EURO 2008 Semi-Final Preview

And then there were four. The semifinal picture is finally complete as Turkey looks to take on Germany and Spain faces off against Russia.

After 120 scoreless minuets in the last quarterfinal of the tournament, Spain defeated Italy by a penalty margin of 4-2. In my opinion the man of the match has to be Iker Casillas. Italy attacked sparingly and created few scoring opportunities during the run of play, but when called into action, Iker keep the reigning world champions out of the back of the net. Casillas' continued to prove his strength as a shot stopper during the penalty shootout, denying both De Rossi and De Natale

Here is a closer look at the Semifinals:

Turkey vs Germany (Wed. June 25, 2:30 EST, ESPN)
Turkey's Cinderella run has been incredible, but one has to wonder if they are facing too large a challenge as they look to take on Germany. Turkey will be without keeper Volkan Demirel, attacking midfielders Arda Turan and Tuncay Sanli and defender Emre Asik due to suspensions. Turkey will also be missing the lethal Nihat Kahveci due a groin injury. Germany's clinical attack may be too much for Turkey to handle.

Spain vs Russia (Thur. June 26, 2:30 EST, ESPN2)
Spain continues to believe that this is their year as they take part in their first semifinal of a major tournament in 24 years. Spain defeated Russia by a 4-1 margin during the group stage, but the Russians were without the magic of Andrei Arshavin in that match. Arshavin and the rest of his team will look to take the game to the Spaniards, much like they did against the Netherlands. Since both teams have a fast attacking style of play that flows through the midfield, control of that part of the field will be the key to the game. Personally, I think the best midfield to "out attack" the Russians would be one powered by Fabregas, Xabi, Ineista, and Silva. Perhaps Cesc's game winning penalty against Italy will be enough to secure a spot in the starting lineup.