UERO 2008

I am typing this post while watching Israel play Russia in one of the many qualifying matches to get in to the Euro 2008 competition. It's currently half-time, and Israel is down 0-1. Israel is in group E, along with European powerhouses England, Russia, and Croatia. In order to advance to the quarter-finals you have to end up being one of the top two in your group. Israel has already beaten two teams in the group, Andorra and Estonia, but odds are very very very small they will beat two out of the three of England/Russia/Croatia.

I make this point because Israel has never reached the point of playing in a major international tourney, the World Cup, the Euro Cup, etc. So every single game becomes this huge national ordeal that the entire country watches.

The photo on the left I ripped from the UEFA website, the player is Roberto Colautti, who is an Argentinian Jew who apparently only finished the paperwork necessary to become a resident in Israel (and therefore to play) 4 days before the qualifying rounds began. He scored the winning goal against Estonia two weeks ago.

In any case, Israel is playing like crap right now. No offensive pressure at all, and the defense is doing a horrible job of covering the holes. The funny part about it is that the game is being played in Moscow, and the Russian crowd is already in thick leather jackets. Meanwhile I was at the beach 2 hours ago!

Say what you will about the state of the Israeli national soccer team, at least we aren't wearing scarves in October.

(Steph, I'll make sure to get you and Jess soccer jersey's when I come back to SF!!!)