Ronaldo Situation: The Cristiano Ronaldo situation has gotten very interesting.  It has gone from Man U threatening to take Real Madrid to the FIFA to file a complaint, to them giving Real a one-sided list of players that they were demanding in return, and their final demands of a rather-large sum of money.  Here is a list of their demands and other actions.

1. Real has reported interest in Ronaldo, Man U threatens to file a complaint with the FIFA unless Real stops enticing Ronaldo with a Madrid offer. 
2. It is rumored that Man U demands Mahamadou Diarra, Sergio Ramos, and money.  This would have been a very one sided deal.  One player alone would not be enough to acquire Ronaldo however an argument could be made that Ramos will become one of the best Spanish defenders.  Maybe even on par with Carlos Puyol of Barcelona.
3. Man U demands 100 million euro in exchange for Ronaldo.

Very one sided and interesting.  Watch the Semi-Finals tomorrow!

1. I would rather see two good team play longer than 90 minutes.  Who really has the endurance to last that long.  Who will fight till the end or just give up.
2. While it is one of the sadest and gives a player the feeling of helplessness, it is one of the fairest.  Both teams have an equal chance.  Both have equal numbers of shots on goal.

Next Up: The first semi-final game is between Germany and Turkey which should be very interesting.  I will like to see the turntout of this game.

Game Summary: I am most pleased with the end result.  As I said this would be a good game.  No team had a clear advantage over the other which makes it an exciting game.  The penalties are always the best and that’s when I was on my feet. 

Russia and Netherlands Tomorrow: The power of Holland will be seen tomorrow as they face a talented but young goalkeeper in Igor Akinfeev.  I have probably “worn-out” my like for him by now but I have high hopes.

Other News:

• Barcelona: I recently reported that Barca made an opening transfer offer on Juventus’ striker David Trezequet.  They were told to “back off” and “he is not for sale.”  I guess they will have to look else where for a forward as he and Valencia’s David Villa have been placed on the untouchables list.  Barca had been interested in Villa before the Valencia statement. 
• Liverpool has offered 20 million pounds for the services of David Silva who plays for Valencia.

Germany beat Portugal today.  While the Portugese side did very well in taking the champions title for their group, Germany snapped up their hopes for 08.  The game got very exciting in the last minutes as Portugal scored a goal to make the final score 3-2.

Future Fixtures:

Tomorrow- Croatia vs. Turkey: I like this game.  The heroics of Turkey in their win against Petr Cech and the Czech Republic proved to the world that they are here to play.  However, they did trail in that game which is a weakness.  At the same time, Croatia did win all of their group games defeating Germany in the process.  Once again, I like this game. 

Saturday- Holland vs. Russia: In short, miracles may happen, but Holland hasn’t shown very many weaknesses.  I like the competition and level of play Igor Akinfeev will be up against but I don’t like his chances.  The power of the Oranje will prove to be too much for Russia on this day.

Sunday- Spain vs. Italy: This will be another good game.  Power vs. Power.  Class vs. Class. What better game than this that pits two top class keepers against one another(Casillas v. Buffon).  The defensive corps each possess.  The midfield so chalked full of talent.  And the strikers to finish.  This is truly the game that I will watch.

 Transfer Rumors:

• Barcelona put out an opening bid on David Trezeguet.

Czech: I projected that the Czechs would move on and not Turkey.  However, things have gone for the worst for them as well as Goalkeeper Petr Cech.  The Turks will move on to play Croatia which is interesting, to say the least. 

Portugal: Ronaldo and company are moving on to face Austria or Germany.  This is very interesting to say the least because the potential Runner-Up to Group B will face them.  Turkey will only have to face Croatia-this is still a good match however more even than a Portugal v. Croatia face off.

 Tomorrow’s Matches:

Poland v. Croatia

Austria v. Germany

Potential Upsets: With an Austria win tomorrow, Germany could be sent packing and my Group B predictions would also get a shake.  If Austria pulls off a win, they would move on to face Portugal which will be yet another test of their true talent.