Predictable, with the exception of Turkey and maybe Russia the group stages have allowed the seeded teams to progress & the weaker to head home.

Holland have won three out of three yet are no nearer the final than Italy who eventually won a match. Surely for the sake of football we need to change the format of these tournaments.

What format could we change to? Well why not a straight knock out format with first round matches played over two legs, the following rounds would be ninety minutes of play with extra time and penalties if required. In other words a very simply format similar to our very own FA Cup, which even makes the draw exciting!

However we must remember the television companies need to be able to sell competitions to the advertisers and audiences hence the first round games to be played over two legs. This would give the stronger teams a better chance of progressing but reduce the dire performances we see in some group games. Just take a look at last nights Quarter final of Portugal v Germany, I think you could argue by Scolari resting players in the final group match it upset the rhythm of his Portuguese team, however it was a fantastic game of football because it mattered !

Tournaments deliver mediocrity

Football should be about winning yet we allow the governing bodies of UEFA and FIFA to create tournaments that deliver mediocrity until the knock out stage begins. I want to see games that electrify the most neutral of fans, which make your heart beat faster than a drum & allow streams of tears to run down a face when defeat finally comes.

For in football only one team can win and ultimately that should be the most consistent and therefore the best and not the one given two or three chances to prove themselves. Games that count don't just matter; they force teams to play football, so surely the governing bodies of our game should be promoting open meaningful matches that set Europe and the World alight.

I think its time for UEFA and FIFA to act before somebody else does!

P.S. If Croatia beat Turkey tonight it appears they meet Germany in the semi-finals, didn't they play in the same group?