Group A: Czech Republic, Greece, Poland, Russia.
In terms of quality teams, this group is lacking in that area. Poland, who missed the 2010 world cup, is in the Euro tournament, because they are a co-host nation with Ukraine. Russia will win this group, possibly taking all three games. They have an excellent goalie in Igor Akinfeev, a solid midfield lead by Igor Denisov, and superstar Andrei Arshavin, who will command the field with his ball skills. They really have a far superior roster to anyone else in the group. I think Greece will take second place. They have talent, and have won a Euro in the last 10 years. Captained by ageing midfielder Giorgos Karagounis,with help from highly touted young star Sotiris Ninis, they’ll advance. The Czech Republic is lacking superstars, and as I mentioned above, accept for world class keeper Petr Cech. Poland is also not as good as they have been in prior years. They’re young, and have players playing on top clubs across the world. Players such as Lukasz Piszczek, Robert Lewandowski, and Arsenal keeper Wojiech Szczesny will lead the club, but they’ll need a lot of help from their surrounding teammates.
In terms of the groups finishing positions, I like it as follows:
- Russia
- Greece
- Poland
- Czech Republic
Players to Watch:
Russia: Andrei Arshavin – The team’s best player, he’ll create opportunities, and can put the ball in the back of the net.
Greece: Giorgos Karagounis – He’s anchoring the midfield of Greece, and is a veteran who has been here before.
Poland: Robert Lewandowski – Helped lead his club in Germany, Borussia Dortmund, to a first place finish in the Bundesliga. He can score.
Czech Republic: Tomas Rosicky – The Arsenal midfielder will need to generate opportunities for his surrounding cast. Excellent ball handler.
Group B: Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, Portugal.
In every soccer tournament, there is always a ‘Group of Death’. This means that this group is the toughest out of all of them to advance from. This group here, is the group of death. Germany, Netherlands, and Portugal are all soccer powerhouses, boasting star players such as Mesut Ozil, Robin Van Persie, and Cristiano Ronaldo respectively. Either way, there will not be a bad soccer game in this group. Unfortunately, poor Denmark is going to have the toughest time of any of the 16 teams in the tournament. As it stands, I think Germany is going to win this tournament. Needless to say, I think they win this group. They are an exceptional team that is strong in all aspects. The second spot is essentially a coin flip between Netherlands and Portugal. The Netherlands are possibly the best offensive team in the tournament. They have players like Van Persie, as I mentioned, along with Wesley Sneijder, Arjen Robben, and Rafael Van Der Vaart. They can score, and command the field, and more importantly, put balls in the back of the net. Portugal is a bit more rounded, they have a solid back line, headed by the Real Madrid centerback Pepe, and of course have Cristiano Ronaldo, the second best player in the world. I do think the Netherlands will end up advancing, as Portugal do not have a true striker, which will hurt them. Ronaldo and Manchester United star Nani are both wingers, who stretch the field. They need someone to feed the ball to, which they lack. Just to mention Denmark in here, they’re going to lose all three games. No real chance for them unfortunately.
In terms of the groups finishing positions, I like it as follows:
- Germany
- Netherlands
- Portugal
- Denmark
Players to Watch:
Germany: Bastian Schweinsteiger – He’s the midfield general, and coming off a blown penalty kick that lost Bayern Munich the Champions League title, it’s a safe bet Bastian will be on a tear.
Netherlands: Rafael Van Der Vaart – He’s got one of the best striker in the world ahead of him in Van Persie, along with star winger Arjen Robben and the world class Wesley Sneijder. He’s going to be the back bone of the scoring of this team.
Portugal: Raul Miereles - He’s got Ronaldo and Nani on his wings. Miereles’ job will simply be to feed the dynamic duo on the wing.
Denmark: Nicklas Bendtner – Denmark is going to need goals to have a chance in this group. Bendtner has proved he’s talented, and will need to use all that skill to have a chance in games.
Group C: Croatia, Italy, Republic of Ireland, Spain.
This group follows group B in terms of toughness. Spain and Italy are world soccer forces. As you probably know, Spain won the 2010 FIFA World cup. Something you may not know, Spain won the 2008 Euro Championship. I think it’s a safe bet that Spain will be competing for the title. However, this year will be a little different. They’ll be without star striker David Villa and centerback Carlos Puyol. Nevertheless, Spain has an endless supply of talented players that will fill the void. Plus, we’ll get to see if Fernando Torres, the move expensive substitute player ever, gets a chance to return to glory. They’ll win the group. Looking at Italy, they’re in a complete rebuilding stage. While over the years, in which they’ve won 4 World Cups, they’ve prided themselves on being the best defensive team in the world. In 2012 however, this isn’t looking so much like that case. What Italy does have on their side is possibly the best midfield in the whole tournament, anchored by seasoned veteran Andrea Pirlo, who commanded his Italian Club team Juventus to an undefeated season. Looking to Croatia, they could be a team who surprises. Luka Modric is one of the best midfielders in the world. He, and fellow Tottenham midfielder Niko Kranjcar should control the midfield, and feed striker Eduardo, who has a averages a 1 goal every two games for his national team. Then there’s Ireland, who similar to Denmark, have an unfortunate draw. They have a solid goalie in Shay Given, an exceptional winger in Aiden McGeady, and veteran striker Robbie Keane, who’s now a member of the L.A. Galaxy.
In terms of the groups finishing positions, I like it as follows:
- Spain
- Italy
- Croatia
- Republic of Ireland
Players to Watch:
Spain: Fernando Torres/Fernando Llorente - Whichever Fernando is up front for the Spaniards will need to score. They’ll be surrounded with the best supporting cast in the world. If it was me, I’d go with Torres, but we’ll see. Without David Villa, someone has to take up that striker role. Look for David Silva, Andres Iniesta, and Xavi to work the ball all over the pitch. Hopefully someone will be on the end of those balls.
Italy: Mario Balotelli – The Manchester City head case is Italy’s future at striker. If he keeps his attitude in check, he’ll provide an offensive spark for the Italians. He’ll have Antonio Cassano behind him, along with the superb midfield mentioned above. If he plays like he can, Italy will advance with ease.
Croatia:Luka Modric – Modric may be the best midfielder in the world. He’s got a big task on his hands, generating offense for this Croatian side, but he can do it all.
Republic of Ireland: Robbie Keane – Keane’s an ageing talent, but he can score. He’s going to need to score to have a chance at advancing.
Group D: England, France, Sweden, Ukraine
England is always a favorite team in any tournament that they play in. I’ve never bought into them in any tournament, and I’m certainly not liking them to win this either. While they may boast a roster of absolute superstars, they never seem to play well as a unit. Last time we watched them, we saw them tie the United States 1-1, on the infamous Robert Green blown save on a Clint Dempsey shot. They have one of the best centerbacks in the world in John Terry, who unfortunately for England will not be at 100%. Steven Gerrard will anchor the midfield with speedsters Ashley Young and Theo Walcott on each side all feeding the ball to the world class striker in Wayne Rooney, assuming he’s healthy. France is another team that has lacked consistency. They finished in the final game in 2006, then failed to advance out of the 2008 Euro, and the 2010 World Cup. However, this year I think we’ll be much different. They’ll have star striker Karim Benzema up front, who didn’t, for some odd reason play in 2010. They’ll have Samir Nasri and Frank Ribery feeding him the ball, and will have defensive stars Patrice Evra and Phillipe Mexes in the back line. I like France a lot this year. They’ve got an excellent squad. I think they not only win the group, they’ll make a strong push for the championship. Sweden is a quality team, and will push England for second place. Their entire team feeds into the world renowned striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic. However, they don’t have the depth that England does, and it’ll be tough to beat them. The last team is Ukraine. Unfortunately, there’s a good chance they, with their fellow hosts, will miss out on advancing. They’re pulling all the tricks out for this tournament, most notably, 35 year old striker Andriy Shevchenko and Bayern Munich midfielder Anatoli Tymoshchuk.
In terms of the groups finishing positions, I like it as follows:
- France
- England
- Sweden
- Ukraine
Players to Watch:
France: Samir Nasri – The Manchester City midfielder was left off the 2010 World Cup squad. Huge mistake. He’s a superb talent and will have the fortune of playing along side Franck Ribery and star striker Karim Benzema in front of him. If France is going to go far, he’ll need to play like he can.
England: Steven Gerrard – Gerrard is a world class midfielder. He’s playing in the middle of a star studded English roster. If England wants to do well, Gerrard is going to need to be up to form. He needs to get the ball to Young and Walcott who can stretch the field.
Sweden: Zlatan Ibrahimovic – Maybe the worlds best striker, Ibra will need to score, and score a lot. He’s a freak of an athlete, and overpowers defenders. His team will get him the ball, he just needs to finish.
Ukraine: Andriy Shevchenko – The Ukrainian Shevchenko can score still, even in his mid-thirties. If Ukraine has a shot at advancing, he’ll need to score.