Nervous? Excited? Perhaps slightly aroused? This is just a small sample of the potential emotions many of us will be feeling as we enter the home stretch before Euro 2012. Over the course of the next couple of days, the goal of this web-based enterprise is to provide a group by group preview of the entire tournament, pre-tournament power rankings and the first round of fearless predictions. So without any further delay, here is the preview of Group A at Euro 2012.
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Czech Republic
Odds That Mean Nothing:
To Win The Group - 4/1
To Qualify To The Knockout Stage - 6/4
To Win Euro 2012 - 66/1
The Outlook:
The Czech Republic will have the history and pedigree to come out of a very even Group A. However, without a proven goal scorer, I am sorry Milan Baros your time has passed, the Czechs will have difficulty scoring goals and against defensive minded teams like Greece and Poland they could struggle. At the end of the day the success of this Euro campaign for the Czech Republic will hinge on the strength of their midfield and whether players like Tomas Rosicky will rise to the challenge.
The Superstar: Petr Cech
Over the course of the past couple of years, there have been many pundits who have been less than impressed with the play of Chelsea's #1 goalkeeper, Petr Cech. The argument was Cech was simply not the same player he once was after his fractured skull against Reading in October 2006. However, those fears have definitely been laid to rest after a steller campaign for Chelsea and being one of the major reasons for their Champions League success in May. Cech is a pillar of a goalkeeper gifted with incredible reflexes, almost a deadly combination for any oncoming attacker.
The Young Gun: Vaclav Pilar
Vaclav Pilar is part of the new breed of footballer . . . diminutive, good with two feet and incredibly fast. Quick, how many Lionel Messi comparisons can we make? But in all honesty, Pilar, who is joining Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga after Euro 2012, is a significant up and coming talent for the Czech squad.
Eurovision 2012 Entry:
*This is the 2009 entry for the Czech Republic
Greece
Odds That Mean Nothing:
To Win The Group - 5/1
To Qualify To The Knockout Stage - 6/4
To Win Euro 2012 - 80/1
The Outlook:
It is always difficult trying to take an objective view when it is so clear just how biased you are. But I am going to give it a fair shake. First of all, let's be realistic and start by saying that Greece is in a transition period for its football team. National team coach Fernando Santos, I never fancied him even when he was the coach of my beloved AEK Athens, is trying to incorporate a talented yet inexperienced group of youngsters with the old stalwarts of the Greek national team, Giorgos Karagounis, Fanis Gekas, Kostas Katsouranis and Nikos Liberopoulos. The bottom line for any Greek national team is that it all revolves around getting the tactics spot-on and scoring goals from set-pieces. A successful tournament for Greece will be to advance to the knock-out stages, everything else is gravy.
The Superstar - Sotiris Ninis
There is no superstar on the Greek national team, those are just the facts. However, the most talented player is 22 year-old Sotiris Ninis. Ninis has had a dreadful campaign for Panathinaikos, in part because he was sidelined with a terrible knee injury for the majority of the season and then when he returned to action he broke his nose. Labelled as the 'Greek Messi,' honestly that is his nickname, Ninis is Greece's most dynamic player and they will go as far as he takes them. I have to wonder if Messi is the Argentine Ninis, what do you think?
The Young Gun - Giannis Fetfatzidis
While Ninis could also be classified as a young gun, Greece's potential breakout star is Giannis Fetfatzidis. This 21 year-old attacking midfielder from Olympiakos has also been compared to Lionel Messi due to his close control dribbling. Really, another Messi comparison, how am I not surprised. The interesting aspect about Fetfatzidis' game is that he is willing to take on his opponent, something that has been lacking from the Greek national team since the days of Stelios Giannakopolous, the same Stelios who played for Bolton in the early 2000s.
Eurovision 2012 Entry:
Poland
Odds That Mean Nothing:
To Win The Group - 11/4
To Qualify To The Knockout Stage - 4/5
To Win Euro 2012 - 40/1
The Outlook:
The biggest game for Poland at Euro 2012 is the first one against Greece, but then again when you only play three games every single one of them is important. If they are able to secure three points against Greece, then they will be well on their way towards advancing to the knockout stages. Poland have an obvious home field advantage as they will be bolstered by their own fans in all of their matches. The concern for this edition of the Polish team is that they have absolutely no central defenders with any type of pedigree to make life easier for their young and talented keeper Wojciech Szczesny. By the way, Group A has by the far the most difficult names in the entire tournament. Regardless Poland will use the emotion of the crowd to try to jump on their opponents in the first half, after that the key is to ensure that they do not fade and falter in the second half where they might be suspect to a late goal.
The Superstar - Robert Lewandowski
The Borussia Dortmund striker is the Polish attack, pure and simple. Buoyed in confidence due to a fantastic domestic campaign in Germany, Lewandowski is not only good in the air, but also exhibits fantastic touch and vision that allows him to be the fulcrum for all of Poland's attack. If the big man gets going and backed by the home support, Poland could very well surprise in this tournament.
The Young Gun - Rafal Wolski
Rafal Wolski has only two caps for the senior Polish team. However, his club form with Legia Warsaw was the primary reason why he has been invited to the big tournament. Capable with both feet, Wolski could very well be the spark plug off the bench that pushes Poland into the knockout stages.
Eurovision 2012 Entry:
*This is the 2011 entry for Poland
Russia
Odds That Mean Nothing:
To Win The Group - 8/5
To Qualify To The Knockout Stage - 5/11
To Win Euro 2012 - 25/1
The Outlook:
Russia, surprise semi-finalists in 2008, are the favorites to advance out of Group A and into the knockout stages. As always with anything affiliated with Mother Russia the buzzword is enigma. Pure and simple, the Russian team has the talent to be a surprise package at the tournament but at times they lack the drive, commitment and passion to execute. Regardless, Russia has avoided many of the big guns of European football and should advance comfortably from this group.
The Superstar - Andre Arshavin
Tossed aside in January by Arsenal, Andre Arshavin, Russia's captain, has been reborn playing his football with Zenit St. Petersburg. Arshavin has been rounding into form in the last couple of months helping Zenit capture the league title and secure Champions League football. However, Arshavin's career with the national team has had its fair share of ups and downs and it is still unsure if he is capable of delivering the goods with the pressure on.
The Young Gun - Alan Dzagoev
Every time I begin a new game in Football Manager 2012 one of my first orders of business is buying Alan Dzagoev, the 21 year-old attacking midfielder from CSKA Moscow. Dzagoev is one of Europe's emerging talents in football. With his vast experience at the club level, playing over 100 games, Dzagoev has the pedigree that is essential to being successful at the Euro 2012. I would not be surprised if Dzagoev parlays a strong tournament with a move to one of the Europe's biggest clubs.
Eurovision 2012 Entry:
FEARLESS PREDICTIONS - ORDER OF FINISH
1. Russia
2. Greece
3. Poland
4. Czech Republic
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