With Group A (10/1 to produce the Euro 2012 winner) at the European Championships including the Czech Republic, Greece, Poland and Russia, any two of these four teams could qualify for the all-important knockout stages of the major tournament.
However, the latest crop of players coming out of Russia (20/1 – Euro 2012 Outright) these days look like they could form a side that may do well in Poland and Ukraine.
The Russians under former Glasgow Rangers boss Dick Advocaat have enjoyed a strong build up to the tournament with the side thumping Italy 3-0 in their last friendly on Friday.
Midfielder Roman Shirokov bagged himself a brace in the victory over the Azzurri and is just one of a number of exciting players at Zenit St Petersburg to be included in the Russian squad, who are captained by playmaker Andrey Arshavin.
This team are certainly one to look out for at the Euros and the big guns in the competition like Spain, Germany and Holland would do well not to underestimate Russia (4/9 – Group A Qualification) should they meet in the knockout stages.
Russia should top Group A but the second qualification spot is really up for grabs for any of the three remaining teams who can take their chances.
Poland, as a host nation of the tournament, will be hoping partisan support raises their performances in what will be a tough test for manager Franciszek Smuda and his men.
A 4-0 victory over European minnows Andorra last week was clearly arranged to boost confidence in the Polish ranks ahead of their tournament opener against Greece on Friday.
Poland (8/11 – Group A Qualification) don’t have many stand-out names in their ranks but you can guarantee they will be well organised by Smuda and will be hard to break down on home soil.
It would be great for the competition if the co-hosts could make it through but they don’t seem to have an abundance of quality and it may well be a short tournament for the White and Reds.
Greece (6/4 – Group A Qualification) will be looking to give their supporters something to cheer about and put a smile on the face of a nation going through more than enough troubles at the moment.
The Greeks pulled off one of the biggest upsets in the competition’s history in 2004 when they beat Portugal in the final to claim the European crown.
Manager Fernando Santos will have been pleased with the draw, as they avoided some of the real powerhouse of European football. The Mexican tactician saw his side scrape past Armenia 1-0 last weekend but the performance was not all that inspiring.
Considering the current crop of players and their recent form, Greek fans should not hold their breath for a repeat of 2004.
The Czech Republic (5/4 – Group A Qualification) are the only team in Group A to go into the Euros on the back of a defeat following their 2-1 loss to Hungary on Friday.
There are a few big names in the squad with Chelsea shot-stopper Petr Cech set to use his Champions League-winning experience this season and take that “backs against the wall” mentality that served the Blues so well into the Euros.
Former Liverpool striker Milan Baros and Arsenal’s Tomas Rosicky are set to be threats and the Czechs might just edge out the others to join Russia in the knockout stages.
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