Day Ten in France

The final round of matches in the group stage have begun. France and Switzerland shared the points to safely put them both through while Albania beat Romania to give themselves a slim chance of progressing.

Unlike Lineker, Shearer and Henry I thought the France v Switzerland match was pretty good. Maybe they were disappointed with the lack of French flare on display but that was mainly down to the Swiss performance (their best so far) as well as Deschamps resting some key players, notably Dimitri Payet.

Switzerland also made a few changes and although there was a worry that both sides would grind out the draw that would take them both through this wasn't your typical no score bore draw. Xherdan Shaqiri was more involved than he had been in the previous two matches and the Swiss team as a whole looked much more up for it than they had against either Albania or Romania.

Payet did come on in the second half and almost scored what would have been the goal of the tournament. Moussa Sissoko took off deep in his own half and left the Swiss defence in his wake as he sprinted off down the right before floating in an inch perfect cross for Payet. The darling of the French fans met the ball on the volley but the crossbar denied him the perfect finish to the move.

The other game in the group saw Albania not only score their first ever goal at a major international tournament, but pick up their first points and win as well as they beat Romania 1-0. To the delight of their fans Armando Sadiku expertly headed past the Romanian keeper to make history just before half time.

Although Romania started quite positively and had a few chances, including one that cannoned off the crossbar, they could not make their possession tell and Albania deservedly took the three points.

The goal was met with jubilant scenes in the stadium, none more so than by the Albania team and officials themselves. The outpouring of emotion was a joy to see and showed exactly what it meant to everyone involved.

Albania will now have to wait to see how the other groups finish before they find out if their victory is enough to squeeze them into the second round as one of the best third place sides. Maybe my pre-tournament prediction of Albania qualifying will come true after all!

Other things I noticed yesterday...

• As poor as the pitch in Lille was for France and Switzerland, it is hard to be too sympathetic about the players not being able to perform on anything less than a carpet. Maybe they should look into wearing the right kind of boots?
• Switzerland need to have a word with Puma about their kit. If their shirts can't take a little bit of holding then they are not fit for purpose in today's football world
• I'm still not a fan of 24 teams but it does mean that we don't have many meaningless matches at the end of the group stage

And so to today's games. Wales take on Russia knowing that a point should be enough to put them through to the next round. The Russians have been their usual enigmatic selves, popping up to score right at the death against England while looking completely outclassed by Slovakia days later. I can see Russia frustrating Wales tonight but Bale only needs a free kick relatively near the box to carry on his run of goals - I'm going for a 1-1 draw.

After the 'crisis' of drawing against Russia in their first game England looked fairly comfortable against Wales - especially when they brought on Vardy, Sturridge and Rashford. It will be interesting to see which of those start against Slovakia tonight but whatever team Hodgson puts out should have too much for their opponents. England to win 2-0.

Day Six in France

With only eight nations leaving after the group stage there is a good chance that a side could lose its first two matches and still go on to qualify. So the desperation wasn't quite kicking in yet for teams like Slovakia but they knew that a win for them against Russia would really open up the group. And win they did.

Russia looked completely uninterested until the last 15 minutes and thoroughly deserved to lose against a Slovakian side led by their Napoli superstar Marek Hamsik. He made the most of some really lazy defending to score Slovakia's second with a beautiful shot that went in off the post (goals always look better if they go in off the woodwork). Earlier former Manchester City neck tattoo fan Vladimir Weiss had used the Russian defenders ability to turn as quick as an oil tanker to put Slovakia one up.

Russia came back into the match towards the end but it was far too late to get anything from this match. But even with just one point from two games, they still have a chance of qualifying for the knock out rounds so their match against Wales in Toulouse on Monday will be vital for them.

Romania, the only team to get a penalty in the first round of matches, got another one against Switzerland which Stancu put away to give them the lead. But this match was all about Switzerland. I didn't see all of the game but they certainly seemed to be on top for most of the match and were probably unlucky to only come away with a draw after Mehmedi scored just before he was about to be substituted. 

A win would have put the Swiss through to the last 16 but they will now play France at the weekend knowing that a draw will do the job. Even a defeat to the host nation may not mean an early departure depending on other results.

France left it very late once again to get their second win of the tournament and qualify for the next round. Griezmann and Pogba were both left on the bench by Deschamps as he tried Martial and Coman up front in the first half. To give the French boss some credit he soon realised that plan A wasn't working. Pogba replaced Martial at half tie and Griezmann came on for Coman with around 20 minutes to go.

And it was Griezmann who headed home in the final minute to deflate an Albanian side who, although looking very limited, did give it a go - especially in the second half. Dimitri Payet added a second in injury time and French nerves were eased. Payet is looking like the player of the tournament so far and although Kingsley Coman's skill was a treat to watch, there was a real buzz of excitement every time Payet got the ball. I really don't see him at West Ham next season.

Other things I noticed yesterday...

• I was able to watch the Russia v Slovakia match at the place I was working yesterday but when I heard that Mark Lawrenson was the co-commentator I decided not to use my headphones. Judging from comments from others I chose wisely
• By the look of the fans, body building is VERY popular in eastern Europe
• Russian coach Leonid Slutsky looked like he knew exactly what fate lies in store for him when he returns to Moscow. He doesn't look too happy (see below)
• The Velodrome ground in Marseille looks absolutely amazing
• Hoddle's expert knowledge really shone through once again. After the Albanians hit the post he offered "If it's inside the post, it's in". Thanks Glenn
• Although he was a late replacement, French central defender Adil Rami had another good game and was the one who put the cross in for the first goal last night
• I really don't know why Switzerland don't start with Breel Embolo. He looks really dangerous whenever he is given the chance

And so to today's matches. With the British media probably unhelpfully referring to the game as 'The Battle of Britain, Wales take on England knowing that a point will probably be enough to go through and that the pressure is really on Roy Hodgson's men. I'm torn to whether it will be a draw or a narrow English win. I'll go with head instead of heart and say 1-0 England (hoping that my predicting form continues and Wales actually win).

Ukraine v Northern Ireland is the early evening match and it is hard to see anything other than a Ukraine victory. I thought they got their tactics right against Germany and will be looking at this game as a must win. Northern Ireland need to change the way they play if they are to get anything from this and I think it might be just too much for them. I'm going for Ukraine 2 Northern Ireland 1.

Another local derby tonight with Germany taking on Poland. This could be a really good game with both sides knowing that a win will put them through. Lewandowski needs to be more involved in this match than he was against Northern Ireland if Poland are to win. Even though they didn't look flawless in the first match I was impressed by Germany's performance and a continuation of that form will be enough to get them the win - 2-0 again.

And We're Off

Patrice Evra is 35. We know he is 35 because the commentator for the France v Romania match told us he was 35 repeatedly. This is important, as if you were to guess his age on last night's performance you would probably go for something a little nearer 135.

Evra was beaten time and time again by the right side of Romania's attack and looked a liability all night - including the moment when he forgot he wasn't playing for Juventus and gave away the penalty that Romania scored to draw level.

And it was the defence that looked the weak link last night for the ultimately victorious French. Pogba was doing his thing, splitting the Romanian side with his inch perfect passes, until he was taken off - and Payet showed once again why it would not be a surprise if he moved to a club playing in the Champions League next season.

Romania were unlucky to not come away with a point but Payet's moment of brilliance means that, with only eight nations not qualifying for the knockout phase, France are already as good as through.

A few other things to mention from last night's opening match:

• Slaven Bilic's hair kind of freaked me out but he was a great pundit - ITV need all the help they can get on that front
• The white strands in Emmanuel Petit's beard are the only signs that he has aged in the last 20 years
• I need to find out where you can buy a Romania tracksuit top

And now to today's matches...

Albania v Switzerland: Those of you who read my preview the other day will know that I think Albania could surprise a few people in this tournament. Switzerland are a good side but have been going through a bit of a bad patch so I'm going for a 1-1 draw

Wales v Slovakia: A moment I wasn't sure I would ever see - Wales playing in a major international tournament. Obviously Gareth Bale is the key here as the rest of the team always visibly raise their game when he is on form. As much as I would love a win for Wales I think this one may be a 1-1 draw as well.

England v Russia: England look worryingly good - although there is still plenty of time for them to implode spectacularly of course. The combination of Dele Alli and Harry Kane is a revelation for Roy Hodgson's side and if they play Vardy as an impact super sub, England should win this fairly comfortably. I'm going for 2-0.

So three games in a day - this is what international competitions are all about! Come back here tomorrow when I'll carry out the post-mortem on today's games.

Here We Go! Here We Go! Here We Go!

The sight of overweight, topless England fans throwing garden furniture across the city centres of France can mean only one thing - the European Championship is about to begin.

With more nations represented than ever before there is a chance that we will see some negative tactics employed by sides attempting to get out of their groups at any cost. Then again, with the state of defending these days leaving a lot to be desired, some of the best players in the world may well have a field day.

Either way we now have a month of football to enjoy - and there is nothing quite like an international tournament. I used to almost enjoy the Euros more than the World Cup when it was stripped down to the very best of the continent. Now with so many countries on show the skill level may be diluted but I'm still looking forward to each and every game.

I promised predictions and if anyone took any notice of my crystal ball gazing during the World Cup in Brazil two years ago then you will know that not all of these will come true. *

There is only one match later today - France v Romania. The home nation will be keen to get going with a competitive match and should have too much for Romania who will probably be looking at the other games in the group to pick up some points. I'm going 2-0 to France.

* hardly any will come true