However painful it was watching the build up to the much anticipated Euro 2012 draw, it was certainly worth the wait. The draw threw out some treats and also some very interesting clashes, altogether making for a very appealing summer of 2012 in Poland and Ukraine. Group B, branded ‘the group of death’ is certainly the highlight of the draw, pitting the World Cup finalists, Netherlands against the third seeds, Germany, a Portugal team sporting one of the most in form forwards on the planet, Cristiano Ronaldo and a vastly improved Denmark squad, spurred on by the phenomenal talent of youngster Christian Eriksen. All four teams have every chance of progressing through to the quarter finals, thus making for a very competitive group, showcasing some of the finest talent from across Europe.
Germany has the most impressive record going into the competition with ten wins from ten qualifying games, made more impressive by their youthful squad. Germany will turn up to next summer’s competition with a squad far superior to the one that humiliated England last summer and finished a respectable third place to Spain and the Netherlands in South Africa 2010. You have to remember Germany’s squad for the World Cup 2010 was a squad largely made up of the very successful under 21’s squad, meaning it was a fairly inexperienced squad. Since then however key players such as Mesut Ozil, Sami Khedira, Thomas Muller, Mario Gomez, Mats Hummels and Manuel Neuer have established themselves at some of the best clubs in Europe; learning from and competing against the best players in Europe whilst gaining valuable experience that can help Germany hit the heights it should be reaching. These young players make up the core of the German national team, combining with experienced players such as Bastian Schweinsteiger and Phillip Lahm to build a solid squad capable of challenging for the Euro 2012 crown. The final piece in the jigsaw is their 19 year old sensation, Mario Gotze, fresh from winning the Bundesliga title with a youthful Borussia Dortmund, whilst also being awarded ‘Golden Boy 2011’, following in the footsteps of the likes of Lionel Messi, Wayne Rooney and Sergio Aguero, all to have won this prestigious award. The man in charge of this exciting squad, Joachim Low, certainly knows his stuff too, cementing Germany’s status as real contenders.
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| Mario Gotze of Borussia Dortmund - 'Golden Boy' 2011 |
Neighbours Netherlands also have a host of world class players; Wesley Sneijder and Arjen Robben the pick of the bunch. The Netherlands don’t have the strongest squad in the competition, but as always will definitely be there or thereabouts come the end of the competition. The fitness of premier league duo Robin van Persie and Rafael Van der Vaart will be key as they will be relied upon to produce the goals. Seventh seeds Portugal, although heavily reliant of Cristiano Ronaldo, will forever be a danger in big competitions and could cause Germany and Netherlands problems. And finally Denmark, already written off by most, are a handy team with a point to prove and nothing to lose.
In comparison then Group A seems a breeze. Of course, there are no easy games when it comes to the European Championships, but the four teams that make up Group A: Poland, Greece, Czech Republic and Russia are unlikely to still be in the competition come 1st July. Saying that Greece stunned the world by winning Euro 2004, so it is possible for any one of the 16 teams that have qualified to go on and win the competition. You would fancy Russia to progress through to the last eight, after that it is harder to predict as any one of the three teams left over stands a fair chance of progressing to the knockout stages.
This leads perfectly onto Group D: co-hosts Ukraine, England, France and Sweden. From an England perspective it is a tricky group although the expectation will be to qualify, preferably top of the group to avoid a potential quarter final meeting with the World Champions, Spain.
We can beat Spain we’ve done it once we can do it again.
It isn’t that simple, unfortunately. Spain are a whole different animal when there is silverware on offer. In the friendly at Wembley England played a very lacklustre Spanish side that didn’t really get out of third gear. Not to take anything away from the result for which England played admirably well in defence and on the counter, but Spain have a lot more to offer than what they showed at Wembley back in November. Assuming that Spain do finish top of their group, England will need to top their group too in order to avoid that unwanted quarter final showdown. That is easier said than done. A re-energised French outfit, led by manager Laurent Blanc will be looking to put an abysmal world cup behind them and show the rest of Europe that they are still one of the top teams. Laurent Blanc has created a solid defence that only conceded four goals in the entire qualifying stage. Youngster Yann M’Vila is one to watch, touted the next Claude Makelele and for good reason, he controls the French midfield enabling the likes of Karim Benzema and Frank Ribery to press forward in search of goals. France will undoubtedly make it hard for England as will familiar rivals Sweden, led by powerhouse Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Although Ibrahimovic can be disappointing from time to time, on his day he is one of the best forwards on the planet and will most certainly be a handful for England’s defence, whether that be John Terry, Gary Cahill, Phil Jones, Phil Jagielka or any other defenders in Capello’s book. Another helping hand for Capello and his men is the fact that UEFA have very kindly reduced Wayne Rooney’s ban to two matches, meaning he will be available for the final group game against Ukraine. With recent performances things are looking on the up for England giving us good reason to be optimistic ahead of the ever approaching finals next summer.
cfreestone
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