Euro 96 was 25 years ago

Ffs

it was basically the pinnacle of football / life Wasnt it. 
 

basically nothing is better now than it was then

England football team is better.
 

really?

Seaman > Pope / Pickford

Pearce > Shaw

Adams > Stones

Southgate > Maguire

Neville > any of our right backs

Ince > Rice

Gascoigne > Hehnderson

Shearer > Kane

ill agree that the likes of foden, Sterling, Grealish, sancho etc are better than mcmanaman / platt / Anderton / Barney etc 

I agree - It was a lovely Summers day after Finals - the precise pinnacle of life, and civilisation generally, was the moment at which the ball that Gaza flicked over Colin Hendry’s head reached its apogee.

Its been pretty good since tbh. But that was a wonderful moment.

 

‘Pearce is not greater than Shaw

“adams > stones” is LOLaminute stuff’

danny dyer’s hardest agree with this.

Also lol @ Walker, Trippier or literally anyone not being better than G Neville.

But life was grand, the summer went on for ever and I touched a girl’s boobs at a village disco before cycling home to watch the highlights of France v Spain high on Tizer and life. Laaaaad

 

 

Yeh shaw, trippier and stones are really good which is why they’ve got us to all this semi finals of major international competitions.

oh wait.

They might be better on the ball and at crossing but can’t defend for shit, unlike Neville, Adam’s and Pearce.

I know its only the domestic league but TBH Leicester winning the premiership was the best footballing memory I have.

Be nice to  beat Chelsea in the FA cup final but that wont eclipse the premiership year.

(I would say 96 was english football peak.  Gazza was a truly superb player, possibly the best I have seen play.  the shearer sherringham combo up front was the best we have had in my lifetime (that one two three against the netherlands).

Harsh criticism of anderton up above, he was a great player sadly beset by injury.

Agree with the OP. People drunkenly shouting 'It's coming home' at each other in the street in 2018 was a lame callback.

The current team is way better, but so are most of the other countries so...

Gascoigne was only 29 at Euro 96. Physical condition of a 45 yr old though.

To think what a player he would have been if he had been managed by Sir Alex Ferguson his whole career

another vote for italia 90 here

also the year of my personal top football moment ever when Leeds beat Sheffield Utd 4-0 at Elland Road to win promotion to the old first division 

football has basically got steadily more shyt since then 

I was too young for italia 90. I remember the 94 World Cup quite well as was in Florida on holiday when the final happened.

my dad took me to see Bulgaria vs Romania at Euro 96 at St James park. Was so excited to see Stoichkov vs Hagi. Awful game of football though 

"Actually they did get us to a semi of the World Cup didn’t they. Well I’ve had a shocker there tbf"

TBF to you I dont really count that one, they got there with an incredibly lucky draw and lost to the first half decent team they came up against

They beat Tunisa, Panama and Sweden, drew with Columbia (winning on pens) and lost to Belgium twice.  Hardly world the stuff of legends.

Italia 90 was pretty rubbish, one team that absolutely did not deserve to get out of the group stage and who cheated their way to the final, and the other with all the romance of an abattoir.  Very few goals scored and the miasma of penalties and diving were becoming rampant.

From a football perspective Mexico 86 was better.  And England had done the Turniermannschaft thing of getting better throughout - albeit thanks to Captain Fragile injuring himself out and turning to Barnes and Lineker - and would surely have won it without the cheating commie doping handball merchant. 

but this summer.....

picture the scene

the beer gardens are full

pints are being chinned

team sane have locked themselves in at home to hide from der blud clotz

foden - skins one, skins another, top bins. Goal. England 1-0 Germany. Its all over. Absolute scenes.

The 4-1 wigging dished out to the Dutch stands out as the highlight of Euro 96. Sheringham’s selfless pass in the box to Shearer. Top corner. Job done. 

The Sweaties were also put to the sword and rightfully reminded of why they’re the plucky losers in the relationship with England. You can slow mo the look on Hendry’s face all day as Gazza mugs him.

And it wouldn’t be a memorable tournament without England going out on penalties in the semis.

The 4-1 wigging dished out to the Dutch stands out as the highlight of Euro 96. Sheringham’s selfless pass in the box to Shearer. Top corner. Job done. 

The best bit was letting Kluivert sneak in for a consolation goal which knocked the Scots out on goal difference.

I remember watching quite a lot of Mexico 86 at the Calthorpe Arms with printers who were meant to be  picketing the old Times building in Grays Inn Rd which was SJ Berwin for a while later

italia 90 was unsdisputably the moment when football became ‘cool’ though

That cheeky feint to shoot then layoff from Sheringham is pretty much my favourite England moment ever, maybe joint with Owen’s subtle shoulder-drop to sit the Brazil keeper down before scoring in 2002.

Ffs

it was basically the pinnacle of football / life Wasnt it. 
 

basically nothing is better now than it was then

The year I got accepted into Cambridge, left school, lost my virginity, got my first job, went on a gap yah, trekked in the Himalayas.

Watched all the Euro 96 matches round at my mate's place through clouds of hash smoke (his Mum was v. liberal). He lived in a flat on top of a dentist's in Acton. I remember running out onto the flat roof after England scored in the semi against Germany.

I started 1996 at the Brixton Academy at a Return to the Source rave.

I ended 1996 at a party by a lake in Nepal.

Pints were 2 quid. Maccy D's meals were 3 quid. 15 quid bought you an eighth of hash that got you high but didn't make you think that the squirrels were conspiring against you. 

You could go to almost any techno or  house night picked at random out of the pages of Time Out and score ecstasy pills for 10 quid.

Virtually every week a ridiculously good album was released.

 

 

 

I think england in 1990 were mainly shite, they played well in one game (the one they lost) but other than that were terrible, scraped past egypy, nealry lost to cameroon, late winner in dreadful game v belgium (great one tho), terrible v ireland. didnt watch the semi tbf

England are never going to steamroller their way to a WC or Euro final tbf and tournament football is always going to be pretty nip and tuck. Even that great France side wheezed past Paraguay in 98. 

Even that great France side wheezed past Paraguay in 98. 

wasn't that due to some awful refereeing decision? Home team always gets favourable reffing, remember South Korea basically cheating their way to a semi final

Essentially England cant beat world class sides in knock out stages of tournaments.    Can anyone remember when we last did this?   (not counting penalties)

1990 was the pinnacle of football.

Gazza at his peak, Platt volleying home, Oman Biyik's header beating the reigning champions, Roger Milla dancing, Benjamin Massing's tackle on Cannigia, Frank Riikjard decorating Rudi Voeller's mullet with a carefully placed piece of phlegm.

It was all downhill from the formation of the Premier League. Gradual at first but culminating in the failed European Super League. The football may be technically better but has lost its soul (and its mystique now we see the players regularly).

Euro 96 was an enjoyable diversion and a last hurrah - in many ways marked the highwater mark for the UK more generally. The idea that Things can only get Better now seems laughable as what followed was 9/11, the global economic crisis, Brexit, Trumpism and then Covid.

I remember hearing footballs coming home in about October 1996 and mates being staggered I had never heard it. tbf I had been on the other side of the world...

30 years later I still can’t hear nessun dorma without seeing des lynam’s face ...

I’ve always meant to try to find the full italia 90 porn film Pete Davies describes in his excellent book all played out. it must be online somewhere 

iirc from the book cicciolina (natch) drains the energy of the Argentine players before the final and rewards the victorious Italian team en masse

i can’t remember if the group stages feature