Euro 2012

Today marks the start of the Euro 2012, Football Tournament that is starting in Poland. It'll be hosted by Poland and Ukraine, with matches ranging all over their countries. The first and opening match will be Poland versus Greece, at the National Stadium in Poland.
The second of today, will see Russia taking on Czech Republic at the Stadion Miejski, a couple of hours later after the first game.
Here is the layout for the first match of the day and of the tournament!


Group of Life (Group A)



Group A is home to one of the hosts, Poland. It also has Russia, Czech Republic, and Greece in the group. So far, the bookies are betting on Russia and Poland to take the group stages, but Czech Republic has been known to pull of some amazing surprises, and you cannot ignore their goal keeper, Petr Čech.

The top two positions of Group A can easily be fought by both Russia and Poland, though Russia is currently becoming a huge favorite, there is a chance host nation Poland can pull off a good win against Russia to claim the top of the group. We'll see how it plays out today as all of the Group A teams will be playing their first match.
"All four teams felt blessed by the draw. All four believe they have a real chance of emerging victorious. Two will discover they are deluded, but until the first round has been played, the competitors appear too close to call. This is a group in which Warren Buffet's wise words may register: "If you've been playing poker for half an hour and you still don't know who the patsy is, you're the patsy.""


Group of Death (Group B)





Dubbed the Group of Death, which houses the national teams of The Netherlands, Germany, Denmark and Portugal. With some many teams level on team strength and FIFA rankings, this group will (hopefully) produce some of the biggest and best matches during this tournament.

Germany

"German steel, German resilience or German mental toughness. Call it what you want, but when it comes to major tournaments, Germany usually finds a way to land in the latter stages."

It's amazing to think of the German team, who managed to get third place at the 2010 World Cup in Africa, and continue to dominate throughout their friendlies and qualifying matches. They are looking to take the first place of Group B, but it's unknown at this point.

Netherlands

"Big things are perennially expected from the Dutch, and they almost delivered in 2010. A game away from bagging a maiden World Cup title, they were beaten 1-0 by Spain in extra time. While most everyone will remember Andres Iniesta’s winner, a fair few will also recall Arjen Robben not capitalizing when one-on-one with keeper Iker Casillas."

Netherlands were so close to taking home the World Cup in Africa, but they weren't able to beat current champions Spain. It'll be interesting to see how Robben will do this go at the Tournament, especially after his dismal display at the Champions League Final against Chelsea, where Bayern Munich lost on penalties. It'll be a tough challenge, but if the Netherlands can get a foot up over Germany, they may be able to win the first position and go into the knock out stages strong.

Portugal

"If Portugal triumphs at the European Championships and Cristiano Ronaldo plays a significant role, the suave Ronaldo would be doubly delighted. Portugal, habitually pleasing to the eye, has never won Europe’s top international competition. Agonizingly for its supporters, Portugal lost the final at home in 2004."

Portugal has always been an interesting team to watch. At one hand, they have arguably one of the two best players in the world, Cristiano Ronaldo, but his national team hasn't really produced anything special. If Ronaldo can take charge of his team, and dominate early they may be able to get a hand up on the groups two favorites, Germany and Netherlands.

Denmark

"Even as the lowest-ranked nation in the group, Denmark shouldn’t be discounted.

For starters, Denmark topped Portugal in qualifying, giving the Danes a psychological advantage when they meet. Denmark is solid and compact under venerable coach Morten Olsen. At the 2010 World Cup, Denmark hung on in the first half against the Netherlands, coming unstuck only following an own goal early in the second half. After South Africa, the Danes faced Germany, a match that ended 2-2. Germany didn’t field a full-strength squad, but Denmark will only choose to remember the final result."

Denmark is the team that is viewed at the bottom of the group, at any bookie or website that is ranking each group stage, but YOU shouldn't believe that. Denmark has been surprising been a stronger team since the World Cup of 2010. They looked strong during their pre-qualifiers and they will be the team to watch for major upsets.

The "other" group of Death (Group C)

"When the Euro 2012 draw was held last December, Group B was tagged as the “Group of Death,” seeing as it had Germany, Portugal, the Netherlands and Denmark. But upon further inspection, Group C was tagged as “the other Group of Death” with Spain, Italy, Croatia and Ireland making for a formidable quartet in its own right."

Spain

"At the outset, that didn’t stop Spain from being heavily tabbed to progress. The reigning world and European champions are aiming to become the first national team to win three major tournaments in a row, and remain stacked with talent. But the arrival of Euro 2012 sees some questions surrounding La Furia Roja. All-time leading scorer David Villa was unable to recover from the broken leg he sustained during the FIFA World Club Championship last December. Central defender and captain Carles Puyol has also been ruled out due to injury, and all of a sudden, Spain doesn’t look quite as imposing as it once did.

“The question is: How hungry is Spain still?,” said former German national team head coach Jurgen Klinsmann, who won the European title as a player in 1996. “[Opponents] will lock them in so they can’t play, will try to make them frustrated. They will be very physical. And it depends how much that Spanish team still wants to go through that grind.”"

It'll be interesting to see what the current world cup champions will do when they play, with a couple of important players out, but it doesn't mean much since they have such a slew of players they can use, most of them with world-wide proving skills. You'll see the likes of Xavi and the others from Barcelona coming out for their national team, hoping to win it all again.

Right now as it looks, Spain can easily secure the group stages if they play as strong as they did during the 2010 World Cup.

Italy

"With Spain still looking impressive, the rest of the teams in the group appear to be playing for second place. At first glance, Italy is the favorite to emerge, but as difficult as the run-up to the tournament has been for Spain, it pales in comparison to that of the Azzurri."

Italy seems to have the most up and down history when it comes to their national team, but have proven they have the skills to win. It all comes down to now is if the team can work together and the coach keep control of the team throughout the tournament. Right now, they sit as the number two favorites, but a interesting draw against Spain can make it an interesting end to the group stages.

Croatia

"Given the upheaval in the Italian camp, Croatia could be the team that benefits the most. After failing to qualify for the 2010 World Cup, Slaven Bilic’s side certainly has the creativity to trouble opponents, with Luka Modric acting as midfield orchestrator and Darijo Srna providing another attacking conduit. Bilic also appears to have a glut of capable forwards. Ivica Olic and Mario Mandzukic have been penciled in as the starters, but Eduardo and Everton’s Nikica Jelavic are available to step in if needed."

Croatia can be one of the bigger wild cards in this group, given why this group is also another "Group of Death", because like the quote above says, they have a pretty great slew of players, including Modric. If they play strong in their opening matches and if they can claim a good win against either Italy or Spain, it can easily see this team heading towards the top of the group.

Ireland

"That leaves Ireland to play the role of ultimate underdog. On paper, Ireland possesses few, if any, truly world-class players, although Robbie Keane, Aiden McGeady, Richard Dunne and emerging Sunderland midfielder James McClean are talented. For that reason, it seems a stretch to think that Ireland will progress."

Ireland is a surprise inclusion to EURO 2012, as a team that many view undeserving to be playing in the group stages and not having a chance. It will be very interesting to see if they can pull of some upsets, which seems likely if any of the recent qualifying and friendlies have shown us. With world-class manager Giovanni Trapattoni behind the helm of the team, he can easily guide this team past the group stages. They need wins though, against some stronger opponents in the group. They could get a surprise draw against Spain, and wins against Croatia and Italy to give them that extra boost they need.

Group D: The Unpredictables

England

Probably one of the biggest upsetting teams in recent history, England on paper should be number two, if not number one. They have so many world class players, some young and some older, yet they have been plagued by troubles, losing early in the 2010 World Cup to Germany, and barely getting out of the group stages.

With a new manager in, England has shown they are showing some of their power during the qualifying. When they play their first two games, they will be out with head striker Wayne Rooney, but Manchester United team mate Danny Welbeck has shown he wants to score, and will continue to do so.

If they keep strong and fight each game like it's the most important, it can see them move onto the knock out stages, but they will have to fight off the rest of the group.

France

Probably the second biggest story, next to Spain winning, was France's national team and the break down that happened. The whole team broke apart during training, a few scuffles ensued, and players were fined and banned from the team. France fans are hoping after two years, the French team will come back with a vengeance in their heart to prove to all that they are not a bunch of "cry babies" and they will prove it.

Their first match will be a historic one, against England, which has always proved as a very interesting match. They have a handful of star power that they plan on using as much as possible, and if they can get a early win out against England it can see them take the group.

Sweden

Sweden will be a interesting team to watch. In previous tournaments, they have always tried the "Ten men and Zlatan" with Zlatan up front, but it never really worked well for the team. Now, they have shaked things up a bit, hoping to see something different produce from the team and it has!
They will be the team that if their formation and chemistry can work, they can get a few good draws and wins to see them grab a higher position in the group, especially if either France or England fail horribly.

Ukraine

The other host of the Euro 2012, Ukraine showed they deserved to host after giving a very well display during their qualifiers. It'll be interesting as there are not many people who believe they will move past the group stages, after dropping a couple of losses already to Sweden and France, but they could be the biggest surprise of the tournament, riding on the back of their Nation's pride. If they start out winning, they may finish like that. Watch for interesting tactics!



Closing Statements

The kick-off has just started for the Euro 2012, and so begins this great tournament. I hope it will not be plagued by racism, as a few stories have already emerged, and I know it will produce some great football games. Post your comments, tell us your predictions and all in all, Enjoy the games!