Soccer: I have the attributes of Messi in his Prime

Chapter 533: England's Shocking Upset, Mocked by Many Nations

Although the final score suggested a comfortable victory for Spain, the reality of the match was quite different.

Italy was much stronger than the scoreline reflected—they had the capability to reach the quarterfinals.

Unfortunately, Italy's bad luck was running into Spain.

If they had faced a different second-place team from another group, like England, the outcome could have been completely different.

In the final match of the Round of 16, England experienced a major shock.

Before the game, the English were overly confident, already thinking about their next opponent.

The reason for their optimism was simple: their opponent was Iceland.

From England's perspective, Iceland was a small country with only 300,000 people, known for its harsh environment and limited football resources.

How could they compare to the mighty British Empire?

England prided itself on having the world's biggest football league, and nearly every member of their squad came from prestigious clubs. Surely, Iceland—an inexperienced, underdog team—was no match for them.

Iceland had never even qualified for the European Championship before, so it was natural for England to underestimate them.

But this Iceland team was far from weak—this was the best Icelandic squad in history.

With these players, Iceland made their first-ever appearance in the European Championship and reached the quarterfinals.

Two years later, they made even more history by qualifying for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, where they famously held Argentina, one of the favorites, to a draw.

People were misled by the name "Iceland," assuming they were a pushover, just like the English did.

However, underestimating this team came at a cost.

As the game began, the English fans were full of confidence, singing and dancing in the stands.

In the 3rd minute, Iceland's goalkeeper made a mistake, fouling England's forward Raheem Sterling in the penalty area, and giving away a penalty.

Wayne Rooney calmly converted it, putting England up 1-0.

With such a gift from Iceland so early on, the English grew even more dismissive of their opponents, convinced that the match was already decided.

However, just two minutes later, Iceland took a throw-in from the right side, Arnason headed the ball to the front, and Ragnar Sigurðsson struck a volley into the net.

Iceland quickly equalized, using a throw-in tactic they had already employed earlier in the tournament. This was the second time Iceland had scored from a throw-in during the European Championship!

England paid the price for their arrogance. If they had studied Iceland's previous matches, they wouldn't have been so careless in their defense.

Even after the equalizer, the English still didn't grasp the seriousness of the situation, thinking they still had the upper hand.

After all, it was only the 6th minute, and they had plenty of time to attack.

So, as play resumed, England went on the offensive, determined to break Iceland's defense with their powerful attack.

England's forward line was strong, featuring Sterling, Harry Kane, and Daniel Sturridge, with Jamie Vardy and Marcus Rashford waiting on the bench.

Yet despite their formidable attack, England failed to score and, worse, got caught on the counterattack.

In the 18th minute of the first half, Iceland launched a quick counterattack. Gylfi Sigurðsson sent a through ball to Bödvarsson, who crossed it into the box.

At the crucial moment, England goalkeeper Joe Hart made an error, allowing Sigþórsson's shot to slip past him into the goal.

Suddenly, the score was 2-1, and England was trailing!

The entire stadium was stunned.

England fans stared in disbelief at their own goal and the goalkeeper kneeling in front of it.

How could this be happening?

How could mighty England be losing to tiny Iceland?

Panic started to set in.

Could it really be that the great British Empire was about to lose to Iceland?

Fear became reality, and as the match wore on, England launched a furious assault.

But Iceland held firm, with their players giving everything to block England's waves of attacks.

Despite having some of the world's top forwards, England's players seemed to be having an off day, either missing wildly or shooting off-target.

Throughout the entire match, England took 20 shots but only managed to hit the target 4 times.

In contrast, Iceland had only 8 shots, 5 of which were on target, scoring twice.

Although England dominated the match with 72% possession and 20 attempts on goal, they couldn't convert their chances into a win.

In the end, they suffered one of the biggest upsets of the European Championship, as Iceland knocked them out!

After the match, media across Europe rushed to report on the stunning result.

As England is often considered the "troublemaker" of Europe, they don't have many friends.

So when the chance came to mock them, no one held back.

Following the loss, media outlets from all over began ridiculing the English team, criticizing them relentlessly.

Even England's own media didn't spare them, going even harder in their criticism.

Some extreme fans even gathered outside the headquarters of the Football Association, protesting and demanding the resignation of England's coach, Roy Hodgson.

Hodgson was the highest-paid coach of all 24 teams in the tournament, earning even more than Spain's legendary coach Vicente Del Bosque.

With such a high salary and such a terrible performance, it was no surprise that England fans were furious.

Unable to handle the pressure, Hodgson quickly resigned.

Despite the attractive salary offered by the FA, the job was just too difficult.

He had made enough money and didn't want to be criticized any longer, so he decided to leave.

While England was in chaos, Iceland was in celebration.

The result of the match was shocking, even for Icelanders.

Reaching the knockout stage had already been a point of pride for the country.

But now, their national team had gone even further, eliminating a powerful team like England.

The entire country was in a state of euphoria.

Every step the team took was making history, and the players were becoming legends.

Iceland's remarkable performance reminded many European fans of a team from 12 years ago—another underdog that shocked the world: Greece.

Could Iceland be following the same script that Greece had written 12 years ago?

If so, Iceland's next opponent should be very worried!

Coincidentally, Iceland's next match would be against none other than the tournament host—France.

England and France have long been rivals, and after their loss to Iceland, the British media spitefully remarked:

"Iceland is an underestimated team. If France dares to attack recklessly, they might suffer the same fate as England. If France wants to win, their best strategy would be to play defensively and counterattack!"

This statement infuriated the French.

What do they mean France won't dare to attack?

Do they think France is as weak as England?

We are France, one of the top footballing nations in the world!

The French were adamant: they would attack Iceland with full force.

"How could we face Iceland and not attack? Where would our pride go if we did that?"

However, some more level-headed French fans pointed out that this could be England's way of provoking them.

Iceland's counterattacks were indeed dangerous, and if France attacked too aggressively, they might be caught off guard.

Still, as hosts, France couldn't back down.

Whether they wanted to or not, they had no choice but to take on Iceland head-on.

However, while the France vs. Iceland match drew plenty of attention, the most anticipated match of the quarterfinals was another clash: Spain vs. Germany.

If the Spain vs. Italy match had been a rematch of the previous European Championship final, then Spain vs. Germany was a rematch of the World Cup final.

Would Spain, the reigning champions, continue their dominance and defeat Germany again?

Or would Germany's "Die Mannschaft" get their revenge and topple the Spanish bullfighters?

This match would provide the answer.

Germany took Spain very seriously. Ever since losing to Spain in the World Cup final two years ago, German coach Joachim Löw had made studying Spain one of his main tasks.

He didn't just study Spain's national team games but also collected data on every Spanish player, analyzing it with his team.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that the person who knew Spain best in the world might not be a Spaniard, but a German!

Germany had been preparing for this rematch for a long time, determined to make Spain pay.

In contrast, Spain wasn't as focused on Germany.

It wasn't that they were being complacent, but Spain had too many rivals to keep track of.

If you look at Spain's competition, it's overwhelming.

In Europe alone, they had to deal with Germany, the Netherlands, France, and Italy.

In Latin America, there was five-time World Cup winner Brazil and Messi's Argentina.

Every one of these teams was a formidable opponent that couldn't be ignored.

Del Bosque studied their opponents, but because there were so many, he hadn't been able to gather as much information as Löw and his team.

"Germany is a top team," Del Bosque told his players before the match. "Their strength needs no further explanation."

"Although Klose has retired from the German team, they've brought in many powerful new players, like Marco Reus."

Reus had missed the previous World Cup due to injury, something that had haunted many German fans.

They believed that if Reus had played, the World Cup final might have ended differently.

Reus is a top-class player, and anyone who has watched him knows this.

Last season, he scored 27 goals and made 9 assists in 45 games for Borussia Dortmund.

When healthy, Reus could easily be considered the fourth-best player in the world!

His addition to the squad significantly boosted Germany's attacking power and put more pressure on their opponents' defenses.

In history, Reus had missed this European Championship due to injury.

But in this timeline, Reus was able to participate.

Thanks to Lin Quan's advice, Reus had communicated with his Dortmund coach, Thomas Tuchel, and reduced his playing time in less important matches to stay in good physical condition.

As a result, not only did Reus stay injury-free, but his performance also improved.

Last season, he scored 3 more goals and made 2 more assists than in the original timeline.

Although injuries remained a concern, after careful management, things were looking up for Reus.

Following the departures of Götze, Lewandowski, and Klopp, Dortmund had entered a rebuilding phase, and Reus knew that it would take time to restore the team to its former glory.

So, he balanced his efforts on the field—fighting hard when necessary but conserving his energy when it wasn't.

By avoiding overexertion, Reus was finally able to participate in this European Championship.

He was so grateful to Lin Quan that he called him before the match to promise they'd have a drink together after the game.

"So don't assume we've already won, and don't put all your hopes on Lin!"

Del Bosque emphasized this last point, noticing that the team had become a bit too optimistic since Lin Quan returned.

Optimism was good, but too much optimism could lead to complacency.

If you didn't take your opponents seriously, even a world champion could face a sudden upset.

Del Bosque's warning made the Spanish players more cautious.

Whatever they were thinking, they all nodded obediently, as if they understood.

"Facing Germany early on isn't necessarily a bad thing!"

Seeing the players start to take things seriously, Del Bosque shifted his tone.

"Germany is one of the strongest teams in this European Championship. If we can beat them, we'll clear the biggest obstacle on our path to the title. After that, the road will be much easier, and winning the tournament will become more likely!"

The players all agreed with this. Compared to hosts France and the "Red Devils" of Belgium, they saw Germany as a more formidable opponent.

Germany's midfield was exceptionally strong—one of the few that could rival Spain's.

Plus, since Guardiola had joined Bayern Munich, Germany had adopted some of Spain's tiki-taka style, making them one of the teams that understood Spain's tactics the best.

From any perspective, Germany posed the biggest threat to Spain.

(End of Chapter)

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