UEFA European Football Championship - Euro 2012

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Posted: Wed Jun 06, 2012 5:44 am

The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 2012, will be the 14th European Championship
for national football teams organised by UEFA. Qualification for the final tournament was contested by 51 nations, with 16 nations
qualifying for the finals which will be hosted by Poland and Ukraine between 8 June and 1 July 2012.

Group A: Poland, Greece, Russia, Czech Republic
This is probably the weakest group in the competition. Poland are the lowest ranked team in the tournament (FIFA ranking 65) but will
have the support of the home crowd. In Wojciech Szczesny, Poland have a very good, young goalkeeper but the defence in front of
him lacks international experience at the top level. Their midfield, much like their defence lacks experience except for Dariusz Dudka
and their captain Jakub Blaszczykwoski. Poland have only named 3 forwards in their squad so expect their main goal threat to come
from Robert Lewandowski with Pawel Brozek as backup.
Russia have a very experienced squad travelling to the Euros. They left some big named players out just to show the strength in depth
they have in their ranks. Russia have two very good goalkeepers battling to stay in the starting 11 and they boast probably the best
defence in this group with Aleksandr Anyukov, Sergei Ignashevich, Aleksei Berezutskiy and Yuri Zhirkov. The Russian midfield is also
pack with experience with the likes of Igor Semshov and Konstantin Zryryanov. In attack Andrei Arshavin, the Russian Captain, will be
played just behind the front man who will be any one from Roman Pavlyuchenko, Aleksandr Kerzhakov or Pavel Pogrebnyak.
Greece, other than their win in 2004 have an extremely poor record in the major competitions and scoring goals have always been a
problem of theirs. Their defence looks to be very inexperienced with only 3 defenders with over 20 international caps, Vasilis Torosidis,
Avraam Papadopoulas and Sokratis Papastathopoulos. Like their defence their midfield also lacks experience apart from their captain,
Kostas Katsouranis. Upfront Greece do have some experience on offer in Nikos Lyberopoulos, Giorgos Samaras and Theofanis Gekas,
but as mentioned, this is the area Greece have struggled with in previous competitions.
The Czech Republic squad really lacks any strength in depth and only have a few star players at their disposal. They do however have
one of the best goalkeepers in the world in Petr Cech, but in front of him is a very inexperienced defence of Michal Kadlec, Tomas Sivok
Roman Hubnik. In Midfield the most notable player is Tomas Rosicky, Also offering some experience they have Jaroslav Plasil and
Tomas Hubschman. In attack they have Milan Baros and a youngster with a lot of potential, Tomas Necid. This squad lacks any strength
in depth and it is a concern that they can boast a few stars in their squad and it’s not usually good news when it’s the goalkeeper that
stands out as your star player.
To Qualify: Russia and Poland

Group B: Holland, Germany, Portugal, Denmark
This has been labelled as 'The Group of Death' (although i think Group D could also claim that title) as any two from the four
teams could get through. This group has 3 of the last 6 winners in Germany (1996), Denmark (1992) & Holland (1988), throw
Portugal in to the mix who have been a runner up and losing semi finalist in the last two tournaments, then this becomes a
very tough group. The Germans strolled through qualifying winning all 10 of their games and manager Joachim Low has an
enviable blend of youth and experience at his disposal with the likes of Thomas Muller, Mesut Ozil, Mario Gomez and
Mario Gotze linking up with Bastian Schweinsteiger, Philipp Lahm and Miroslav Klose.
Holland in qualification won 9 of their 10 games and also have a very strong midfield and attack with they likes of Mark van Bommel,
Nigel de Jong, Wesley Sneijder, Rafael van der Vaart, Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, Robin van Persie and Arjen Robben but for all their
attacking brilliance they are weak defensively and this could be their undoing in the latter stages of the tournament
Portugal are not the force they were four years ago. In qualifying they looked really good in some games while they struggled in others
and seemed to rely on Christiano Ronaldo far too much. They look weak defensively which against the attacking power displayed by
Holland and Germany could be a huge problem.
Denmark finished above Portugal in qualifying for this tournament. Denmark do not pocess a prolific goal scorer, their top scorer in the
qualifiers were Dennis Rommedahl and Nicholas Bendtner with 3 goals each which might well be their downfall here.
To qualify: Holland and Germany

Group C: Spain, Italy, Croatia, Republic of Ireland
Spain are current World champions and defending European champions. With just 2 defeats in their last 45 competitive matches
they are short odds to retain their title. The Spanish were rarely forced out of second gear and qualified with a 100% record.
Spain have a very strong squad and their starting XI will be made up with players from two of the world's biggest clubs in Real Madrid
and Barcelona. Spain have been slightly weakened by the absence of influential defender Carlos Puyol and their most prolific striker in
international history, David Villa. The forward positions are likely to be filled by Fernando Torres with David Silva and Andres Iniesta
supporting him from the flanks. In midfield Spain have riches in abundance, Xabi Alonso, Xavi and Sergio Busquets are likely to be the
preferred three with the likes of Mata and Fabregas only good enough for the bench.
The Italians come into a major finals, not for the first time, in the midst of a match-fixing scandal. After a woeful World Cup campaign
in South Africa hopes weren’t too high under new coach Cesare Prandelli. However, they finished unbeaten in a group where their only
opposition should have been Serbia had the Serbian fans decided not to riot in Genoa leaving UEFA to award the game to Italy 3-0.
From that point on Italy were in control of the group. 8 wins from 10 qualifying games and seven clean sheets show Prandelli has built
from the back. In midfield Andrea Pirlo with his crisp range of passing should play at the back of a diamond formation and he is
complimented by the youthful legs of Daniel De Rossi, Claudio Marchisio and Riccardo Montolivo who all have goals in them.
Up front it will be dependant on who’s available after injury.
Croatia are an experienced side who are no.8 in FIFA's world rankings and can be one of the most effective counter attacking sides
in the world. They have a core of 4/5 players that have been in the side for a few years now but their squad seriously lacks strength
in depth, but on their day can give anyone a game but they have arguably one of the slowest defences in world football which could
be a major problem against The Spanish and The Italians. In midfield everything goes through Luka Modric. He is the most important
cog in the team and if he is injured then they’ll be struggling. They do however pocess a goal scoring threat with the likes of Darijo Srna
Niko Kranjcar, Eduardo and Nikola Jelavic, who had a great end to the domestic season.
The Republic of Ireland squad is one of the most settled sides in this years competition. They are a very experienced side and are currently
on an 13 match unbeaten run which includes matches against fellow qualifiers Italy, Czech Rep, Croatia and Russia whilst boasting a strong
defence that has conceded just three times in those thirteen matches. With a settled side comes a lack of experience in the reserves.
They rely on a great defence although the lack of pace at the back means that they sometimes have to soak up a huge amount of pressure
and apart from Robbie Keane do not appear to offer too much going forward.
To qualify: Spain and Italy

Group D: England, France, Sweden, Ukraine
This is a very difficult group to call as all four teams are very evenly matched. England qualified with relative ease, winning 5 and drawing 3
and were very impressive away from home. England go into the finals missing 4 players through injury and under a new manager in
Roy Hodgson whose teams tend to be well organised and hard to breakdown. In Joe Hart they have a very good keeper and has the potential
to be world-class, however should Hart be injured or suspended they could be in serious trouble as the back-up keepers are average at best.
As mentioned the defence will be strong and hard to break down. The midfield appears to lack creativity and a lot will depend on the form
of Steven Gerrard, but we could see the emergence of a new world star in Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain if he is given his chance. Not having
Wayne Rooney available for the 1st two games is a huge loss and England could be virtually out of the competition before he returns.
Scoring goals could be England's real problem as none of the other strikers have had prolific domestic seasons.
New coach Laurent Blanc has turned France around since their self-implosion during the last World Cup. France were comfortable winners of
their qualify group and were unbeaten away from home. The French are solid defensively with Gael Clichy, Mathieu Debuchy, Antoine Reveillere
and the experienced Patrice Evra. In most of their qualifying games France played with two holding midfielders, Yann M’Villa and Yohan Cabaye,
this gives the attacking midfield trio of Franck Ribery, Samir Nasri and Mathieu Valbuena freedom to go forward. Blanc has only selected three
forwards in his squad and that very much suggests they will just play with one up front and that one will more than likely be Karim Benzema,
who has had a very good season domestically and fits in very well with this style of play.
Sweden finished 2nd in their qualifying group but they qualified automatically for the competition by having the best record of all of the 2nd
placed sides. Swedish manager Erik Hamren appears to have transformed them from a defensive/negative side into a very attack-minded team,
so much so that they have become a lot easier to score against and they only managed 2 clean sheets in qualifying. However it should not be
overlooked that the Swedes still pocess in their ranks some very capable defenders in Jonas Olsson, Olaf Mellberg, Martin Olsson and Andreas
Granqvist. In midfield they have lots of experience in Kim Kallstrom and Andreas Svensson (214 international appearances between them) who
both offer great protection to the back four and attack-wise have Rasmus Elm, Sebastian Larsson, Emir Bajrami and Christian Wilhelmson.
Hamren appears to have pulled off a masterstroke by allowing Zlatan Imbrahimovic licence to drop deep and cause defenders all sorts of
problems by not having to be the target man with Johan Elmander operating as the lone striker.
Home advantage is normally worth a Quarter-final place at least but in Ukraine’s case i can’t see it, their goalkeeping situation is a nightmare
with their two first choice keepers out of the tournament (One through injury, the other banned for doping offence) leaving them with
Andriy Pyatov, who is not the most reliable keeper, as first choice and the two back-ups have a total of 1 international cap between them.
Their back four will probably be Selin, Rakitskiy, Kucher and Butko, decent club players but that might not be good enough at this level
although they will be aided by Anatolii Tymoschuk in the defensive midfield role but him apart the rest of the midfield of Denys Garmash,
Andriy Yarmelenko and Oleg Gusev does not look too spectacular. Andrei Shevchenko is so popular that he is almost undroppable but
at 35 years old his legs have gone and will be unlikely to last the full 90 mins in any game and their best goal threat could come from
Yehven Seleznyov.
To qualify: France and England (This is heart ruling head, as in reality i can well see Sweden qualifying)

QF1 - Winner Group A vs Runner-up Group B
QF2 - Winner Group B vs Runner-up Group A
QF3 - Winner Group C vs Runner-up Group D
QF4 - Winner Group D vs Runner-up Group C

SF1 - Winner QF1 vs Winner QF3
SF2 - Winner QF2 vs Winner QF4

N.B. I do claim the above to be all my own work as most of it
has been blatantly plagiarised from around the interwebs.

Baiting Guru Joined: 11 May 2004 Posts: 2163

Fuck defence, attack!!!

Nice OP, i've been looking forward to this tournament for months.

saturday is our first match against denmark. We have to win that one to make any chance of getting to the quarter finals

My prediction for the finals: Netherlands - Germany

Posted: Wed Jun 06, 2012 6:45 am

Klaasvaak wrote:

My prediction for the finals: Netherlands - Germany

You miised a bit...

That'll go to penalties and the Germans will win. Laughing

Posted: Wed Jun 06, 2012 7:31 am

My prediction for the final is Germany vs Spain, with The Germans winning.

@Klas, I can't see The Netherlands getting to the final unless they win their group.
If they finish as runners-up in the group they would face Russia, who i think are a very good
outside bet, and then a semi-final probably against the Spanish.
Win the group and The Netherlands would have a much easier route through.

Baiting Guru Joined: 11 May 2004 Posts: 2163

My predictions:

betted 5 euro on this so i better win Smile

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Posted: Wed Jun 06, 2012 10:45 am

My prediction

Group A:
Poland (2nd)
Greece
Russia (1st)
Czech Republic

Group B:
Holland (2nd)
Germany (1st)
Portugal
Denmark

Group C:
Spain (1st)
Italy (2nd)
Croatia
Republic of Ireland

Group D:
England (2nd)
France (1st)
Sweden
Ukraine

QF1 - Russia vs Holland
QF2 - Germany vs Poland
QF3 - Spain vs England
QF4 - France vs Italy

SF1 - Russia vs Spain
SF2 - Germany vs Italy

3rd place match - Russia vs Italy

Final: Germany vs Spain

Baiting Guru Joined: 11 May 2004 Posts: 2163

/\/\
I am with you on most predictions, but this is such a close tournament.
For group B i wouldn't be surprised if Portugal and Denmark advanced. And for group D Sweden

Posted: Wed Jun 06, 2012 11:00 am

December 4th i wrote this regarding group D:

Quote:

Group D is very hard to figure out how it ends. I can see all teams end up in first place and i can see all teams end up last.

Ukraine: Player by player the least skilled team in the group, no doubt about it. However they have the home turf and that is often something good in championships. Hosts usually manage to get through the group stage.

Sweden: Defensively skilled team with a style that fits against England (despite the recent loss), good statistics against France and also a team that plays well as the underdog. Just look at when they won the "group of death" in 02 (England, Nigeria, Argentina). But player by player they lack some skills. Only two players are playing regularly for a European top class teams. Most players are from good teams in bad leagues or bad teams in good leagues.

France: Great players but they have had some hmm... difficulties cooperating in recent years. But that may also be a solved problem with the new coach Blanc. The old one was a moron.

England: Like France, great players of you look at the names. They have a good side, no doubt about it. However that are never as good as they think that they are themselves. Heck they are world champions before every tournament. And also they have horrible goalies. Not just the usual "not good" ones. They have goalies that can (and have) totally screw them over.

That is my opinion on group D

Since then a few things have changed.

England have gotten themselves a good goalie. Ok, Joe Heart was around in December too, but he have developed greatly the last year. And with him, England now have a world class keeper, something they have not had since Peter Shilton (and no, i did not regard David Seaman as a world class keeper). With Robert Green safely away from the starting side the English fans will not have to put up with things like this on a regular basis.
Sadly enough the English have been ravaged by injuries lately, and their best striker (Rooney) is banned the first two games. In all the goalie now is their best position, but if Heart do get injured like SA said, then it is truly game over for the English. And even with him i think they will have a hard time beat the Swedes, they haven't beaten them in a competitive game (only one practice game have they won) since the Bobby Charlton era. And i do not think that they are good enough to take on and beat the French team at the moment.

France seem to have been getting order to their team, even though the problems with Gourcuff still remain and he had to be dropped from the team. He is of course good enough to take a place in both the squad and probably the starting side judging only by his football skills. But the event does show that Blanc takes the harmony of a team more serious than did his predecessor. This bodes well for the French team and i think that they will beat England and, and hammer Ukraine.

Ukraine is not good enough, it is as simple as that. And the fact that their would be starting goalie is injured is not making things any better. They will have to struggle to even avoid ending up last. The only thing going for them in my opinion is the home turf.

Sweden hasn't done that well in the practice games even though they beat both Serbia and Iceland. And none of those teams are qualified for the tournament, one of them for a good reason. They do score a lot but they also concede a lot of goals. Not the way we are used to see the Swedes. They have also lost one of their best defenders in Majstorovic that played well with Mellberg. It was a big letdown when his knee gave away. The replacement, whether it is Granquist or Olsson is not as good or experienced.

This is how the group will end.

France 8p
Sweden 5p
England 2p
Ukraine 1p

Posted: Wed Jun 06, 2012 12:42 pm

@Klaasvaak - you're more optimistic about the Danish chances than I am. Morten Olsen does seem to have a tactical upper hand against Portugal, but I can't see Denmark getting a point in any of the other matches.

Posted: Thu Jun 07, 2012 7:48 am

Dr Mike wrote:

This is how the group will end.

France 8p
Sweden 5p
England 2p
Ukraine 1p

I think that it may well come down to goal difference/goals scored between England and Sweden for second place in the group.
They will both beat Ukraine, lose to France and draw against each other. Leaving them both on 4pts.

BTW - It is impossible for a team to finish on 8pts. Wink

Posted: Thu Jun 07, 2012 11:04 am

Ops. I meant 7 points. France win over England and Ukraine and draw against Sweden. That last part is more a case of hopefully thinking.

Posted: Thu Jun 07, 2012 11:45 am

I'll take a little look at the Danish squad in this post:

Squad list:

Goalkeepers: Stephan Andersen (Evian Thonon Gaillard), Anders Lindegaard (Manchester United), Kasper Schmeichel (Leicester City)

Defenders: Lars Jacobsen (FC København), Daniel Wass (Evian Thonon Gaillard), Daniel Agger (c) (Liverpool), Simon Kjær (Roma), Andreas Bjelland (FC Nordsjælland), Simon Poulsen (AZ Alkmaar), Jores Okore (FC Nordsjælland)

Midfielders: Christian Poulsen (Evian Thonon Gaillard), Jakob Poulsen (FC Midtjylland), William Kvist (FC Nürnberg), Niki Zimling (Club Brugge), Thomas Kahlenberg (Evian Thonon Gaillard), Christian Eriksen (Ajax), Michael Silberbauer (Young Boys), Lasse Schøne (NEC Nijmegen)

Forwards: Dennis Rommedahl (Brøndby IF), Nicklas Bendtner (Arsenal), Michael Krohn-Dehli (Brøndby IF), Tobias Mikkelsen (FC Nordsjælland), Nicklas Pedersen (Groningen)

This is how it looks, and I'm not too impressed:

Keepers:
After Thomas Sørensen (Stoke City) got injured in the friendly against Brazil, Stephan Andersen got the #1 jersey, making him the starter. The assumption is that he was given the spot due to Lindegaard being on his way back from injury, while he had been given regular playing time in Evian. Kasper Schmeichel was called up as third choice to cover for the two others, should they get injured.

The defence:
The Danish defence is led by our captain, Daniel Agger. I'd say that he's our best player, and that he would be widely regarded as one of the best on his position in the world, if it hadn't been for the injuries. Agger will be playing with either Andreas Bjelland or Simon Kjær in the central defence - two defenders who both could cause a defensive issue. Bjelland is the best defender in the Danish league, and was a key figure in getting the first championship to FC Nordsjælland. The problem is that he is too much like Agger in his playing style. Kjær isn't like Agger in his playing style, but he hasn't quite reached the same playing level as he had before his injury in 2010. On the backs, we have Lars Jacobsen and Simon Poulsen. Jacobsen is a solid RB, who's both good at attacking and defending, while Poulsen is more offensive (he did start his career as a winger) and sometimes leaves some room behind him. The reserves are Daniel Wass (RB) and Michael Silberbauer (LB), Wass being more offensive minded than Jacobsen, and Silberbauer being a right-footed midfielder, who's really good on the left back. Just ask the Portugese team.

Midfield:
On the defensive midfield, we have William Kvist and Niki Zimling as the starters. Kvist won the position through his work on the position in the FCK 10/11 team, which advanced from the group stage in Champions League, and kept it during this season, where he has played for Stuttgart, and been playing regularly. Zimling took the place next to Kvist by working really well with him. Kvist is the more defensive player, while Zimling is a bit more box to box minded. On the bench, we have Jakob and Christian Poulsen. Jakob Poulsen is the most offensive minded central midfielder in the Danish squad, but doesn't quite reach the level of Zimling, while Christian Poulsen might be playing his last big international tournament, with his career having been on a decline since he left Sevilla in 2008. Silberbauer can cover the defensive midfield too, if it's needed. On the offensive midfield, we have Christian Eriksen, who can tear up and defence on a good day, but like most young players, he's rather inconsistent, and hasn't been playing well in the friendlies up to the tournament, making it very possible for Thomas Kahlenberg to snatch the position.

Attack:
One thing is certain: Dennis Rommedahl and Michael Krohn-Dehli would probably not have been present at the tournament, and they definitely wouldn't be starting, if the national team was picked on club performances. Neither of the two have performed well for Brøndby IF, who finished a disappointing 9th in the Danish league (12 teams). On the national team, they usually perform much better, and Rommedahl usually plays well with Bendtner. On the bench, we have Tobias Mikkelsen, one of the best players for surprise champions FC Nordsjælland, ready to take the right wing if Rommedahl plays as badly for the national team, as he has done for Brøndby, and likewise with Lasse Schøne and the left wing against Krohn-Dehli. Kahlenberg can cover the left wing as well, meaning that competition is heavy on that position. This only leaves the front man, where we have Nicklas Bendtner and Nicklas Pedersen. Most people probably knows about the first mentioned player, inconsistent as hell. Quite good when things are going well for him, and really bad when things aren't. He will be starting every match for Denmark, as his "rival" on the position is really bad at scoring goals. He has scored one goal for his club this entire season. Pedersen is good at playing with his back turned at the opposite defence, but almost useless in the box (aside from being a physical presence). Lasse Schøne could take that position too, should Morten Olsen decide to try playing with a false 9, something that FC Nordsjælland had great success with this season.

Here's the assumed lineup:

GK: Andersen
RB: Jacobsen
CB: Kjær
CB: Agger
LB: S. Poulsen
CM: Kvist
CM: Zimling
AM: Eriksen
RW: Rommedahl
LW: Krohn-Dehli
CF: Bendtner

Posted: Fri Jun 08, 2012 8:57 pm

Very impressed by Russia. If they can maintain their form they could
go a long way in the tournament.

Enjoyed Poland/Greece - Poles should have had it won by half-time
but Greece should have won it at the end.

Good start to the tourney - hope the rest of the games are as good.

Posted: Fri Jun 08, 2012 9:03 pm

Agreed, good start to the tourney on the pitch.

Dissapointed to hear about the Dutch black players being given monkey chants as they were training. Pretty sure the Czech lad was being singled out earlier also, particularly towards the end. Be nice for UEFA/FIFA to stop handing out comical fines and crack down hard, they certainly would if England was the offending nation.

Baiting Guru Joined: 11 May 2004 Posts: 2163

Two hours left Very Happy

Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2012 6:02 pm

I'm practically speechless. A fantastic team effort by the Danish team secured a 1-0 win over Holland. Our left side, Simon Poulsen and Michael Krohn-Dehli, were amazing, and Stephan Andersen made the saves when we needed them most.

But all of the team performed. I haven't seen Kjær play this well on the national team since before the world cup 2010. Everyone worked for it, which is very important, when your team's the underdog.

Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2012 6:10 pm

Well done Denmark Cool

One hell of an interesting group now.

One of those days for the Dutch.

Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2012 6:14 pm

The team did well, pushing Van Persie to use his right foot all the time. Any one of the misses he made, he wouldn't have made them with his left.

Sneijder was a huge problem for us though.

Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2012 6:43 pm

Great result for Denmark. With 29 shots and failing to score the Dutch only have themselves to blame.
I don't understand why the Dutch manager started with two defensive midfield players in what
should have been their easiest game (although if never turned out that way).
IMO Klass Jan-Huntelaar and Rafael van der Vaart should be starting ahead of Nigel de Jong and Ibrahim Afellay.

Baiting Guru Joined: 11 May 2004 Posts: 2163

well that sucked!!

Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2012 9:48 pm

Nuff said! Razz

And Portugal's next - we've beaten them in important games 3 out of 4 times the last years, we have a victory in the bag now, and they've got their backs against the wall. I predict that a lot of cigarettes will be smoked on Wednesday night. Wink

EDIT: And Niclas Bendtner performed as a team player. How extraordinary! Very Happy

Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2012 10:21 pm

Bendtner being a team player. That would have been even harder to predict than us actually winning that match Very Happy

Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2012 10:24 pm

Germany as ruthlessly efficient as always, although Portugal had their chances. Someone who didn't have Helda Postiga upfront might well have got a draw or a win.

Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2012 11:15 pm

Germans deserved their victory. I think they can play much better than that and from
what i've seen today should cruise through this group.
Portugal were disappointing and only came to life after Germany scored.

@TownEnder - Are you a Swindon Town fan perchance?

Posted: Sun Jun 10, 2012 12:29 am

Scentless Apprentice wrote:

@TownEnder - Are you a Swindon Town fan perchance?

Unfortuantly Very Happy

You support anyone worse than that?

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