Maybe it’s because Scotland were so abject. Maybe it’s because – despite not being much better – England have somehow squeaked into the final. Maybe I’m just becoming a grumpy old git. But these European Championships have often seemed like a test of endurance, and a test of my love for football.
I know I’m not the first one to say it. And initially, I actually railed against the narrative that this had been the worst major international tournament in living memory, as many would have had you believe.
The early stages of these competitions are rarely blockbuster entertainment. And there had, after all, been some exciting group games. The bold approach of the smaller nations on the whole - with some obvious exceptions, regrettably - was refreshing to watch.
Undoubtedly, one of the factors in why this Euros is being perceived as ‘boring’ is because we are now in an age where people have been conditioned to expect instant gratification from their viewing experience.
It isn’t only restricted to Europe, either. Last week, Uruguay head coach Marcelo Bielsa bemoaned sterile tactics and football overkill in a rousing protestation against modern football as he addressed critics of the standard in the Copa America.
“What made the game the best in the world is not prioritised today,” Bielsa said.
“Football isn’t just five minutes of highlights. It's much more than that. It is a cultural expression, a way of identification.”
The harsh reality is though that more and more people are thinking of football in such a way, and a major problem is that we’re lucky to even get five minutes of highlights from some matches.
My sons are eight and 13, and if a game doesn’t involve a team they support, it struggles to hold their attention. The way people consume football has changed. The match is on in the background, the phone is in their hand as they scroll social media. They can even just see the goals within seconds on their phones if they prefer, without having to sit through 89-odd minutes of players passing it backwards and sideways to one another.
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This intolerance of the mundane is a factor in shaping opinions, then, but it has undoubtedly collided with a point in time where coaches and authorities seem to be doing all they can to suck the joy out of the game.
It just seems as if all of the little incremental changes, the insidious influence the powers that be have had on football over the years, have finally come home to roost in Germany, and the spectacle has suffered as a result. It’s death by a thousand administrators.
For a start, the players look knackered. And their fatigue is shared by the audience. I never thought I would say this, but there is too much football. The unquenchable thirst for expansion of tournaments and to fill the football calendar has both players and supporters at breaking point.
VAR is a constant aggravation. I was on a call recently with UEFA’s managing director of refereeing, Roberto Rosetti, as he pontificated on the number of ‘correct’ decisions, and explained how VAR calls are now being made in less than a minute.
What these guys don’t get is that any delay in the flow of the game for anything other than an outrageous error is detrimental to the fan experience. As ITV’s refereeing expert Christina Unkel put it during the week, it should only intervene in ‘Hand of God’ situations.
I’m not only saying this as a salty Scotsman, but it should never, ever be used for incidents such as the penalty that was awarded to England on Wednesday night.
Over and above such game-changing decisions though, it is that impact on the experience for the punters at the match that they will never ever be able to mitigate. Celebrating goals was one of the core things that made football so special. That has been diluted. It doesn’t matter if a goal is confirmed by VAR in 50 seconds or five minutes, you cannot recapture that feeling.
Ironically, given their possession-at-all-costs football probably started this trend for coaches to deprioritise actually scoring goals, Spain have been the one ray of light at this tournament. Under Luis de la Fuente, they have shifted away from their trademark approach a little, and have laced their attack with youthful verve, as well as pace and guile on the wings.
I often hear or read people bemoaning the lack of ‘flair players’ these days, with mavericks dispensed with as coaches lean on players with more consistent underlying numbers, their ‘on ball value’ metric or some such. But Spain have bucked that trend, and are reaping the benefits, both materially and aesthetically.
They have been the most impressive side by far, and it would be a much-needed victory for football if they were to triumph on Sunday.
Again, I’m not just saying that because they are taking on England, I am saying it because they are taking on a dull-as-dishwater England side, who – save for the opening 45 minutes of their semi-final against The Netherlands – have been the poster boys for the sort of risk-averse, negative football that has largely characterised this tournament.
I have, despite all of this, believe it or not, enjoyed quite a bit of these Euros. But I have endured quite a bit more.
“If you want entertainment, go to the pictures,” Bobby Williamson once famously said. It is the sort of dismissive attitude that 'football people' may have once been able to get away with, playing on the blind loyalty of fans.
But with so many other options these days vying for the attention of punters - and their kids - a reckoning may well be coming down the line. It may already have arrived this summer.
