Poland Vs The Czech Republic as the Hosts Target Qualification for knock Out Phase .

the euro 2012 tournament has been going well apart form the various reported clashes between fans ,mostly involving  the polish and the Russians. violence  is expect when politics are mixed into competitive sport .The volotile history of the two nations has resulted in mindless fans clashing, causing millions of euros in damages . the two nations have been fined by Europe footballing  commissions.as Poland were guilty mishandling the situation particularly when they allowed 20,000 Russian fans march through Warsaw on the aniversary of the fall of the soviet union . 

Poland look to distance them selves form  negative publicity tonight ,with a win over the Czech Republic. with two draws in two games against Russia and Greece respectively Poland coach  Franciszek Smuda hopes for a better result against a mighty adversary. with players like Robert Lewandowsky and Jacob Blaszczykowski in their ranks Poland have every right to expect a victory. Poland are great passing side ,with  fluent movement.they demonstrated this in the match against Russia as they created multiple scoring opportunities .    Polish midfielder Eugene Polanski remains optimistic about the teams chances of victory, he had the following to say in a pre match press conference :

"We know that we can do something special for our fans and the country."This is the most important game in my career. This whole tournament is extremely important."All the preparation, all the training, four weeks of preparation, we are here for five weeks in total, and we want to demonstrate that we can give everything."If we give 100% of ourselves, we will win definitely tomorrow."

23 year old R.Lewandowski in action against Russia 

the Czech Republic's campaign did not start well  falling to a 4- 1 defeat at the hands of Russia in the opening game .they managed to  bounce back with a 2-1 victory over Greece in their second group game . as the victory will surely boost the players mentality. a draw is enough for the Czech team to qualify as runners up since Russia lead the group with a better goal difference. Captain Tomas Rosicky has warned his team mates of the dangers of playing for a draw as he feels that the teams failure to attack will boost the opposition , resulting in a mounting pressure from Poland during the match .the player is currently awaiting  a fitness test as  ankle injury may sideline the player for the upcoming matches if they were to qualify .  

Line Ups 

Petr Cech is said to have recovered form shoulder injury ,and will start in goals. in the event of Captian Rosicky not making the starting 11 , Jiracek is likey to move to the middle with Selassie covering him on the right wing . 

when attacking they come in full force , throwing numbers at their opposition. this in a way is  effective but the downside of it is being exposed at the back in case the ball is recovered by the opposition. as we saw in the game against Russia ,the Czech republic must be car full not leave empty pockets in defense ,as Poland posses great pace on the wings . look out for Gabriel Selassie bombing down the wing as he like to take on multiple defenders at once.

No real injury worries for Poland , as there is a slight chance Polanski may miss the match due to injury.

Arsenal Goal keeper  Wojciech  Szczęsny  returns  after being red carded against Greece on the opening match of the tournament . 

Poland have very balanced team both in attack and defense . if they take their chances they should be able to win this match provided the they keep jiracek and Rosicky quiet .Poland must take the game to the wings in order to stretch the defense and give striker Rober Lewandowsky more space to operate. look out for lewandowski 's ghostly off the ball movements as he has the tendency to pop up unexpectedly all over

 check-republics 18 yard box . 

Final Verdict 

Poland :3       Czech Republic: 1 

Its Sweden Vs England as both Teams Face Off Looking For The Vital 3 Points

there has been many memorable match ups between these two sides . the latest being in 2006 in the world cup group stages.both sides are looking for the vital 3 points that comes with a win , as sweden currently sit bottom of the groupD after falling to a 2 - 1 defeat in their opening games against co hosts Ukraine.England Managed to only get a draw out of France after a doll match in which many football pundits accused England of parking the bus in front of goal (sitting back not risking being countered by not attacking)
  
 England are still without Manchester United Striker Wayne Rooney. as his still serving the two match suspension he received in the sides  last game in the qualifying round against Montenegro.the newly appointed manger Roy Hodgson, kept faith in him and brought him along for the final stages of the competitions , as many experts believed it was useless to bring along a player who will miss the first two vital group games . 


 Roy Hodgson will look to  finally break the jinx and inspire his side to a victory against Sweden in a competitive game  as the three lions  have not manged to beat Sweden in a last seven games  .4 of these meetings have ended level .the former West Brom manger had the following to say when asked about the sides shortage of goals in competitive games:

"We'd have liked a win to start with, but we want to get forward and get more goals.We have to get more bodies into our attacking third and create more opportunities. When they arrive, the strikers will be ready to put them in."

The striker put in impressive performance against Ukraine.

Sweden will look to improve on their nonperformance against Ukraine.as a win against England will give them massive hope to qualify for the last 16 stage.Ac Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic can play the protagonist to this scenario as the striker is known to be huge goal threat from almost anywhere in the front line. things have not started well for the player however as the player  is rumoured to have been involved in  a bust up with team mate Markus Rosenberg,during the fixture against Ukraine. Ibrahimovic is said have been angry after seeing his strike partner chatting to his girlfriend  instead of warming down ,during the half time. Sweden have not made a big deal of the incident however and everything seem to be calm and peaceful around the camp once again. 

Swedish Coach Erik Hamren is expecting more from his side following their opening defeat at the Olympic Stadium.He said: 

"We're not reaching the level we want to and that's my responsibility as a coach."We didn't show the courage we were supposed to. Only five or six players did. We all need all the players doing that."We were cowards in the first half and should have done more. I'm not happy with the team, 

Probable Line Ups 

Mo real injury worries for Sweden ,changes may come at the right back.Andrea Granqvist is to switch to right back , and Johnathan elmander most likely to start after making a substitute appearance against Ukraine . 

Sweden will look to make the best out of rasmus's elms crossing abilities and Zlatan Ibrahimovic's aerial threat , they a re quick team on the counter. England's midfield lack pace in the center and Sweden will try to pay a wide games in order to stretch the defense and open up more space of onrushing  players . look out for Zlatan ibrahimovis amazing dribbling skills as at he will face up to two English players on most occasions . 

no injury headaches for Roy Hodgson as he rested his senior players in the days leading to the fixture . Andy Carroll may likey start as England may again look for set piece to create scoring opportunities . 

e

Youngster chamberlain has displayed promising talent with his quick foot work and pace he will surly trouble the Swedish defense . if carroll starts then England benefit both in defending in set pieces and give their attack a new dimension in areal attack . look out for  Ashley young's curling crosses towards Andy as he will have England fans hearts racing every time he goes up n their trying to latch on to the end of the crosses sent his way . 

Final Verdict :

England 3    Sweden 1 

Croatia Take on Italy as Both Team Look For a Win and Qualification to The Last 16 Round

the second round of group games are usually more exciting ,as pressure mounts on the players to perform .Croatia sitting first place in group C are  optimistic about qualifying for the round 16 of the tournament.managing a win against the republic of Ireland ,they sit a top of group C , and a win against Italy will almost  grantees  them a place in the last 16. its easier said then done,as Italy have largely improved since the last international tournament under manager Cesare Prandelli. an impressive display against Current world Champions Spain Italy are not taking anything for granted , in an recent press conference Prandelli had the following to say about the fixture :

 "It's going to be the decisive match of the group.I've been saying for a while that Croatia is the most dangerous squad because it's the most unpredictable one. They change the way they play all the time, sometimes even from one half to another."


Croatia's Luca Modric has been put in an impressive performance and will look to add to that tonight against 2006 world cup champions Italy . subject to many transfer rumours its unclear weather he will leave club FC Tottenham. both Chelsea and Manchester united have been linked with the player in recent times.

Line Ups 

No real injury worries other the striker Ivica Olic for Croatia. Croatia coach may still be wondering on weather or not to start Experienced Defender josip Simunic.

Croatia must rely on individual skill as well as team work to take on Italy , they Must be care full  not get carried  away in throwing too many men forward as the Azzuri showed against spain they are great counter attacking side. 

 coach Cesare Prandelli  has two major decisions to make, the first will come at the back as he must choose whether to retain Daniele De Rossi, who was impressive at the heart of the defence in their last match, or opt for Angelo Ogbonna and move the Roma star back into midfield.

His other dilemma is up front as he must pick between fielding Mario Balotelli or Antonio Di Natale. Balotelli looked frustrated and wasted a golden opportunity to open the scoring versus Spain, while the veteran Udinese star came off the bench to replace the youngster and netted the opening goal. However, Di Natale may not have a full 90 minutes in his legs at 34 years of age.

Mario ballotelli must over come his demons. after being subject to racial abuse during the match against Spain. the Ghanaian born italian was left frustrated ,with the added misery of missing a golden chance to put his team ahead. Italy have a world class midfield and they wil utilize it to nullify both Modric and Rakitic , from there its all up to Pirlo as he can unlock any defense with sliding thrown ball. 

Final verdict

Italy  2              Croatia 1

France Take on England ,as Group D Opener Promises To Be an Exciting Fixture

England's drama striken national team , enter the tournoment looking to put in a perfomrance that will silence their critques. newly appointed Manager Roy Hodgson has a heavy burden on his shoulders as anything below a semi-final finish wil cost him his job as manger of the three lions .
Hodgsons has already had the press going bonkers.he almost caused a press uproar  when he omitted Manchester Uniteds  Rio ferdinand.the veteran defender missed out on the world cup competition when he picked up an injury in a frendly match prior to the start of the compition two years a go , and saw the euro 2012 competitions as a way to bow out gracefully from the international scene. obviously things didn't turn out they way Rio thought. with Frank Lampard , and Gareth barry injured another young and inexpirenced player in Jordan Henderson was given a golden opportunity to make name for himself.if england fail to make it past the group stage ,he will surly have to move abroad and live in a cave for a while .in my opinion Hodgson has a good mix of cool headed expirenced players like gerrard , cole an terry to drive the team . the  explosive pace and relentlesness of players like Oxlade chamberlain , and Theo Wallcot on each wing will give England many options , both in attack and defence .with 4 vicotories in their last 5 games england are on a good from and look like genuine title contenders . 

England Talisman Wayne Rooney will miss the  game due to 

Suspension

Lauren blanc men look to inject some pride back into the french national team after the world cup 2012 shambles . laurnt blanc is looking to make france forget all about the players revolt agianst then manager  Raymond Domenich. France are undefeated in 21 games under laurent blanc and look to continue their winnigstrweak when they kick off aginst england on monday . 
France have always had their share of football superstars , Cantona , Henry ,Zidane have put in world class perfomances for their nation. Blanc will  look to challenge the class of 2012 to emulate what these legends have achieved.great things are expected form Real Madrid's Karim Benzema and Muncih's Frank Ribery as they have performed brilliantly for their respective clubs , but it remains to be seen weather they can bring their club form onto the international scene.

Line Ups

France major concern are int he center of the field ,with Yan M'villa ,Blaise Matuidi.and Diarra , all facing fitness tests before the England game. its likely that Diarra makes the starting line up as he looks to have recovered faster then his compatriots.

the game wil be played in the center of the field , the french will look to force Gerrard play with his back to goal , as his passing range is a threat to any defense.he can turn a defensive situation into an attacking one in an instant. Bezema has plenty of player son his side who can feed him balls left and right. breaking away from Terry  and running into empty space  will be his primary mission in the game . 

No real injury concern for Roy Hodgson.John terry and Ashley Cole visited the teams Medical quarters , after complaining from slight pain after training  , but are likely to start non the less being given the all clear.

we really haven't seen a specific system or pattern in the goals scored by England. but judging by the starting players  Hodgsons team relay vastly on the Wings as an outlet to provide scoring opportunities. always a threat in set pieces England may look to catch France on the counter ,as Evra tends forget to track back when going forward.

Final Verdict 

France : 1            England : 1 

The boys in green looking to continue winning streak as they take on Croatia in group C

Republic of Ireland may feel they were cheated out of their place in the world cup 2010.Henrys infamous hand ball resulted in France wining the second leg of the playoff match between the two nations. the Irish football association requested a replay of the fixture  but were denied. who know what might have happened if Ireland had qualified ,but they have manged to qualify for the Euros , and they will look to make the most out of it . 


this is the Second time Republic of Ireland Qualify for the Competition in their history, having been knocked out in the group stages in euro 88. Ireland has improved vastly since the appointment of experienced manager Giovanni Trapattoni. they Currently on a 14 game winning streak and are looking to extend on their record tonight playing against Croatia. When asked about the fixture the Italian coach had the following say:

"I am not particularly excited, I'm a little tense. I want to keep a level of tension, "If the manager doesn't keep the tension, the players can lose intensity. The manager needs to keep a positive tension."

Croatia  are set to kick of their euro competition tonight with 2 wins  2 draws and 1 loss in the last five games.Croatia Coach  Slaven Bilic will be with out  several key players in the competition .Bayern Munich Striker Ivica Olic out due to thigh injury. 

Ivo Ilicevic will also miss the tournament due to injury as Croatia slaven bilic s left scratching his head  ,when deciding on the starting 11. Veteran right back Carlouka faces a late fitness test, but is most likely to start.

In group C both Italy and Spain are backed to qualify for last 16 , we must be vary of Croatia’s threat however as they are a team who can take game to anybody , with several quality players like Luca Modric , in their ranks Croatia are not exactly  what you call and easy opponent. 

Line Ups

Center midfielder Whelan left Fridays training . Steven Hunt is likely to fill in for him in the center of the field.

the Irish will look to get the maximum out of their set pieces ,with Aiden Mc Geady's trickery on the wing , its likely that Trapattoni has instructed him to go down as much as possible when ever he feels his been fouled. the Irish have score 9 goals from set pieces during the qualifying round , which means the areal games is working out for them. look out for MC Geady serving Croatian Captain Dario Srna a few nutmegs.

Ivica Olic may be out but Croatia have number of quality strikers to cover for him. Jelavic wil look to bring his good scoring form form club level into the international scene. as will Brazil born Eduardo wil look to impress and prove that arsenal were wrong to let him go . 

Croatia are a great goal threat ,both in the air and on the ground , with Luca Modric pulling the  strings form the midfield Croatia 's forwards are guaranteed several scoring opportunities.Croatia must be clinical in finishing, as on stage as big as this missed chances are not forgiven easily .   

Final Verdict

Croatia  :3                Republic of Ireland :1

                            

Defending Champions Spain Take On Re- Jigged Italy As Cesar Prandelli Men Look To Save Face After World Cup Disaster.

Vicente Del Basque s 11 is set to kick against Italy in Gdansk stadium in Poland at 17 GMT.

La Fiora roja enter the tournament with an impressive 41 wins in their last 45 competitive games.

Winners of world cup 2012, and Euro 2008, they have become an immense force in intonations soccer tournaments.With the likes of David Silva, Andres inesta, Xavi and Iker Casilias in their ranks, Spain are the team to beat. Former real Madrid and current sprain manager  Vicente Del Basque was quoted in a late press interview saying:

We have an aim that no-one has ever achieved before and that is beautiful. We do have a lot of pressure because there is a lot of optimism that surrounds us. But we are accustomed to the pressure because we are defending the title and we are world champions.”

an early exit at the world cup two  years ago Italy look at this tournoment as a tool to redeem themselves

Italian football yet again has been rocked by a betting scandal involving several top flight teams.  .Dominico Cristico has been pulled from the national squad and Cesar Prandelli's  make due squad will look to install some pride back into their scandal ragged football. Being in a rather easy group with Republic of Ireland and Croatia the Italian team have great chance to qualify for the knock out phase of the tournament.

Torres Pictured on the right faces stiff competitions from compatriots Fernando Lorente  for the starting place 

Having lost American Born Giuseppe Rossi, to ligament injury, Cesar Prandelli does not have a lot of options up front. One player who can surely change a game s in an instant is Ghanaian born Mario ballotelli. The troubled youngster has had his share of negative publicity playing for Manchester City in England. His attitude has cost ballotelli a lot of credit as a quality player. The Italian coach still has faith in him recently having said the following about the player:

"I have asked Balotelli to do the talking on the pitch. He has an extraordinary opportunity and cannot throw it away."

We are surely in for a great spectacle as these two teams boast some of the best players in the world of football. Spain's ticky taka football will surly bedazzle the Italian defense, but surly Italians will not make it easy for Spain to score as the azurri are famous for their no nonsense defense.

 Line UPs 

Defensive wall ;Cares Poyul will surely be missed by the Spanish, as the shaggy haired defender is out injured. Francis Fabre gas will start on the bench as the player is still recovering from a thigh injury he picked up in Copa Del Ray finals with Barcelona.

thre are two aspects in the Spanish team that almost always guarantees them a win .

the first of the two is Del basques tactical genius ,and play system , second is the squads tremendous ability, as long as there are no surprises ,its another  win for Spain. Look out6 for David Silva's genus passes , and Xavi's amazing vision during the match.

 Andrea Barzagli is sidelined for the first two matches with a calf strain as defensive midfielder Daniel Di Rossi will fill in for him at the center of the defense. 

Italy s experimenting with a new untested formation against Spain is not a good idea ,and the fact they are  fielding De Rossi , who has a knack for chopping down players in the center of their defense males things even worse for Italy in my opinion. things are not looking good for Italy in this game. look out for Daniel De Rossi getting sent off ,or at least being booked for silly foul around the 18 yard box . 

Final Verdict 

Spain                          Italy

3                                 0

The Euros kick off as Europe’s soccer stars look to cement their place in the History of the Sport.

Ok guys the wait is finally over one of the biggest football competition is about to kick off. 16 national European football teams are to compete, in one tournament   and the biggest footballing stars all gather in Poland and Ukraine to pay  dues they owe to their nation. Spain the last team to win the competition along with England, France Germany are top contenders for the competition but as in every competition, you must be vary of the underdog. Croatia, Portgual, and the two host nations are looking to cause an upset. Portugal with, the likes of Real Madrid’s, Pepe, and Cristiano Ronaldo in their ranks dream of European Glory. Portugal almost had it won in 2004, going in against Greece in the  final. Greece mange to score in the dying moments of the match from a corner kick, it wasn’t pretty football but it got them the Cup. All eyes on Ronaldo he may not have messi on his back, but three are plenty of quality players in the tournament to give him a run for his money in the top scorers race. .  The Flying Dutch man Robin Van Persi, is of the favorites for the gong, along with CR7 and Mr Drama, Wayne Rooney who will miss England first three games due to suspension. 

The first of the previews will come tonight; covering the Exciting fixture of neather lands vs. Denmark of tomorrow, kickoff is at 17:00 GMT. Following that the foot baling machine Germany take on the Brazil of Europe Portugal at 19:45 GMT .

Make sure to check this blog reguerlaly as I will try to cover as many games as I can.