We’ve seen some brilliant football over the last few weeks – despite the best efforts of Giovanni Trapattoni and Roy Hodgson. It’s time to honour the best players at the tournament. Not on the Paddy Power Blog though. As Andres Iniesta is named UEFA’s player of Euro 2012, here’s a look at our Alternative Team of the Tournament featuring some of the more remarkable (both good and bad) performances from Poland and Ukraine.

Shay Given (Ireland)

If points were awarded for commitment to your country and going through hoops to play, then Shay Given would have been goalkeeper of the tournament. They’re not however and Shay had a bit of a nightmare. His build-up to Euro 2012 was dogged with comments like ‘no, I’m not injured. I’m going out of my way to this hugely expensive and highly skilled knee specialist purely for a check up.’ Shay insisted he was fit and Trapattoni bought it.

It took all of three minutes and a leaden-legged attempt to keep out Mario Mandzukic’s fairly tame header to prove that wasn’t the case. It didn’t get much better for him after that, with extensive ‘picking the ball out of the net’ duty against Spain and a disappointingly buttery-fingered performance in the dead rubber with Italy. It may not be the end of the road for the caps-loving Donegal man, but he will need to shake off his injury troubles if he is to get anywhere near his best.

Alvaro Arbeloa (Spain)

Arbeloa is one of the less spectacular pieces of the Spanish puzzle. Solid and reliable with a sensible haircut, he’s a safe pair of hands defensively. He doesn’t offer the same attacking threat as Jordi Alba, but he does have other strengths – namely getting kicked a lot. He was the most fouled player at Euro 2012 with 20 fouls suffered, but don’t feel too sorry for him as he also did some kicking himself, racking up 16 fouls committed.

John Terry (England)

For a man who moves with the speed of an arthritic snail, John Terry did pretty well for himself – at least in terms of fulsome and possibly insincere praise. He got burned for pace a few times – most notably against Zlatan Ibrahimovic versus Sweden and Marko Devic for that Ukrainian ‘goal’ – but his lack of regard for his own personal safety was commendable. His chasing of the lost cause that was the Ukraine goal showed the relentless willingness to work hard that makes him such a threat when introduced to team-mates’ wives.

Carles Puyol (Spain)

Yes he was injured and didn’t play at the tournament, but his sitting in the stands, silently judging the Pique/Ramos axis was probably the greatest motivation the two centre-backs had not to screw things up. No-one wants to be the subject of all that ‘we would have won it if he was there’ garbage and in a bizarre and possibly incorrect way, he helped just by looking like Sideshow Bob on the sidelines.

Fábio Coentrão (Portugal)

He looks like Alf and he said if he wasn’t a footballer, he’d probably be a fisherman. What’s not to like? And he can play a bit. On the rare occasion when Cristiano Ronaldo passed the ball to a team-mate, Coentrao showed what he could do, making some surging runs down the left flank and creating great chances for Hugo Almeida to waste. Captain Birdseye’s loss is Portugal’s gain.

Arjen Robben (Netherlands)

For his sheer ability to ignore a simple pass to a better placed team-mate in favour of an outlandish shot from an improbable angle, Arjen Robben deserves immense credit. The stats say he registered nine shots off target and three on target during the Netherlands’ ill-fated campaign, but no stats can truly do justice to the number of promising attacks he ruined by trying to do it all himself. Plus he had the balls to throw a hissy-fit when substituted even though everyone could see he was playing crap. World class selfishness.

Gianlugi Buffon (Italy)

Buffon (above) won plaudits for some great saves and enthusiastic off-key shouting of the national anthem, but his distribution was also world-class. Or at least better than half of England’s midfield. With 199 passes attempt at a completion rate of 83%, Gigi is safely nestled inside the Top 15% of passers at the tournament. That translates into making more passes and doing it more accurately than, among others, Ashley Young (138 and 54%) and James Milner (136 and 54%). He slots nicely into our midfield.

Christian Poulsen (Denmark)

Step aside Pirlo, Xavi and Keith Andrews, there’s a new midfield maestro in town. Many people didn’t think Roy Hodgson didn’t get a fair crack of the whip at Liverpool. Those people didn’t watch Christian Poulsen a whole lot. The Dane was such a flop at Anfield, he made Paul Konchesky look like a relative roaring success. The midfielder made a cameo for the Danes against Germany. It was only 12 minutes, but what a 12 minutes as Poulsen played seven of the most accurate and unremarkable passes you’re ever likely to witness on a football pitch. It gave him one of only four 100% pass completion rates at Euro 2012.

Theo Walcott (England)

It’s not his fault, but when England were struggling, his was the name to the forefront of the clamour as if he was the solution to all the world’s problems. To his credit, he was the catalyst for England’s fightback against Sweden. But then he couldn’t have been more anonymous against Ukraine and Italy if he opened a fake twitter account and started trolling celebrities. I don’t want to dump on him so much as the unwarranted expectation that came with him because he’s decent player. What he delivered was pretty much what he always delivers – running fast and not really being able to control the ball. Sometimes it comes off, most of the time it doesn’t. Let’s not pretend he’s the Stanmore Solskjaer.

Aleksandr Kerzhakov (Russia)

Remember when Russia looked rampant and became serious contenders for Euro 2012? It lasted for about a game and a half at the start of the tournament. After ripping the Czech Republic to shreds, the best thing about the rest of their campaign was the massive banner the fans revealed against Poland as Dick Advocaat’s men crashed out at the group stage. There were a lot of players to be scape-goated, but Kerzhakov was more culpable than most. Impressively, the Russian striker managed 12 shots on goal on average every 15 mins. Less impressively, 11 of them were off target and he didn’t score. God loves a tryer. The Russian sporting public less so.

Juan Mata (Spain)

Three minutes of match time and one goal. And a solid effort at a beard. You can’t really argue with that. When Spain gathered for their pre-tournament training camp, the squad’s medical team conducted fitness assessments on everyone. The results showed that Mata was as exhausted as it’s possible to be without actually being injured. Or to use the language of the medical world, he was ‘totally banjaxed’. Thanks to Spain’s depth of talent, he wasn’t required, but his briefest of cameos brought the curtain down on a fantastic season for Mata and reminded everyone else that the Furia Roja may be hockeying everyone else for many years to come.

After Ireland’s exit from Group C everyone had an opinion on how bad the results were. But Robbie Fowler argues that after Spain’s Euro 2012 triumph the results have to be seen in context .

Ireland should take some comfort from Spain’s 4-0 win over Italy in the Euro 2012 final last night.

I remember when a 10-man Australian side got battered 4-0 by Germany in their opening game of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa and the media went to town Down Under.

They bounced back from that and drew 1-1 with Ghana in the next game and beat Serbia 2-1 to restore some national pride. It worked out okay for the Aussies and they’ll regroup and focus on the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

And I’m sure Ireland are probably in the same boat.

Everybody felt the results against Spain (lost 4-0) and Italy (lost 2-0) were terrible at the time but they both contested the final so those games have to be put in perspective.

Obviously, Ireland didn’t do themselves justice against these two top sides and they have every right to feel disappointed with their performances.

But Spain’s win over Italy in the Euro 2012 final showed what a difficult task they faced at the time.

England too need to look at themselves in a different light. Even though it ended in a draw and they lost on penalties they were outclassed against the Italians.

There were times when Italy dominated the game but just couldn’t score. Both Ireland and England can take a little bit of comfort – not that they will want to –that the results reflected where the sides were at that time in their development.

And it is now time to look forward to preparing for the World Cup qualifiers that start in September on the road to Brazil in 2014.

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• Premier League Outright
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What we witnessed in the final of Euro 2012 was something special. Whatever your allegiance, wherever your money lay there can be no other reasonable, sane, mature option but to applaud and appreciate the making of history.

That this Spain team is great there can be no question. Vicente Del Bosque may well have altered the way that football will be played in the future. At the very least he and the unbelievably talented players he has at his disposal have shown the world that you don’t need need to be six-foot plus and super-athletic to play football and win. Hell, you don’t even need to play with a striker.

Fernando Torres (28) may have nabbed a late goal and the Golden Boot but his efforts were largely superfluous as the passing brilliance of Xavi (32), Andres Iniesta (28) and Cesc Fabregas (25), to name a few, was what did for the Italians. The Azzuri were unlucky to lose Thiago Motta to injury minutes after bringing him on as their third substitute but their stars, Mario Balotelli (21) and Andrea Pirlo (33), had already been outshone by then. 4-0 was tough but there is no question the better team won.

Regardless of revolutionary implications where does this team stand amongst the great international teams of years gone by?

Are they better than the Brazil of Pelé at his peak, the team which won the 1970 World Cup playing football which still inspires to this day?

The recent French team, led by the mercurial Zinedine Zidane, winning the World Cup in 1998 and the European Championship in 2000?

Or even, if you’re feeling particularly patriotic, England’s World Cup winning side of 1966?

If there’s a team we haven’t included then let us know about it in the comments section below, feel free to let explain exactly why in a hilarious rant. There may be some kind of reward. Pants-like perhaps.

Have we just witnessed the greatest international football team that’s has ever played the game of football? If not Spain, then who?

• World Cup 2014 Betting
• Euro 2016 Betting

We’re not saying tonight’s game is going to be boring but just in case it gets bogged down in a mire of midfield maestro-ism, we’ve whipped together another version of our patented Paddy Power Big Game Bingo.

Print it out, get your pen ready and mark the clichés and inevitable pundit-isms as they occur from the start of pre-match build-up, right up to Gary Lineker’s cheesey sign-off.

Hopefully we’ll all be too busy watching the game but we liked to be prepared for worst. Particularly when Italy are playing in a major football final. Put a little money in the pot, a few beers in the fridge and let’s get going. Dare I bingoing? Sorry.

There were two schools of thought about Italy heading into Euro 2012. The first was that they were a bunch of middling players from a crippled league who would be in disarray as a result of controversy. The second was they were a bunch of middling players from a crippled league who flourish as a result of controversy a la their World Cup wins of 1982 and 2006. Whatever your view, the ‘middling players’ bit was fairly constant, but the Azzurri have overcome the gloomy predictions to book a Sunday night date in Kiev.

They only way their players would still be in eastern Europe come the first of July would be if they booked a holiday along Croatia’s Dalmatian coast. Cesare Prandelli’s men were given little chance of progress. Being drawn with the European and World Champions from Spain, the perennial dark horses from Croatia and a supposedly ‘hard to beat’ Ireland, it looked like tough group to qualify from. It’s funny how the widely held ‘Ireland being hard to beat’ notion has suddenly become utterly ridiculous. Like we now laugh about people for ever believing the world was flat. Here’s how the odds have gone during Italy’s fascinating campaign.

Italy’s odds throughout Euro 2012

June 3: News of investigations and arrests of members of the Italy camp breaks just days before they’re due to play their first game. As they’re already considerable outsiders to win Euro 2012, it doesn’t change their price much as they’re rated 16/1 outsiders to win it.

June 10: The opening game against Spain doesn’t result in the pummelling the naysayers were expecting. In fact, the Azzurri do very well with Di Natale puts Italy in the lead, but Spain eventually get going and equalise through Fabregas. Italy might have claimed a shock victory were it not for the hemming and hawings of Mario Balotelli bearing down on goal. It’s impressive, but not amazingly so and the Italians get a slight trim to 12/1 to win the tournament.

June 14: It’s the game with Croatia and despite dominating the first half and taking the lead with a splendid Andrea Pirlo free-kick, they only come away with a draw. The bad news is they’re moved out to 14/1, but the good news is a win over Ireland will get them a place in the quarters.

June 18: The game against Ireland rolls around and even though the Irish are out and pretty hopeless to begin with, there seems to be a bit of nerves in the Italian camp about progress. In a twist of irony, Italy seemed worried Croatia and Spain might ‘fix it’ to get the 2-2 draw they both need to qualify from Group C. There’s also some fear that Giovanni Trapattoni being able to execute a Jedi mind trick over his compatriots. It’s all unfounded however as Cassano and Balotelli goals give them the comfortable victory. Some timely smothering of Balotelli prevents some supposed dissent aimed at manager, Prandelli, helping team morale. As it’s only a win over Ireland, it doesn’t set the world alight, but the quarter-final against England is very winnable and they’re snipped to 10/1.

June 24: It’s the first game of the tournament in which Italy don’t score, but funnily enough, the England match is around the time everyone starts to take Italy seriously. It takes some crappy English penalties for them to book their place in the semi-finals, but they were the better team throughout and should have had the game safely tucked in bed long before the final whistle. Wayne Rooney barely gets a kick and with England giving Pirlo the freedom of the pitch, Italy look threatening throughout. It’s an impressive looking Germany in the last four, so hopes aren’t especially high and they’re still 6/1 to go all the way.

June 28: Early on against Germany, it looks like it’s the end of the road for Italy. The Germans look dominant and with Gigi Buffon doing a passable David James impression, it’s looking grim for Prandelli’s men. It all changes as Balotelli goes ballistic – this time in a footballing sense rather than mentally. He heads Italy into the lead following an excellent cross from Cassano and thumps the ball past Neuer after getting on to a through ball from Montolivo to put his team 2-0 up. Germany spend the next 45-odd minutes thumping the ball towards Mirsoslav Klose’ s head, to little avail. It’s Italy who reach the decider and combined with Spain’s fluky win over Portugal, they’ve got a real chance of winning it at 6/4

• Euro 2012 Final Betting

Can Spain become the first team to win three major international tournaments in-a-row? Can Italy overcome the odds and yet another match-fixing scandal to stop them?

I’ll be here all evening to bring you the latest developments mixed in with some smart-arse remarks, the odd funny image and price updates throughout the game. Join in by posting your comments below or if you have a teenager near-by to help you out then you can also use our @PaddyPowerBlog Twitter account.

Final Score: Spain 4 – 0 Italy

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It’s hard not to feel a little sorry for Italy, particularly the Motta injury, but there can be no doubt that Spain deserved to win this game and this tournament. The best team in Europe and arguably the World. They stepped it up big style in the final which is what the greatest teams do.

Remember this night peeps, you won’t see too many teams like this in your lifetime.

Final-Whistle

21.36: Sergi Ramos almost adds a fifth with a cheeky back-heel.

21.32: Unselfish play from Torres who could have taken that on but he squares to the newly introduced Mata to slot home. Blow the whistle ref, these Italian players don’t deserve to concede another goal.

Goal!!! Mata adds a fourth.

21.31: We can only presume that Spain were having a siesta through the first five games of this tournament. They’ve shown their tonight

21.29: Fernando Torres makes his mark on this final with agoal. It’s an unneeded mark but a mark nonetheless.

Goal!!! Torres comes on to steal some glory with a third goal.

21.24: Pedro tries one from distance. It’s a long way off but who cares? Not the Spanish fans anyway.

21.22: Alba misses a sitter after some more great passing play from Spain. He was off-side anyway but still. This could get messy for the beaten looking Italians.

21.17: It’s all Spain now as they’re camped on the edge of the Italian box. Del Bosque is feeling so confident he’s bringing Torres on. He replaces the excellent Fabregas.

21.15: There’s more of a hint of the inevitable here as the Spanish fans start up a rendition of something celbratory. I should have paid more attention in Spanish class.

21.10: Italy to simply score a goal before the final whistle is 11/4….worth a bet?

21.07: We’ve seen some football miracles over the years but an Italian comeback from this position would be right up there.

21.04: Uh-oh…Thiago Motta goes down clutching his hamstring. He won’t be able to continue if that is his hamstring and Italy will have to fight on with ten men.

21.02: Pedro is on for goalscorer David Silva. Thiago Motta was also brought on for Montolivo. Italy have used all three substitutions.

21.01: Ramos fouls Di Natale. Pirlo puts in another dangerous free-kick but Cassilas claws it away. Balotelli’s follow up shot is comfortably over.

20.59: Pirlo pits a threatening ball over the top but either the pass is too firm or Di Natale is too slow. Either way it came to nothing.

20.57: Iniesta puts Fabregas through but the former Arsenal man can’t take it in his stride. He would have been one-on-one with Buffon there.

20.54: Spain look like they could really run away with this game. Italy need to score the next goal. They almost do it too as Di Natale is put through by Montolivo. Cassilas gets out quickly but Di Natale should have done better.

20.52: Iniesta puts in a well worked ball in to the box, Ramos gets a head on it and it strike Bonucci’s hand. No intention but it stopped a goal bound strike. Seen them given

20.51: Fabregas goes jinking in the Italian box and almost walks it in to the Italian net. The stuff of champions this.

20.49: Di Natale, the only player to score against Spain in this tournament, is on for the disappointing Cassano. He gets a chance early on but heads over from 12 yards.

Kick-Off

He may look like Karl Pilkington, who we all know has a head like a f***ing orange, but that Iniesta ain’t half bad.

To Score 3rd Goal: Spain 11/10, Italy 9/5, No goals 5/2

20.37: It appears they’ve saved their best performance for the final as Spain look on course to retain the European Championship. Italy are starting to struggle to create and meaningful chances as Pirlo has been relatively anonymous.

Half-Time

20.32: Silva has a shot from 30 yards, it’s well hit but right in to Buffon’s arms.

20.30: Montolivo has a strike from the edge of the Spanish box but yet again it’s down the throat of Casillas and he punches it clear.

20.29: Coming from left back Jordi Alba runs the length of the pitch, Xavi plays a sublime ball through the Italian defence and he slots the ball past Buffon. Class from start to finish.

Goal!!! Alba puts Spain 2-0 up.

20.27: A Mexican wave makes it way around the stadium in Kiev. It’s a better game than that. Are the Spanish fans getting a little spoiled?

20.25: Balotelli gets the ball up front, works some space for a shot but blasts it over.

20.20: Italy’s defending is a little too last-ditch for Prandelli’s liking. They’re struggling to maintain possession when they get it back too.

20.19: Cassano gets a firm strike off from outside the box and Cassilas fists it away.

20.18: And now Pirlo over-hits a pass!!

20.15: Xavi is caught in possession!!! If that isn’t news enough, Di Rossi goes on to play in Cassano and the Italian gets a shot off from a dangerous position. Balotelli was better placed on the edge of the box.

In honour of Pique’s yellow card.

20.12: Pique smashes in to Cassano and picks the first yellow card of the game.

20.11: Italy are enjoying more possession but without posing much of a threat. Spain win the ball an come close to creating an opening with just two players.

20.07: Spain on the charge again and Pirlo has to make a last ditch challenge. Chiellini is going off injured with the attack minded Balzaretti coming on.

20.05: Another dangerous corner is cleared behind by Ramos. Italy are looking for an immediate reply. Casillas punches this one clear.

20.03: Balotelli dummies it, no one bites and Pirlo hits it off the wall and it goes behind for a corner. A dangerous looking corner goes behind for a kick-out.

20.02: Italy go right down the other end and Balotelli wins a free-kick on the edge of the Spanish box….danger…

Goal!!! Xavi, plays in Fabregas who outpaces Chiellini to get a cross in which David Silva nods in. Excellent stuff.

19.58: Pirlo lobs one over the Spanish defence for Balotelli to run on to. Ramos gets there first to clear the danger.

19.56: Spain have started well, controlling the ball. This Italian defence is being tested already. Xavi takes a pass from Fabregas and blazes over from the edge of the box. Should have tested Buffon from there.

19.54: Some good play leads to a corner for Spain. Ramos gets his head on it but can’t keep it down.

19.52: Ramos shoots from a free-kick. It’s a good 30 yards out and ends up a good 30 yards over. Okay maybe that’s an exaggeration but he didn’t score.

19.50: Balotelli puts in a late challenge which flattens Segio Ramos. It’s hard not to laugh a little. Ramos will get his own back no doubt.

19.49: Pirlo has the first ‘shot’ of the game. At least it didn’t go out for a throw.

Kick-off

19.44: Good effort by the Spanish fans to sing along with a national anthem that doesn’t have any words.

19.43: If only Buffon could keep a tune as well as he keeps goal.

19.41: Will Pirlo work some magic tonight? He’s the 7/2 favourite to be the UEFA man of the match. I have to say I’ve never been the biggest fan of the Juventus midfielder but he has been world class these last three weeks. He has looked a little sharper than his Spanish counterparts too.

19.36: As Hansen rolls out a Forrest Gump quote I’m going to see what they’re complaining about over on RTE. Because you know they’re complaining about something.

19.34: “An enigma wrapped in a riddle surrounded by mystery”? They must be smoking something at the BBC too as they go waahaaay over the top with their Mario montage and voice-over. Two goals in the semi-final having done relatively up to then? He needs to do more than that to warrant the use of Churchill quotes.

19.29: The closing ceremony of Euro 2012 appears to consist of hundreds of mini Telly Tubbys and a giant swimming pool. Drugs may not be legalised in the Ukraine but they’re clearly readily available.

19.27: I’m not so convinced Italy play “sexy football” as Mr Vialli is claiming. They’re certainly a lot better under Prandelli but sexy?

19.22: If you happen to be playing our bingo game (below) you’ll already have marked off a couple of squares. Cliché-tastic.

19.20: as we see a montage of some excellent Italian defending throughout the tournament, the 0-0 at 11/2 is starting to look good. Dear lord let us have some goals.

Balotelli is 6/1 to score first and 12/1 to be sent off.

19.13: Speaking of crazy striker experiments, will Balotelli shine tonight?

19.10: Del Bosque has abandoned his crazy striker experiment with Cesc Fabregas coming in for the pretty woeful Alvaro Negredo. Abate coming in for Balzaretti is Italy’s only change from their semi-final line-up.

Teams

Italy:
Buffon, Chiellini, Abate, Barzagli, Bonucci, Marchisio, De Rossi, Montolivo, Pirlo, Balotelli, Cassano

Spain:
Casillas, Pique, Ramos, Arbeloa, Alba, Iniesta, Xavi, Alonso, Busquets, Silva, Fabregas

Wayward Italian striker Mario Balotelli has silenced his critics with some memorable displays ahead of tonight’s Euro 2012 showdown with Spain and Robbie Fowler is impressed.

I’ve not been Mario Balotelli’s biggest fan but he’s winning me over with his performances heading into tonight’s final at Euro 2012.

If Italy are to beat the reigning champions Spain tonight then Balotelli is the one who will do it for them.

To be fair to the Manchester City striker he looks on song at the minute and it looks like the Balotelli that everyone raves about will turn up. Two great goals and a great performance against Germany in the semi-finals will have given him all the confidence he needs ahead of tonight’s test.

Whatever Italian manager Cesare Prandelli has said to him is obviously working – he looks on top of his game and focused.

He’s obviously got a little bit of devilment and a bit of a wayward streak in him but all great players have that characteristic.

He hasn’t always been the most reliable on the pitch – or off it – but now he’s working hard for the team, getting hold of the ball and scoring goals and he deserves a lot of credit.

He’s really won me over.

I don’t think anyone would have predicted a Spain v Italy final after the side’s drew 1-1 in their opening Group C encounter.

I think you’d struggle to find someone – outside of Italy anyway – who backed the Azzurri to win Euro 2012 after the problems they had in the build-up.

Spain really haven’t had a settled side under manager Vincente del Bosque but they’ve got the results and now they’re in the final. That’s the sign of a really good side.

The Spanish manager will probably start Cesc Fabregas up front in that ‘invisible No 9′ role and he could be good value to score first. I’d like Spain to win it and make history by becoming the first team to win three major championships in a row.

There won’t be too many goals though. For me, it’s a 1-0 win for Spain with Fabregas to get on the scoresheet.

• Italy v Spain match betting
• More Robbie Fowler columns

WATER CARRIER: Derided by Eric Cantona Deschamps may be next French manager (Inpho)

By Sean Goff  | Sports reporter

Didier Deschamps heads the market to replace Laurent Blanc as French manager in Paddy Power’s online betting after he quit his post on Saturday.

UEFA President Michel Platini had publicly backed the Marseilles manager to take over should Blanc decide to walk away.

The former French captain won acclaim for his handling of national team’s 2010 World Cup mutiny in South Africa when he took over from Raymond Domenech.

But France who were seen as one of Euro 2012′s dark horses stuttered through Group D before being dismissed 2-0 by Spain in the quarter finals.

Speculation was rife that Tottenham were interested in Blanc as Harry Redknapp’s replacement at Tottenham but Spurs are now likely to opt for former Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas instead.

Blanc is the second high-profile national coach to depart after disappointment at Euro 2012. Dutch manager Bert van Marwijk quit last Wednesday after World Cup finalists Holland failed to win a game at Euro 2012.

• Next French manager betting
• Next Dutch manager betting
• Euro 2012 final betting
• Premier League betting

Paddy Power punters have been lapping up the Money-Back Specials over Euro 2012, many of which have left Paddy out of pocket.

Cristiano Ronaldo, Mario Gomez and Wayne Rooney are just a few of the names that have cost Paddy over the last few weeks and now Mario Balotelli can join that elusive club.

If Balotelli scores the last goal, Paddy Power will refund all losing first goalscorer, last goalscorer, correct score & scorecast singles on the match.

Mario Balotelli is well loved for his antics off the pitch but when he’s on form on the pitch he’s almost unplayable.

The 21-year-old bagged a brace against Germany in the semi-final and will be looking for a goal in the final to ensure he is crowned the tournaments top scorer.

Paddy has been on cold beans during the tournament after several whopping Money-Back payouts and he’ll be hoping ‘Super Mario’ doesn’t power up on Sunday.

• Spain v Italy betting
• Euro 2012 outright
• Euro 2012 top goalscorer

There were a lot words being thrown around as England lost to Italy on penalties. ‘Heart-breaking’ and ‘agony’ were a couple, but I wasn’t overly surprised. It was on the cards. I had my doubts about England getting out of the group and I was thankfully proven wrong about that, but not by much.

Everyone always looks to make sweeping changes after a premature exit from a tournament, but I wouldn’t be in a hurry to ship anyone out. Despite his advancing years, Steven Gerrard was England’s best player by far so you’d definitely want him around for the next World Cup. There were plenty of people waiting to bash John Terry if he had a bad tournament, but he also played really well. He got found out for pace a couple of times, but that’s always been the way with him. He was still making tackles, throwing himself in the way to block shots and he was really steady, so I wouldn’t be ushering him out of the squad either.

I’m struggling to think of too many young players banging on the door to get into the squad. I’ve heard great things about Jack Wilshere, but to be honest, I was over in Australia when he started to break through and I haven’t seen much of him. By all accounts, he’s an excellent player so he’ll presumably come into the squad when he’s fit.

The manager has a lot to think about when it comes to his starting XI, but it can’t see the make-up of the squad changing too much. Theo Walcott, Danny Welbeck and Andy Carroll are young, so they’ll be around for the next few years. Ashley Cole is in his thirties now, but his fitness levels are high and he’ll be around for a few years to come.

Leighton Baines is pushing him hard, but Ashley Cole is a great player so you wouldn’t want to get rid of him just yet. Rio Ferdinand won’t be involved in future squads, but you’ve got Gary Cahill to come back and he’s got a lot to offer. I’d expect Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to feature more and Jordan Henderson will get more game time, but they’re already in the squad, so it’s not exactly wholesale changes.

The one area I would look at before the World Cup qualifiers begin is the formation. You want something that’s going to get the most out of Wayne Rooney. There was some criticism of his performances, but he didn’t go out to play badly and it was purely down to the lay-off he had coming in to the tournament. In hindsight, maybe you wouldn’t have played Rooney, but most people would surely agree that Hodgson was right to bring him. He’s been so good in the Premier League, you have to find a system that uses his skills to the maximum and that is the big challenge before September.

The circumstances of Roy Hodgson’s appointment to the job meant this tournament was always going to be used as a stepping stone for Brazil 2014 and now he has to back that up. Losing on penalties again is a horrible way to go out, but at least we were good enough to take Italy to penalties. Expectations were so low heading into the tournament, that it feels like small success. There’s work to be done, but as we go into the qualifiers, I’m confident will make it to Brazil and then we’ll see if we’ve learned much from this tournament.

There’s nothing genetic or inherent in the English players that makes them bad in penalty shoot-outs. It’s the toss of a coin and freakishly that toss of a coin has gone against us far more often than not. No-one goes out to miss a penalty. It’s not possible to legislate for that. I read about Hodgson getting the players to practice penalties in training, but it’s of limited value. Some players can hold their nerve better than others and it’s not a skill you can teach. It’s something you work on through experience and hopefully the next time England take penalties, these players will feel more comfortable. Practising penalties in training and doing it in the stadium in front of thousands of people are worlds apart and there’s very few opportunities to practise when there’s something massively important riding on it. Hopefully the experience will stand some of the players in good stead in the future.

• World Cup 2014 Qualification betting

Describing Mario Balotelli as a maverick is like saying Sara Carbonero is ‘alright looking’. The Manchester City striker is a loose cannon but as he showed against Germany when he’s in the mood he can be unstoppable.

When asked why he often refuses to celebrate Balotelli replied

‘When I score, I don’t celebrate because I’m only doing my job. When a postman delivers letters, does he celebrate?’

Wise words Mario. Very rarely did we ever see Postman Pat doing a ‘Ravanelli’ down the street.

His brace in the Euro 2012 semi-final has put Italy 90 minutes away from lifting the trophy and his second goal was an absolute rocket. His thumping right-foot shot had left his boot and hit the back of the net before Neuer could blink.

Earlier on in the tournament the 21-year-old came on as a substitute against the Irish and scored another super goal. John O’Shea’s defending lacked any kind of gumption but Balotelli still had a lot to do with his back to goal. Luckily Leonardo Bunicci was conscious enough of Mario’s mental nature to cover his mouth before he shouted something vaguely offensive or sexist.

In a Premier League game against Norwich last season Balotelli saw his original shot saved by keeper John Ruddy. 99.9% of other players would have nodded in the rebound as it fell towards goal. Not Mario.

Unfortunately it doesn’t always go well for Super Mario as shown in a pre-season friendly against MLS giants LA Galaxy. Balotelli was through on goal and decided to give a big two fingers up to America by taking the piss. Mancini, clearly concerned about international relations, hauled him off and gave him a bollocking much to the commentators delight.

Simple things can often baffle even the smartest men. During a warm-up with City, Mario made a complete hash of putting his training bib on, not once but twice. It’s rumoured Sheikh Mansour has since splashed out £180,000-a-week on someone to help dress the star striker.

Luckily it’s not just his antics on the pitch that Balotelli is well renowned for. There are endless stories of him visiting women’s prisons, handing money out to tramps and setting fireworks off in his bathroom.

Here’s a brilliant video of our favourite striker taking some time out from football to scare the living daylights out of an old woman.

Mario has three goals in the tournament and is now the 11/8 favourite to win the golden boot. His Italy side are 6/4 outsiders though to beat Spain in the final on Sunday. Paddy Power is also offering 3/1 that Italy lift the trophy and Balotelli secures the golden boot.

• Euro 2012 outright
• Euro 2012 top goalscorer
• Winner/goalscorer double

I’ll be here for the duration of the evening to bring all the latest developments and bitchy comments you’ll need to keep up to date. As long as you don’t measure enjoyment based on spelling accuracy, it should be great craic. Feel free to give me a shout with you’re views on life in the comments section below or if that’s not ‘trendy’ and ‘hip’ enough for you, you can always use our @PaddyPowerBlog Twitter account.

FULL TIME: Germany 1 – 2 Italy

======================================================

9.50pm: The odds are already in for the Euro 2012 Final. Spain are the favourites, but not by the margin you might have expected when the tournament began. It’s 8/15 Spain, 6/4 Italy.

That’s about all from me tonight. Thanks for reading and rest assured, I’m working on the typos.

9.46pm: The RTE panel begin a socio-economic analysis of Italy and Italian football. Kind of. It’s more the kind of socio-economic analysis you’d see scribbled on a beer-mat.

9.40pm: Italy celebrate, well except for Balotelli who still looks like he’s just been told his goldfish has died. It was a solid defensive display from Italy and they were very precise when the opportunity to counter attack game along. The finishing was a bit crap in the second half.

Germany just couldn’t get going. Aside from the first 20 minutes or so, they couldn’t get their dynamic passing and movement game going.

9.38pm: FULL TIME! Just when it looks like the Germans are going to have one last hoof towards the penalty area, they play the free-kick short and the referee takes the opportunity to blow the whistle.

9.37pm: Crazy scenes as Neuer turns into Germany’s midfield playmaker. Hummels gets booked for being a bit mouthy.

9.36pm: GOAL! Ozil keeps his cool to beat Buffon. Two minutes of added time to go.

9.35pm: Hold on to your hats! Penalty to Germany for handball by Balzaretti.

9.34pm: A great chance for Hummels goes to waste. I’m not entirely sure what happened, but it hit Buffon and was cleared for a corner. Neuer goes up for the corner, which results in nothing, not even a comedy scamper back to the goal.

9.33pm: Yellow card for Motta who tries to rearrange Schweinsteiger’s knees.

9.29pm: Some Carragher-esque defending from Balzaretti, except for the fact he can actually run. He gets a last second block in just as Reus was about to strike from about eight yards out.

9.27pm: Daniele De Rossi gets booked. I’d like to think it’s for having a beard that’s just too awesome, but it’s mainly for tripping up Schweinsteiger.

9.26pm: Di Natale misses a gilt-edged chance to seal the deal. He waddles into the penalty area, allows the defender to get back and his rushed shot goes narrowly wide.

9.25pm: Now more Italians are slipping when in good positions. This time Di Natale. It’s like the first week of Dancing On Ice.

9.23pm: The Germans’ aerial bombardment isn’t gettng much success and it’s the Italians playing the nicer football and carving out the better openings. Diamanti gets himself into a great position, but his untimely slip kind of wastes the opportunity.

9.19pm: GREAT CHANCE! Marchiso misses another excellent chance for Italy. He’s about ten yards out to the right of Neuer’s goal, but he hooks his shot wide.

9.16pm: There’s some laudable huffing and puffing from the Germans, but not much end product. The draw is now 9/1 which would seem to be their only hope of prolonging their interest in the tournament.

9.15pm: SUB! Now it’s Germany’s turn for the last roll of the dice. Thomas Muller comes on and Jerome ‘walking tattoo parlour’ Boateng comes off.

9.13pm: SUB! Italy extract the most possible time out of their final substitution as Balotelli hobbles off. Antonio Di Natale comes on with just over 20 minutes to go.

9.11pm: GREAT CHANCE! Italy have a great chance to put this one to bed, but from about 20 yards out, slices his shot narrowly wide. Balotelli goes down with a bad case of tactical cramp.

9.10pm: Diamanti tries to lob Neuer from about 40 yards out. Judging by how Neuer caught it at about waist height, ten yards off his line, it wasn’t that threatening.

9.09pm: Italy now seem to be playing the lesser known 8-1-1 formation.

9.07pm: ANOTHER SUB! Montolivo comes off as Italy batten down the hatches even more. Thiago Motta comes on to assist the defensive effort.

9.04pm: YELLOW CARD! It’s for Leonardo Bonucci and it’s a fair cop as he did kick Kroos in the shins. Reus hits the free-kick, but Buffon and the crossbar combine to keep it out.

9.01pm: SUB! Italy make their first change. Cassano comes off and Diamanti replaces him as Cesare Prandelli makes his team a little mire Cattenaccio.

9pm: Great last ditch tackle from Bonucci to take the ball away from Klose just as he was about to pull the trigger. That’s not a deliberate war reference.

8.57pm: Loew is up and patrolling his ridiculously large technical area. He looks like he’s thinking hard about the game, but I suspect he’s really just thinking about how to pick his nose and get away with it.

8.53pm: Lahm misses a great chance! Some neat passing around the edge of the area gives him a clear shot of goal 18 yards out, but he Jonny Wilkinsons it right over the middle of the crossbar. That might explain the mystery of why he’s a full-back.

8.51pm: Reus nearly has an immediate impact. He jinks in from the right hand side, but his shot is scuffed and Buffon saves it handily enough. It was a poor shot, but far better than anything Podolski managed.

8.49pm: Even though he’s only the fourth official, Howard Webb milks his brief moment in the spotlight. Germany make two substations. Marco Reus comes on for the very ineffective Podolski and more surprisingly, Miroslav Klose comes on for Mario Gomez. Germany kick off the second half.

8.47pm: Germany are 4/6 to score the 3rd goal. As so many cliches tell us, that’s going to be crucial.

8.44pm: Over on the BBC, Gianluca Vialli tells us:

Pirlo is doing what an American Football quarter-back does. He is dropping deep, looking for space and finding the runs of the forwards. And then he goes and shags the head cheerleader. BOOM!

I made up some of that quote too be honest.

8.40pm: What’s that sound? Oh, it’s the sound of tunes being changed in the RTE studio. In 45 short minutes, Italy have gone from hopeless amateurs to world-beaters. And all of a sudden, Germany aren’t as utterly amazing as they were before kick-off.

8.33pm: HALF TIME! Well, well, well. Not many people can have been expecting that. Despite his excellent first half brace, Mario Balotelli walks off the pitch looking like someone who’s told him there’s surprisingly little lesbian porn action in women’s prisons. It’s hard work being an enigma.

8.32pm: On the sidelines, Jogi Loew is looking worried. Stylish, but worried.

8.27pm: Hmmm … we’re not writing off the Germans just yet, but the moment is getting closer. They’re 9/1 to win this game in 90 minutes, but a not hopeless 3/1 to qualify for the final.

8.22pm: GOAL! ITALIA! Some classic Italian counter-attacking from Italy puts them two up. The Italians defend a corner, Montolivio plays a great ball over the top to Balotelli who slams the ball into the top right hand corner of the net. No chance Neuer thanks largely to a non-existent defence. He gets booked for showing his pecs, but he’s probably not too bothered.

8.20pm: Boateng puts a good ball into the Italian penalty area, but it’s cut out before Podolski gets to miss it. Italy go down the other end and Balotelli plays in Montolivo. It’s a great chance about 10 yards out, but he moves with all the speed of the Tinman with no oil and Germany clear. Germany respond with a long range shot and I can’t be a smart-ass because Balotelli just scored a cracker!

8.17pm: Fabio Cannavaro has been on Twitter announcing his delight. He says:

Fabio Cannavaro ‏@fabiocannavaro

Po po’ po’ po,po’,po po poooooooo po’ po’ po’ po po’ pooooooooo……:-)

Sadly, Google Translate is going to be feck all use to me on that one. I’m guessing he stepped in some dog crap. Any other explanations are welcome.

8.13pm: Ozil with a shot saved by Buffon. It’ll get called a shot in the match stats, but back in the day we would have called it ‘a back pass.’ Ask your parents if you’ve no idea what I’m talking about.

8.12pm: After an uncertain opening period, it’s looking a lot better for Italy now. Andrea Pirlo can’t help but look pleased at how the game is going:

8.09pm: That’s changed the odds in the live betting, but despite going behind, no-one is dismissing the chances of the Germans prematurely. 9/4 Germany, 13/10 Italy and 2/1 the draw.

8.07pm: GOAL! ITALIA! Lovely play from Cassano who, after beating a German on the left hand side of the penalty area, floats a great ball onto the head of Balotelli who powers it beyond Neuer and strangely doesn’t make any bizarre gestures by way of celebration.

8.04pm: Italy have their first shot on target as Montolivo hits one low to Neuer’s right from 20 yards. It’s not quick enough or far enough to the right as the German goalie saves it. Seconds later Cassano has a pop at the left hand side of the goal which Neuer also snaffles with minimal butter-fingers.

7.59pm: The Italians are looking very shaky and un-Italian at the moment. Any second now they’ll start saying giving undue attention to your physical appearance is transparent superficiality and extra-marital affairs are wrong. Buffon gets away with another shaky moment, pushing the ball against the legs of his defender before it squirms out for a German corner. It all leads to a shot from Toni Kroos that Buffon bats away.

7.55pm: Pirlo looks threatening, but the danger is averted as the German midfield close him down and don’t let him do whatever he wants. If only England had thought of that.

7.51pm: OFF THE LINE! Crap football all round. A crap corner doesn’t get claimed by Buffon and Hummels scuffs a shot towards goal. Pirlo provides the only not crap moment of the sequence by successfully clearing it off the line.

7.50pm: A half chance for Italy, but Neuer cuts out the through ball before Balotelli can waste it.

7.48pm: Countdown time and Italy begin the match by kicking off and playing right to left. Or left to right. Or near to further away. Depends on where your seats are.

7.45pm: Team captains, Phillip Lahm and Gigi Buffon exchange mini-souvenir pennants and tips on personal grooming in the centre circle.

7.42pm: A now it’s time for the respect message from both captains – or as it’s more commonly known – ‘opportunity to make a quick cuppa’ time.

7.41pm: When you see the German team from chest up wearing those white Adidas tops, they do rather look like some ‘friendly’ junkies who used to hang around at the shops near my house.

7.39pm: The teams are out on the pitch and the mumbling of the national anthems will begin soon. Mario Balotelli looks especially distant as the camera pans across. You can almost hear him thinking ‘what utterly mental thing will I do tonight?’

7.35pm: Not long to go now and I know there’s only one thing on everyone’s mind – ‘do you have any YouTube footage of some kind of tropical bird singing the national anthem of one of these teams?’ Never fear. Yes. Yes I do.

 
7.25pm: I spoke to Robbie Fowler earlier today and – apart from telling me to ask less crap questions – he told me that Germany should win this game fairly comfortably.

7.22pm: After last night’s game went to penos, it could be another nerve-racking night for Manuel Neuer in the German goal. He’s looking relaxed however after receiving some good news in the build-up to the big game:

Manuel Neuer

7.14pm: The RTE panel said something or other there. I wasn’t really listening to be honest. I think someone said the game might be tighter than people expect. The odds disagree, with the Match Betting telling us Germany are strong faovurites to progress at 5/6, Italy the outsiders at 15/4 and the Draw is the Mammy Bear in the middle at 5/2

7.06pm: Team News
Right, Liam Brady is currently giving his opinion on something on RTE, so it’s great team to do something other than listen to him. The teams have been confirmed and Germany have reverted to a more familiar line-up than the one that turned up for their freebie win over Greece. Gomez, Podolski and Kroos all start and Klose, Rues (and by extension, Tomas Muller) and Schurrle are on bench-warming duty.

Germany
Neuer, Boateng, Hummels, Badstuber, Lahm, Schweinsteiger, Khedira, Kroos, Ozil, Podolski, Gomez

Cesare Prandelli hasn’t sprung any surprises. Balotelli starts and Chiellini returns after injury with Abate missing out. Daniele De Rossi plays despite injury concerns, adding bite and a fantastic beard to Italy’s midfield.

Italy
Buffon, Balzaretti, Barzagli, Bonucci, Chiellini, Pirlo, Marchisio, Montolivo, De Rossi, Balotelli, Cassano

7.01pm: It’s amazing to think a team as hard to write off as the Germans have NEVER beaten Italy in a competitive match. It’s actually a subject of national shame on a par with … well … you know … that which we cannot mention …

David Hasselhoff having four Top Ten hits in the German pop charts. *Shudder*

6.51pm: A big hello and e-welcome everybody!
There’s early disappointment for fans of the unfounded rumour as Mario Gomez does start for Germany. German story-maker-upper, Bild had earlier confidently predicted that Miroslav Klose would start.

Shows you can’t believe every rumour you hear. Maybe it’s time to rethink how I view that ‘Prince Harry’s real dad is actually Justin Beiber’ gossip I recently read on the Financial Times message boards.

I’ll have full team news the moment I can copy and paste it from somewhere else.

With England and Ireland out we understand that it’s difficult to build the same yourself up in to the same fevered state, even with with added alcohol. Especially when the games are as dull as last night’s 0-0 borefest between Spain and Italy.

That’s why we’ve come up with our revolutionary new game, Paddy Power’s Big Game Bingo. Revolutionary means rehashing old ideas in a half-arsed manner for some cheap laughs right? Good.

It’s a pretty simple game. Look at the card, have a chuckle, get some beers in, turn the game on as soon as the coverage starts and mark off the squares as they happen. Whether it’s catching Joachim Loew rooting around inside his nostrils and then pretending to bite his nails as he deposits the green treat into his mouth or a pundit rolling out the ’110%’ cliché.

Joachim Loew tries to scratch his brain via his nostril

The winner is the one who fills his/her card first. If all of these events do occur during BBC’s coverage we suggest you reward the winner with alcohol. Lots of it.

You can even bet on a few of the events mentioned in the game.

Germany have been fantastic so far at Euro 2012. What impresses me most is the confidence running through the squad. To be able to change three key players for a European Championship quarter-final and for the team to still perform as well as they did against Greece is remarkable. They did concede two goals, but that was at a point when the game was won, so I wouldn’t read too much into that. The professionalism and ability to navigate tournament football you always associate with Germany is still there and when it’s combined with the talent of this generation of players, it sets some high standards. They seem to be getting better in every single game.

It took penalties for Italy to beat England, but it was obvious to everybody who the better team was. It was a strange game. With a couple of great chances in the first few minutes, it looked like it was going to be a cracking end to end game, but Italy dominated and apart from some brief spells, England didn’t offer much. They won’t be able to dominate the Germans in the same way. I wonder how they’ll approach Germany. They were happy to have a go at England, but for this one, Prandelli might look at reverting to having his players sit deeper and counter-attack. They’re playing good football and in Andrea Pirlo, they’ve got a Player of the Tournament candidate. I wasn’t expecting much from Italy, but they’ve surprised me and I do like watching them at the moment.

Again, Mario Balotelli is a name on a lot of people’s lips and not necessarily for the right reasons. He has managed one goal from 21 attempts at the tournament and you’d expect a better return from a player of his quality. Plus you get the impression he’s never far away from boiling over. He caused England problems, but there times when he also looked a bit laboured. His temperament is always going to be suspect and it’s possibly not what you want in a game like a European Championship semi-final, but Prandelli clearly has some faith in him and his ability to pull something out of the bag make him worth including from the start.

I’ve been tipping Germany for the tournament from a long way out and although I’ve been impressed by Italy, that’s not going to change. I can’t see Germany getting beaten. They’re too powerful, pacey and professional to mess it up. Maybe they don’t have too many outstanding individuals, but they’re a solid team. My one concern is Jerome Boateng at right back, but he’s the only notable weakness in the team.

I can’t look beyond Mario Gomez to score the first goal at 9/2. He had the luxury of being rested in the last game and now with two possible games left in his season, I’m sure we’re going to get a huge effort from him. He’s been in good form, we know Germany will create chances and he’ll put at least one of them away against Italy.

I’m going for Germany to win 2-0 at 7/1. Italy created some good chances against England and didn’t score. They won’t manufacture many chances against this German team and I don’t think they’ll get on the scoresheet. The Germans are just too strong to let an opportunity like this slip through their fingers.

• Germany v Italy match betting
• Euro 2012 outright betting

This is the not-so-classic case of the collective against the individual, with Spain being the ultimate footballing side, a team of technically gifted players with Portugal being reliant on the individual brilliance of Cristiano Ronaldo. He’s been right on form so far in the tournament and looks to be improving as things progress. If Portugal are to achieve an upset and knock out the favourites then Crist’ will need to be all mighty.

===============================

Final Score: Spain 0 – 0 Portugal (Spain win on penalties) Donbass Arena, Donetsk

Final: Again they weren’t convincing but Spain deserved to edge out a valiantly resilient Portugal and qualify for the final, where they await one of Germany or Italy in Kiev on Sunday night.
Can they become the first country to win three major international tournaments in a row?

Spain Kick 5: Fabregas scores…just. Spain win 4-2 and the champions move on to the final.

Portugal Kick 4: Alves hits the underside of the crossbar. Spain lead 3-2.

Spain Kick 4: Ramos does a Panenka. Cheeky. Spain lead 3-2.

Portugal Kick 3: Nani scores. 2-2.

Spain Kick 3: Pique scores. Spain lead 2-1.

Portugal Kick 2: Pepe slots it home. 1-1

Spain Kick 2: Iniesta scores. Spain lead 1-0

Portugal Kick 1: Moutinho stutters and Casillas saves.

Spain Kick 1: Alonso has his shot saved.

22.20: Spain to take the first kick.

22.18: Iker Cassilas saved two penalties against Ireland in the 2006 World Cup last 16, another two against Italy at the same stage in Euro 2008 and he saved one against Paraguay in the 2010 World Cup. Again at the quarter-final stage.

To qualify for the next round: Spain 5/6, Portugal 5/6

Final Whistle: Penalties here we come!!!

22.11: Alba gets down the line and puts in a good cross. Not for the first time Pepe gets across to snuff out the danger. Both sides have been excellent at the back in this game.

22.10: Just 3 minutes to go. Spain have dominated extra-time but haven’t been able to find a way through a resolute and well organised Portugal.

22.07: Fabregas puts Pedro thorough but Moutinho and Coentrao get back to clear the danger.

22.06: Alonso goes in the book for hacking down Ronaldo.

22.05 Portugal make their last change. Meireles is off for the attack-minded Varela. He has 7 minutes.

To qualify in a penalty shoot-out: Spain 6/5, Portugal 5/4

22.03: Ronaldo has worked hard but he hasn’t done anything special over 110 minutes. Cristiano your country needs you.

21.59: The second-half of extra-time kicks off. Portugal have one more sub to use. Quaresma anyone? No, I don’t blame you.

21.58: Spain have looked the better side since the final whistle. Portugal make just their second substitution bringing on Custodio to replace the tiring Veloso in the defensive midfield roll.

21.57: Ramos of all people goes very close with the last kick of the first half of extra-time. Closer than Ronaldo has managed with any of his efforts.

21.54: Alba plays Iniesta in on goal and Rui Patricio makes a fantastic finger-tip save.

21.52: Spain must have been practising their penalties because they don’t appear to be playing with any great degree of urgency.

21.49: Pedro gets flattened by Pepe and is now lying prostrate in the Portugal. It wasn’t a foul, just a good hard smashing.

21.47: Spain have looked a tad sharper in the first period of extra-time but this has penalties written all over it. Both teams are 17/10 to qualify via a shoot-out.

21.41: Spain have the first attack of ET. Navas puts a low ball in to Fabregas but Alves gets a foot in. It’s all about grit, determination and luck at this point.

Extra-time Betting: Portugal 9/2, Spain 21/10, Draw 21/10

Full-time: the games ends all square. Portugal faded a little in the second-half but Spain looked to lack the energy to take advantage. There’ll be some serious cramping over the next 30 minutes.

21.34: We’re in to injury time and Alonso puts in a poor corner which floats all the way to Iniesta on the far sideline. Extra-time it is so.

21.33: Navas threatens to get inside Coentrao but the full-back makes a fine challenge.

21.32: Raul Meireles breaks as Portugal are 4 on 3. He puts the ball just behind Ronaldo and his subsequent shot is well over. A good chance for Portugal to win at the death.

21.28: Xavi goes off to be replaced by Pedro as Spain make their last change of the game. Poor Fernando.

21.28: Bruno Alves goes in the book for hacking down Fabregas near the half-way line.

21.25: Ronaldo smashes a free-kick from 30 yeards which hits the wall. Arbeloa is booked for blocking it with his hand. He gets another go from closer in. And puts it over again. Not a mile away but Casillas didn’t bother to dive for it.

21.23: The frankly useless Almeida is replaced by the nippy Oliveira for Portugal.

Live Prices: Spain 10/3, Portugal 7/1, Draw 3/10

21.19: A bit of a stalemate at the moment as Spain pass the ball around without too much incision in to the Portugal backline. A speculative effort from Fabregas goes well over. This is starting to look like a draw and a late night.

21.14: Ronaldo takes on a free-kick from about 30 yards out. He gets it close enough but it zips comfortably over Casillas’ bar.

The score the 1st goal: Portugal 11/8, Spain 8/15

21.11: Portugal are the ones starting to look tired, making more mistakes than the first half. This is allowing Spain more time on the ball. Almeida has been pants all game and I’m not talking Paddy Power lucky pants.

21.08: The game has slowed down in the second half. We are in dire need of a goal. Alonso tries one from his own half. It’s nowhere close. Spain get the ball back immediately and Xavi fires a solid shot on goal but Rui Patricio saves comfortably.

21.06: Perreira pulls down Fabregas on the edge of the Portuguese box and is booked for the privilege. Veloso heads the free-kick away. Good ball, great clearance.

21.02: Navas is on for Silva and Pepe joins Ramos in the book for kneeing Alonso in the back. I tipped that one up too.

21.01: Ronaldo goes down in the box after being eased off the ball by Ramos. Not a penalty but Busguets goes in the book for demanding the ref book Ronaldo. Damn right.

21.00: hugo Almeida has a shot from out wide. Pique didn’t bother closing him down and the lumbering forward smashes it well wide.

20.58: Some bullish work from Coentrao wins Portugal a corner but it’s a rubbish one. Flatter than Fearne Cotton it was.

20.56: Del Bosque admits defeat with his crazy striker experiment. Negredo goes off to be replaced by Cesc Fabregas.

20.53: Some good play between Silva and Arbeloa down the right. A great ball in is dealt with by Perreira. Portugal look comfortable at the back.

20.51: Nani puts a decent ball in to the box but Almeida fails to make a real effort to get to it. He’s not the most aggressive of front men. Or the best of headers for such a big fella.

20.48: the second-half has kicked off. Will Spain change their game-plan?

Here’s a picture of Ronaldo’s girlfriend. No real context or reason. You’re welcome.

Half-time: There hasn’t been too many decent chances but it has been an interesting back and forth affair. Spain are struggling to get going as Portugal work hard to prevent Xavi and Iniesta from getting on the ball. The men in white look fresher though Almeida looks pretty useless up front. His best work of the half was a headed clearance in his own box.

20.32: The first half comes to an end with nothing between the sides. Coentrao was booked just before the end for mouthing off to the linesman.

20.30: Perreira stops Alba in his tracks as Spain struggle to get their passing game going. They’re starting to look a little tired already.

20.28: “He’s 6’3 but jumps 5’3..” Ray is not loving Almeida.

20.26: Sergio Ramos is booked for checking Ronaldo on the half-way line. He was 13/8 to be booked any time before the game began. A bet I tipped up in my preview. Along with about a hundred other bets but still. Small victories and all that.

20.22: A harsh free given against Bruno Alves. There’s been a slight pro-Spain leaning from the officials so far.

20.20: If Spain are struggling with tiredness at all we’ll really see the effects in the second half. Portugal are making them work hard and the odd crack is showing. Nani is currently down on the ground for no real reason.

20.16: Moutinho wins the ball back just outside the Spanish box, he feeds it on to Ronaldo whose shot is just wide.

20.15: Nani is fouled, DOESN’T go down but the referee refuses to let him play on. Poor decision.

20.14: Negredo gets involved for the first time, holding the ball up in the box. He shifts it on to Xavi, then on to Iniesta who curls a shot a few feet over the bar.

20.11: Portugal are working hard to get the ball back and have been enjoying some good attacking spells of their own. This time a poor cross from Pereira brings the move to an end.

20.09: Ronaldo slashes at one on the turn from just outside the box. High and none too handsome. Almeida looks a poor player so far and Negredo has done bugger all.

20.07: Spain enjoying some spells of possession. Portugal enjoying smashing in to them at every opportunity.

20.05: Nani is body checked by Ramos as he threatens to run through on goal and gets nothing. Poor refereeing on first look.

20.04: Hugo almeida ‘doesn’t jump his height’ says Ray Houghton. I get what you mean. I think.

20.02: Ronaldo’s free-kick goes straight at the wall but Coentrao wins a corner.

20.01: Ronaldo takes on Spain again and wins a free-kick outside the Spanish box.

19.58: Ronaldo goes on a strong run, gets to the byline and puts a decent cross in. A little to high for Nani though and Casillas collects. Shamon.

19.56: Coentrao has impressed in this tournament, even if he does look like an extra from Miami Vice.

19.54: Iniesta works his way in to the box with some great passing, he lays it on to Negredo who loses possession. the ball then breaks to Arbeloa who puts it over the bar from 12 yards out. Should have been on target that one.

19.53: Spain get their first spell of possession but it’s at the half-way line. Portugal are cleverly playing high up the pitch with lots of pressure on the ball.

19.49: Negredo gets his first touch and is duly dispossessed by Pepe.

19.47: It’s been all Portugal in the first 80 seconds. They win the first corner of the game after Veloso’s shot is deflected wide. The corner is a good one and Casillas has to push it over.

Kick-off

19.44: Ray Houghton has just jinxed the game by suggesting it could be the game of the tournament. 0-0 is 6/1.

19.43: The anthems are over. What’s this? The captains are being forced to give a speech right before kick-off? Respect the goddamn game UEFA. Get some suit to do this kind of thing, these finely honed athletes need to be in the zone right now.

19.41: The last time these two sides met Portugal won 4-0. It was a friendly and a repeat tonight is unlikely. But then how many unlikely results have you seen in your lifetime? Portugal to win 4-0 is 325/1.

Another picture of Nani relaxing before the game. (He looks like 1980s Michael Jackson is what we’re saying)

19.30: Will Negredo make a difference for Spain? Or will he do a similar job to Torres, lots of running around, some poor touches and being off-side most of the time? Spain have won every game in which Negredo has scored in to date.

19.29: Spain are 19/20 to win in 90 minutes and 1/3 to qualify.

19.28: Less than 20 minutes to go and Portugal are 7/2 to win in 90 minutes and 7/4 to qualify by any means necessary

19.18: Statler, Waldorf and Brady are full of praise for Ronaldo in the RTE studio. He is of course one dive away from a royal slating but this kind of positivity from the men in grey is refreshing.

19.14: BBC have gone for a depressing look back at England’s penalty shoot-out loss so it’s over to RTE for the rest of the build up. All yellow cards have been wiped for this game so expect Ronaldo to get a good aul kicking from the Spanish backline.

Nani looking particularly relaxed ahead of tonight’s game.

19.06: Portugal’s best chance is to have a go at Spain, as opposed to not having a go at them. This is the expert insight offered by Alan Hansen on BBC. Well, insight is a bit of a stretch.

19.05: Apparently Spain have made twice as many passes as Portugal in this tournament so far. 2797 to Portugal’s 1476. That trend may well continue in this game but that won’t necessarily mean Spain will have a comfortable time of it.

Torres is shocked to discover Negredo starts ahead of him.

18.49: Evening all. Let’s get going with the news that Spain boss Vicente Del Bosque has decided to start with an actual striker, and it’s not Torres. Sevilla striker Alvaro Negredo gets the nod ahead of the unfancied Chelsea man. Negredo has 6 goals in his 11 international appearances and he’s 6/1 to score first tonight.

Teams

Spain
Casillas; Arbeloa, Ramos, Piqué, Jordi Alba; Busquets, Xabi Alonso, Xavi, Iniesta, Silva, Negredo

Portugal
Rui Patricio, Alves, Pepe, Coentrao, Joao Pereira, Veloso, Joao Moutinho, Meireles, Nani, Ronaldo, Almeida

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