. It does an entertaining job, especially in the various scenes it has and the switches from dreams to reality. The addition of music also adds a boost to the film.

This is a great creation from Spanish writer/director Pablo Berger. For this film, he hired French animation director Benoit Feroumont whose works include The Triplets Of Bellville and The Secret Of Kells. It’s a fun story that turns New York to look like Zootopia. The film is full of humor, a good mix of original music and past hits, of a few sad moments and even a couple of shockers. You might think you won’t like a story with no dialogue but it works from start to finish. Not a boring moment.

Robot Dreams is the independent threat in this category. It’s a fun story of friendship, the long wait, an unexpected change and a different kind of happy ending.

Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse

Five years after the first movie, the Spider-Verse is back! Once again, Miles Morales is the central Spider-Man. This time, there’s a Spider-woman in his life named Gwen Stacey who’s also a teenager like him. While the first Spider-Verse film was more comedic, this film was more dramatic. It’s not just the villains they have to fight, but they also rival each other. Animosity between the Spider-people start and disunity and even Gwen’s expulsion happened. Meanwhile Miles and Miguel become enemies.

This is not a story of a beginning, middle and an end. This is a beginning, middle and a cliffhanger obviously to set up for the third Spider-Verse movie. The film can get confusing as there are so many Spider-men and Spider-women and they don’t all meet. The film does its best to keep it all intact and keep us the viewer understanding the story

For me, the highlight of the film has to be the mix of various styles of animation. When I go see an animated film, a great animated film is not just about the story. It’s also about animation that dazzles the eyes. Writers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller learned some new animation styles after working in The Mitchell’s vs. The Machines. Lord and Miller along with the direction team made a smart move when they decided to have a different artist do each different universe. Six different animation styles were used in this film. They all make for a delight to watch as the story progresses over time.

The awards buzz has been quite something for this film. I mentioned during The Boy And The Heron that this is their biggest rival. For the Animated Feature category, Spider-verse has won the Critics Choice award, the Producers Guild Award and the Annie Award as well as the six other Annie categories it was nominated in. It has won numerous critics circle awards and their sound mixing and visual effects have won awards of their own competing against many live-action films. It has a good chance of winning the Oscar here but I know in this category, they’re not too friendly to sequels. And the first Spider-verse film won in 2018.

Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse keeps the excitement from the first Spider-Verse movie alive. It also has its own drama and a new batch of dazzling animation styles, and a cliffhanger that makes us hungry for the next Spider-Verse film!

And there you go. My look at the films nominated in the Best Animated Feature category. I saved my Should Win and Will Win picks for my blog of Oscar predictions tomorrow.