It seems almost unbelievable that nobody has posted any comments about the Euro 2012. Anyway, here’s what I have to say:
Group A: Poland, Greece, Russia, Czech Republic – by far the most boring and unexciting group of the tournament football-wise, unless you come from one of these countries. In terms of contest it should be quite interesting as all four teams seem to be somewhat close. Poland, being the host has the advantage of a home side and I expect their fans to make up for what their national team lacks in quality. The less is said about Greek football the better, but they still remain a tough opponent. The Russians will probably be the main source of excitement in this group, as their team packs the most quality, while the Czechs remain the “x factor” of the group. They aren’t every special, but they might surprise somebody. Prediction – Russia and Greece to go through, with Greece narrowly squeezing through by drawing against Russia in the final round.
Group B: Netherlands, Denmark, Germany Portugal. A group giving the term “death group” a new meaning. World Cup runners-up, Euro 2010 runners-up, a team with one of the two best players in the world and a rising star team. Luckily for this group, Ronaldo tends to choke in big games which might ease the pressure of the defenders. Netherlands and Germany stand out as the clear contenders to go through and for a good reason. While Portugal boasts the likes of Ronaldo, Nani, Raul Meireles, Pepe and Coentrao, it does not seem to have the team quality of the former two. Denmark has the balance and the team play, but it doesn’t have the necessary quality to go through. I mean, you know you’re desperate when your star player is Nicklas Bendtner. Anyway, despite being the hardest group, the prediction isn’t that hard – Netherlands topping the group followed by Germany, Portugal and Denmark.
Group C: Spain, Italy, Republic of Ireland, Croatia. I hate to say it, but Croatia is screwed. Teams which won last two World Cups certainly have the upper hand. There is no question Spain is finishing this group on top. The Italians, on the other hand, might be a bit more insecure. Yes, they have great players, they have tradition, but they have no game. They passed their relatively mediocre group with some ease, but it changes little. Croatia usually does well against such teams, but then Italians always somehow go through. The Irish can also be tricky; they were robbed of the WC 2010 and are hoping to have their revenge. Plus, they have Robbie Kean and Shay Given, both great players in their respective positions. The fixtures do not work for Croatia’s advantage, too. Spain, like other great teams, tends to screw up their initial match, which is against Italy, while they usually start working well in the 3rd match, which is against Croatia. If Italy snatches a point, or even a victory against Spain, it would put even more pressure on the last match, which Croatia, I’m afraid, can’t cope with.
Prediction: Spain definitely first, Ireland third and Croatia and Italy either second or fourth. I believe both nations will either go through or crash out last. Either way, drama until the last minute in this group.
Group D: Ukraine, Sweden, France, England. Not as exciting as Group B, but still an exciting group. The closed football and home support of Ukraine, the team-play and Zlatan Ibrahimović of Sweden, and the high-class players low-quality football of France and England. While the latter two teams represent clear favourites player-wise, experience tells us this might not be so feasible. France needs to banish the ghosts of WC 2010 mutiny, while England will be missing their star player for the first two games. To add, England’s game-style is nowhere near the quality their players enjoy in their respective teams. Although this applies to all groups, this really is the groups in which things can go either way. The most logical assumption is that one of favourites and one of non-favourites will go through – Ukraine and France to go through, while England and Sweden perish.
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