The stage is set for UEFA Euro 2012, a tournament which will be staged in Poland and Ukraine during the summer of 2012. There will be eight host cities for the European Championship, with 16 teams competing against each other before a winner is crowned at the Olympic Stadium in Kiev on Sunday 1 July.
Read naijalog’s prognosis of how each team might fare in each of the groups.
Euro 2012 Draw
Group A
The draw for the group stage of Euro 2012 has been made, with co-hosts Poland in Group A along with Greece, Russia and Czech Republic. Poland will play their first two matches at the National Stadium in Warsaw before a final group game against the Czechs at the Municipal Stadium in Wroclaw.
The draw for the group stage of Euro 2012 has been made, with co-hosts Poland in Group A along with Greece, Russia and Czech Republic. Poland will play their first two matches at the National Stadium in Warsaw before a final group game against the Czechs at the Municipal Stadium in Wroclaw.
Franciszek Smuda is the manager of Poland and will be looking to erase the memory of the 2010 World Cup qualifying campaign which was a disaster that saw the Poles finish fifth in their group behind Slovakia, Slovenia, Czech Republic and Northern Ireland.
The White Eagles have been handed an easy group on paper for Euro 2012 and home advantage should also count for a great deal. Many people feel that a major football tournament is more of a success if the host nations perform well and Poland will get the European Championship under way when they play Greece on 8 June 2012.
Russia also play the Czech Republic on 8 June, with Dick Advocaat one of the most experienced coaches at Euro 2012, having managed the Netherlands on two occasions. He has also previously taken charge of UAE, South Korea and Belgium.
Group B
Group B looks to be a little tougher, considering that Germany and the Netherlands both made the final four of the 2010 World Cup. Both teams were beaten by champions Spain, with Joachim Low’s side losing narrowly in the semi-final before the Dutch were beaten in extra-time in the final.
Group B looks to be a little tougher, considering that Germany and the Netherlands both made the final four of the 2010 World Cup. Both teams were beaten by champions Spain, with Joachim Low’s side losing narrowly in the semi-final before the Dutch were beaten in extra-time in the final.
Both Germany and Holland won their qualifying groups with ease and are the favourites to progress from Group B and reach the quarter finals, although Portugal and Denmark might have something to say about that! The Danes might be viewed as the weakest team in this section, although Morten Olsen’s side won their group ahead of the Portuguese and have a strong team ethic which makes them hard to beat.
Portugal are now managed by Paulo Bento, who will be relying on Cristiano Ronaldo to make things happen for a team who are actually ranked 7th by FIFA at the moment. They were a fairly defensive team at the 2010 World Cup and were eliminated by Spain in the last sixteen.
Group C
Group C is also a tasty affair, not least because holders Spain feature alongside Italy! Spain used to be the perennial underachievers when it came to major tournaments, although their triumph at Euro 2008 bucked that particular trend and Vicente Del Bosque’s team followed that up two years later by winning the 2010 World Cup.
Group C is also a tasty affair, not least because holders Spain feature alongside Italy! Spain used to be the perennial underachievers when it came to major tournaments, although their triumph at Euro 2008 bucked that particular trend and Vicente Del Bosque’s team followed that up two years later by winning the 2010 World Cup.
Has the Spanish team peaked or will they continue to achieve success for the next few years? The form of Fernando Torres at Chelsea is a problem for the coach, although Andres Iniesta, Xavi and Cesc Fabregas operate beautifully for Barcelona, while Xabi Alonso and Sergio Busquets ensure that this is the strongest midfield department going.
However, we should remember that Spain came close to exiting the 2010 World Cup on a number of occasions and Italy are currently enjoying a renaissance which has seen Cesare Prandelli ring in the changes after a shambolic 2010 campaign in South Africa which saw the Azzurri fail to win any of their matches against New Zealand, Paraguay and Slovakia.
It is also worth noting that Italy beat Spain 2-1 in a friendly match last August, while the Spanish also tasted defeat against England in a friendly at Wembley. It might not be lost on the other two teams in the group, with the Republic of Ireland through to Euro 2012 after being controversially beaten in the 2010 World Cup play-offs.
The Irish are led by Giovanni Trapattoni and they have been handed an opening game against Croatia which will hold no fears for the Republic. A victory in this match would set things up nicely for challenges against Spain and Italy, with perhaps just one point being required from the two remaining games.
Group D
Finally, Group D features an interesting mix of teams including co-hosts Ukraine, England, France and Sweden. It is fair to say that a combination of any two teams can progress from the group stage and it will be interesting to see whether France or England can improve on their showing at the 2010 World Cup.
Finally, Group D features an interesting mix of teams including co-hosts Ukraine, England, France and Sweden. It is fair to say that a combination of any two teams can progress from the group stage and it will be interesting to see whether France or England can improve on their showing at the 2010 World Cup.
The French team embarrassed the nation with the player strike that seemed to take place during the tournament in South Africa, although Lauren Blanc has steadied the ship and a youthful Les Bleus team qualified for Euro 2012 as group winners.
England could be absolutely anything at this tournament. They were also poor at the 2010 World Cup and will be without star striker Wayne Rooney for the first two games in the Ukraine, although there are emerging talents such as Danny Welbeck, Daniel Sturridge, Jack Wilshere and Phil Jones that could make the Euro 2012 tournament a success story.
Co-hosts Ukraine get their Euro 2012 campaign under way against Sweden at the Olympic Stadium in Kiev, with Oleh Blokhin tasked with delivering a successful campaign for the co-hosts who probably stand a better chance of reaching the quarter finals than Poland.
This is the first time that the Zhovto-Blakytni are appearing at a European Championship, although they can call upon several players who turn out for Dynamo Kiev every week and the influence of 35-year-old Andriy Shevchenko shouldn’t be underestimated.
This is the last occasion upon which Shevchenko will have a chance to shine in a major tournament and the same probably applies to Bayern Munich’s Anatoliy Tymoshchuk, who will be the midfield general for the co-hosts.
Sweden will have no fears in Group D considering they have regularly held England in recent matches between the two teams and have a togetherness which often means the sum of their parts is greater than the individual components.