Turkey need a win against group leaders Switzerland if they’re not to face an early plane home to Istanbul. Hear the tracks, vote in the poll, and check below the cut for managerial comment, analysis, previews and match reports.
How to vote: Just tick the one you prefer! This poll is open until midday on Monday 21st April.
Switzerland v Turkey: Which do you prefer? [ballot]
- Switzerland: Borni 55%
- Turkey: Goksel 45%
Total Voters: 20
Poll closes: 21 Apr 2008 @ 12:00
Loading ...SWITZERLAND: Borni – “Scream My Name”
The manager says: “This is Börni (full name Börni Drehbesuch – which isn’t so POP) and this song was actually released THIS YEAR. Scream My Name may be a bit naive in some of its trappings, but it cannot disguise the popsong equivalent of knocking the ball up to the big lad. Runner up in Switzerland’s Music Star last year (their Pop Idol) this kind of pop rock may be ubiquitous but its tough to get it right. She may be heading emo-wards with future releases, but Scream My Name should do the Swiss proud.”
Our analyst says: Physical tactics bullied the Czechs into submission, and if anything the Swiss have amped up the aggression for this second game. Not one for lovers of the beautiful game maybe, but if you enjoy crunching tackles and thunderbolt shots you’ll be on your feet throughout.
TURKEY: Goksel – “Tas Bebek”
The manager says: “After a fierce dressing down in the showers following the half-arsed effort against the ridiculous Portuguese side, the Turkish side have regrouped with a sharp, biting attack. A brave substitution in goal for the UNDERGROUND TONGUES of Ferman and Teoman from GROWL-POP outfit MaGna has given us a crunchier base on which to flaunt our STRIKING ELECTRO-popstress Göksel. We shall invade all three thirds of the pitch. Dövü?mek!”
Our analyst says: Their striker may have an eye for goal, but will she need better service from the wings? The Turks are playing a fast-paced, physical game themselves, but with a measure of flair upfront. These two teams are giving their utmost and I wouldn’t be surprised if we see a fair few cards in this one.
COMING NEXT: Group B is on a knife-edge, with Croatia topping the table on vote difference alone. A win against Germany won’t see them home and dry yet but it would put them in an excellent position to qualify. Of course the Germans could say the same, and they’ll be looking to answer critics who’ve claimed their side is one-dimensional. But with rumours that boss Lex has banned reporters from the training ground, is there tension behind the scenes?
MATCH REPORT: Russia 1 Spain 1 – Spain will be counting their blessings after being lucky to escape with a point against a strong Russian side. A defensive lapse cost Russia the win – otherwise they were on top from the moment they scored the opening goal. They created enough chances to win it but poor finishing told against them – Spain meanwhile will need to play a lot better than this to beat Sweden in the next match.
Both these have grown on me since I first heard them – bear that in mind o hasty voters! Initially I leaned to the Swiss track’s crude and instant pleasures but my conscience kept whispering “Skunk Anansie” at me. The Turks on the other hand almost shoot themselves in the foot with growl-pop dodginess but the chorus is a slinkily strong one and the singer whups her trollish comrades into line with some great interplay at the end. I think they may just win it, but I’m not making a decision quite yet. Good efforts both – a draw wouldn’t be unjust here (though not very helpful to the Turks!)
blimey, it’s like the batle of santiago all over again, tackles flying in left and right, neither side giving or asking for any quarter. the swiss just have the edge i think though, turkey’s initial good start tapering off whereas the swiss maintain the high tempo throughout, even the late substitution can’t save the turks who i think could be on the first plane home…
SKUNK ANANSIE!!! This sounds like the lead track off of an excellent Tash Bedingfield or Charlotte Church comeback. More comments like that from the Europop version of Sepp Blatter and I’ll make a complaint to FIPA.
Still nice to see Turkey bringing the game like I’d expect. By the way, there is a lack of umlaut consistency in copy above. Umlaut’s are important in a game like this. Switzerland by a mile though.
Umlauts were removed from *both* teams as the umlaut is not one of the official FIPA Europop 2008 Accent Partners.
The Turkish management declares umlaut omission to be a sign of INSTITUTIONAL PUNCTUATIONISM on FIPA’s part.
Request more umlaut info.
Going into this, I’m rooting for the Turks, since the refs did them dirt in the last match. Yet I do have affection towards the previous Swiss effort: clumsy it was, but the midfielders kept jumping up and down and screaming what sounded to my American ears like “I’s a fucklet,” bringing spasms of mirth to my heart.
But on to this match.
Börni “Scream My Name”: Hah, sleaze metal from the Swisskies, with a tune! The hard-crunch strategy continues, despite its poor results so far in this tourney. Girl with rage and melody, could be a Marion Raven or Megan McCauley in their Maxfree and Lukefree moments. Makes me smile. OK, not as good as Marion or Megan, both of whom can be far more ferocious (cf: Megan’s “I’ll Pay You To Shoot Him”), but still I’m grinning.
Göksel f. MaNga “Tas Bebek”: Wild kazoo players sweep from the great Asian plains and across ancient mountains to the sea. A tongue-tied MC takes up time with his intro, but then a doe-eyed beauty rides to the rescue and everything is… well, she sounds pretty, but I’m not feeling her. Then a boy comes in with his sensitive croak, then our doe-eyed heroine returns and is as nice as ever but I’m still not feeling her.
So, a vote here for the Swiss, and legitimate Turkish grievances remain unredressed.
Here’s Börni’s follow-up Trails Of Troubles btw, which shows the emo route she may be taking in the future. But she’s good enough to put Evanescence out of action, at least in Mittel-Europ.
Both these sides could do with an injection of pace, I feel, but it’s an intriguing match nonetheless. The Swiss put in another snarling performance, solid and physical and tough in the tackle in midfield. Slightly cobbled together lyrics leave me wishing Switzerland hadn’t made the switch to English language pop, but it’s still strong. But yes, a bit Skunk Anansie, sorry.
I don’t really know what the Turks are up to. They have a tremendous buzzing noise out on the wing, some good crunching guitars, but this seems to be a collection of individuals somewhat lacking in coherence. I don’t get any sense of them working together as a team, and while there’s some good approach play I don’t really get much sense of end product.
Comfortable win for the Swiss in the end, I think.
Apropos of nothing (save an awkward conversation I had in both French and Dutch yesterday), a strange thought hit me about Europop:
Where is Belgium?
Anyway, found the Turkish thing interesting, but the Swiss thing more pleasing to the ear.
Belgium are drowning their Europop qualification sorrows along with England.
You have over the weekend to vote in this.
Apologies for the delay in getting the next match up – a deluge of work has meant real life has intruded. It will go up on Monday and I will try to get three games up next week.
after the portuganese terrace-packing of the last match, the gate this match seems comparatively low, and it’s still all to play for
Yes the number of votes here is very small – unless it does actually end itself we should keep it open for a couple more hours, I will plug it on Poptimists on the chart poll.
This was what I was worried about with a low turn out. One more vote would have swung it for me. Still glad to see there is all to play for, I would have hate to see Turkey go out as they are better than some of their performances. A little concerned about that final match though now, my “interesting” final group song may need to be bumped for something a little more robust. I still believe in the physical game!
The turnout jumped up in the last couple of hours and at least reached 20 – but still low compared to several other games.