Bad Tats & Moody Steroids

England U21 2 v Romania U21 4
UEFA Under 21 Championship 2019, Group C
Friday 21 June 2019
Played at Stadium Dino Manuzzi, Cesena

2018/19 Football Season Brewery Visits - 106

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Different Italian Beer Ticks = 21

I can moan about this poxy 12 team, straight to Semis, format all I like. But, if you lose your first two games - you're going home kiddo. The very best keepers don't have a howler in them. Henderson does. Conclusions may now be drawn. All around a poor performance. It would have been ridic if we'd come out of that with a point. Indeed, the only times we upped the gears was for those brief moments after conceding. Leading to equalisers on 78 & 86.

Isolated lone striker. Dom C-L this time. Didn't know whether to stick or twist. Always seemed to be in the wrong position. Midfielders & attackers not able to slip anyone in. Losing the ball. Constantly. Against a side built for the counter attack. Full backs & Centre Backs virtually never stepping through. The only runs with the ball at pace were by Dowell, and they were lateral, not forward. Although to be fair. Once they brought Foden on "by mistake", he made us look lively for a spell. That was not a good night.

I was v impressed with the Romanian number 9, Puscas. He did everything at pace. Played the role beautifully. A right handful throughout. We had no one in the same province as him as an attacking threat. Technically, I had to wait until France full time in the 9pm kick off before we were mathematically out & I could book some flights home. Depressing.

I'm not sure whether that was an Italian Plod Intelligence lead operation (giggles). But, they were seriously jumpy with security on the way in. I'm not sure why it was "a thing", but there were loads of Romanians. Lots of shirt wearing, flag waving families & kids. A few fat, balding piss heads practicing their "Fuck You" English. And. In the main stand & behind one goal. Two groups of those either black t-shirts on, or shirts off, moody tats & poor steroids "Ultras". Some, even covering their faces with their removed & rolled up t-shirts. At one stage, there was even a gesticulating turf war behind the goal over whose flag was hung over whose. Soon resolved by the tried & trusted arm waving & eventual handshake method. Fair play to them though. They'd got the Pyro in. Which lead to a superb comedy PA announcement threatening that the game could be abandoned. I couldn't help myself - arms out, wrists together, Come & Get Me Copper.

Some good news. I pushed the Brewery count to 106. Elettro Manifattura Birra 1843 in Rimini. You might as well call that a BrewPub. It's sort of down an alley off one of the lovely, large squares in Old Town Rimini. The pub is on one side of the alley. The Brewery, the other. The fella was in there working. So, the shutters were up & you could see him at it through the glass. He was from Central Casting. All big whiskers & white wellies. Salute. He was filling kegs from his Vessels. Thing is. He was filling Paulaner kegs. So, he's either deep recycling, or he's counterfeiting. Double Salute.

No guests. No macros. Just six of their own across the kegs. The Keller Bier at 5.4% was lovely. Zwickel style. A good hit of Barley Sugar & the flavour kept coming. The Blanche at 5.3% was a free hit on the house. Lots of banana & vanilla. But….

Outstanding 1843 Beer Of The Day can go to;

Elettro Manifattura Birra 1843, Amarillo American IPA. The barmaid warned me it smelled like marijuana (it didn't). It was a superb Hop Stew. Floral & citrus rather than throat grabbing. All set up by a nice hit of apricot sweetness.

Stats
I have now Blogged from 813 games in 1,767 days