Sweden

Despite finishing second in Group E, the Swedes qualified automatically for Euro 2012 as the best of the runners-up. Sweden definitely deserved to escape the play-offs having obtained 24 points, only Germany, Netherlands and Italy gained more. They were also the third highest scorers in qualifying, netting 31 times in 10 games. The bright yellow shirts of Swedish fans provide a colourful backdrop to colourful games. Only twice in the last two years have they drawn a football match, once against Germany, another against co-hosts and fellow Group D occupants, Ukraine. Other results include a 3-2 victory against the Dutch and a 5-0 thrashing of fellow Scandinavians Finland. In November, they lost in a friendly to England thanks to a rare Gareth Barry goal meaning that come summer France will be the only nation in their group who they have not faced within the past year. This knowledge and experience could prove vital for the Swedes. Zlatan Ibrahimovic leads the line and captains the side. There are rumours that the lanky charismatic Swede could be making a summer switch to Manchester City for a menial wage of £300,000 a week after the tournament but don’t expect that to distract him. He was Sweden’s top scorer in qualifying and certainly has the ability to cause huge problems for the opposition defence. Former Bolton striker Johan Elmander could partner him up front. With probably the most experienced midfielder in the tournament Anders Svensson occupying the centre of the park. At the age of 35 he has 126 caps for his national side. He will take the set-pieces and turn his former left-wing attacking role into a more central, slower paced, playmaker. Svensson is the Ryan Giggs of the Swedish team. If that was not enough experience though Kim Kallstrom (90 caps), Christian Wilhelmsson (72 caps) and Olaf Mellberg (112 caps) add a little more. Kallstrom will attempt to add to his 3 goals in qualifying as Mellberg will provide a commanding presence in the heart of the Swedish defence. A Premier League trio of comparably inexperienced players could also start for Erik Hamren’s team. Sunderland’s Seb Larrson, West Brom’s Jonas Olsson and Blackburn Rover’s Martin Olsson all have the potential to be in the starting line-up but Celtic’s defender Mikael Lustig is more certain first team option. PSV’s Andreas Isaksson will play between the sticks in the Ukraine. Another 91 caps of experience is part of his repertoire. The injury prone keeper represented Sweden in Euro 2008 and the World Cup in 2006. He never managed to establish himself at Manchester City but that was partly due to the emergence one of Euro 2012’s opposite number 1s, Joe Hart. Sweden have a capable, extremely experienced team. Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the only really world-class player, yet he is capable of winning matches alone. The rest of the team will need to work hard to cause considerable trouble. They won’t top Group D but second is a possibility. However, with the tournament being played in the Ukraine they may finish 4th.

Ukraine

Co-host for this summer’s tournament Ukraine enter their own party as European Champions debutants after two years of uninspiring results. Yet, whether planned or through a surge of added commitment in a bid to represent their nation at home in front of a packed home support, they have won four of the last five matches. The reason it may have been planned is due to their opponents in these games – Bulgaria, Estonia, Austria and Israel. It could be an embarrassing summer for the home nation though. Ukraine played both Group D opponents Sweden and France in friendlies. They drew 1-1 and lost 1-0 to Sweden but got thumped by France 4-1. With England being their other opponents I think they will find it hard to advance out of the group stages. Even worst for the hosts, Ukraine manager Oleh Blokhin has insurmountable issues in the goalkeeping department. The three men named in Blokhin’s provisional squad have a solitary cap between them. To have to play a keeper with literally no international experience is potentially a disaster for the yellow and blues. There is little that can be done about the situation but to stand a chance you would look for some experience in the centre of defence to guide the novice through the tournament. However, Oleksandr Kucher has the most caps of anyone in the defence with 28 and none played for the country in their only other international outing, the World Cup in 2006. However, Kucher’s Shakhtar Donetsk teammate Yaroslav Rakitskiy is a strong defender who has scored 3 goals for the national side in his 14 appearances. The defender has the ability to shoot from out of the box and with his young age could be a part of the Ukrainian set up for a long time yet. Thankfully Blokhin can call upon some seasoned campaigners further up the park. Anatoliy Tymoshchuk is one of only two players in the provisional squad to play his football outside the Ukrainian league and with 114 caps the midfielder is the Ukraine’s most capped player ever. Just a few caps behind is Ukraine’s top goalscorer, and undoubtedly the best player to come out of the country ever, Andriy Shevchenko. At the tender age of 35 he is not overcoming defensives in the same manner that saw him denominate Europe for AC Milan but we can still except to see some magic escape his skilful feet. Whether he can inspire his country to a victory in the opening game against fellow yellow and blues Sweden, is yet to be seen. One to potentially watch in the middle of the park is young midfielder Yevhen Konoplyanka. The nifty Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk winger has scored 5 goals in his 16 appearances and could pose a significant attacking threat. Andriy Yarmolenko is another young player who could grab the headlines this summer for all the right reasons. Shevchenko has apparently recommended the left-footed striker to AC Milan after some impressive performances for Dynamo Kiev. His 7 goals in 18 games for the national side may have helped also. Ukraine have a lot of young, new international start-ups who could be ready to bloom this summer. Tymoshchuk and Shevchenko bring class to Oleh Blokhin’s side and will be looking to guide the young pretenders through the tournament. With the home support and every neutral thoroughly behind the host nation they will attack the European Championship’s with real vigour. Hopefully they will at least allow them to win a game.

Spain

Spain, the perennial underachievers. Not anymore. The European Champions cruised to the title of World Champions in South Africa after a minor hiccup against Switzerland. They continually nullified matches through their constant possession, before scoring the one goal required to beat their opponents. Getting the ball off them seemed difficult, keeping it for long enough to create a goalscoring opportunity felt almost impossible. Yet, despite Spain’s flawless qualifying campaign there is a sense that their air of invincibility is thinning. Nobody likes a certainty. It defies the unpredictability aspect of sport that makes it so special. Everyone is willing to try that little bit harder. To throw an extra tackle in. To sit and think that little bit longer about how to defeat the tournament favourites. So much so that even friendlies take on a more competitive edge. Due to this the losses to Argentina, Portugal, Italy and England, the four highest ranked opponents in the last two years, albeit all in friendly matches, have proved significant. It has given nations hope that La Furia Roja (The Red Fury) can be defeated. The recent semi-final exits from Barcelona and Real Madrid in the Champions League has added to this concept. Yet, you would be daft to believe that Spain has placed even a toe on the slippery slope to obscurity. They are still the team to beat and are nothing but entertaining. In the 19 international matches since the World Cup final in Johannesburg there have been on average 3.6 goals per game and there has never been a 0-0 draw. A string of world-class players could all represent Spain in this summer’s finals. Barring injury Iker Casillas will don the Number 1 shirt and captain the nation. The Real Madrid keeper has represented his country 128 times, the most in Spain’s history. Still only 30 Casillas’ cat-like reflexes have kept 72 international clean sheets and have enabled him to win every major club and national tournament. Influential centre-back Carles Puyol is set to miss the tournament and one of the most potent strikers in world football David Villa is still struggling to recover after breaking his leg in December. Spain have enough quality throughout the pitch, although their all-time record goalscorer may be hard to replace. Sergio Ramos and Gerard Pique are almost certainties for a starting defensive role. Ramos is renowned for his attacking presence from right-back whereas Pique’s controlled technique will aid him in starting off the Spanish passing game from the back. The midfield sees Xavi, Iniesta, Fabregas, Busquets, Pedro, Silva, Mata and Xabi Alonso all vying for a spot on the plane to Poland, let alone a shirt that will confirm that they will play. Vincente del Bosque certainly has some huge decisions to make in this department but with David Villa potentially unavailable up front, a five man midfield may incorporate more of these major stars. For me it has to be the same four that started the World Cup final in 2010 with Silva replacing Pedro. Xavi, Iniesta and Busquets are fundamental to how the Spaniards play whereas Xabi Alonso goes from strength to strength. His control, pin-point long passing from his exceptional vision and calm head make him a driving force in the national side and undoubtedly he played a huge role in Real Madrid’s title winner season. With Villa potentially unavailable and Torres not really finding true form at Chelsea yet, the striker position is up for grabs. Fernando Llorente has impressed for Athletic Bilbao and could certainly play as the lone frontman. His height and technical ability make him a quality Peter Crouch. However, it was Roberto Soldado who took his international chance. Replacing Llorente in the game against Venezuela at half-time, the Valencia striker scored a hat-trick and had one goal disallowed. Sevilla’s Alvaro Negredo is another option. It is safe to say that Vincente del Bosque has a lot of decisions to make. Each player in the 23 man squad would arguably be a certain starter in other nations. Their group is not easy though and with Italy as an opener they could get off to a slow start. But then again, they did that against Switzerland in the World Cup and went on to be crowned champions.

Portugal

Portugal are the nearly men of football. Over the last two decades we have seen world-class talent emerge from the most westerly country in Europe. But silverware at a national level has always eluded them. The last three European Championships have seen them reach the quarters, the semis and the final but they will get no sympathy from a English writer who has witnessed them beat England at Euro 2000, Euro 2004 and the World Cup in 2006. Bias aside, Portugal have a strong team but one that it is capable of becoming the England of football, always insisting they will win but never actually doing so. The draw has not been kind to them in the last two tournaments. In South Africa they got drawn along with Brazil, Ivory Coast and North Korea. In Ukraine they face Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands. Denmark topped the qualifying group that Portugal were in, meaning the Portuguese needed to win in the play-offs against Bosnia and Herzegovina to make it to the Euros. After a tight 0-0 away, a 6-2 thrashing at home booked their place in the finals. Cristiano Ronaldo was once again the main men, scoring 7 goals in 8 games for his country. The Real Madrid striker took 41 shots on goal in his 8 games during qualifying, more than anyone else throughout the phase. On average he had an attempt on goal every 17 ½ minutes. Some would say he is greedy. The fact that he only made three assists during qualifying doesn’t help. But strikers are meant to be selfish and manager Paulo Bento knows, like Europe, exactly what to expect from this match winning footballer. Ronaldo has kept up with Messi this season helping Real overcome the Catalan masters to win La Liga, both exceptional feats. Fellow Real player Pepe will be the heart of the Portuguese defence. In midfield will be two contrasting Premier League players. Manchester United’s Nani and Chelsea’s Raul Meireles sum up Portugal perfectly. Both are gifted players, yet both have failed to hold down a regular starting place this season, Nani especially has been below par. Yet, Nani has the tricks to create chances, whereas Meireles has everything a modern midfielder needs to be an instrumental performer on the park. Helder Postiga and Joao Moutinho will also be relied upon to provide creative flair in this already attacking side. Postiga scored 5 goals in qualifying and will help to lead the line as Ronaldo goes walkabout. Moutinho will try and use his attacking instincts to provide chances for the two forwards. Sporting’s Rui Patricio will probably be the man named in goal with Benefica’s Eduardo being the understudy. This will be the first major tournament for Patricio who is only 24. This inexperience may prove a costly downfall against quality attacking forces which Denmark, Netherlands and Germany all possess in abundance. Portugal definitely have a creative team, with lots of talented individuals. However, for them to even progress out of Group B they are going to need some exceptional performances. Denmark is the easiest game of the group and yet the Danes beat Portugal in the qualifying stages. The 4-4 draw at home to Cyprus and the 1-0 loss away to Norway cost them dearly in qualifying, yet both games commenced in the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo. Without him, Portugal are mediocre. With him, they always have a chance.

Poland

Along with the Ukraine, Poland are the co-hosts of the 2012 European Championships. Therefore, no qualification was required for the Poles, something of a fortuitous event when you consider that they are lowest ranked FIFA side in the competition. Poland currently find themselves down in 65th position, a whooping 39 places below the nearest qualifying nation. Admittedly though, they are one place up on China, but two behind Sierra Leone. However, hosting major football tournaments is an effective way of assuring ones place in the limelight of a summer’s sporting event and the hosts are always inspired to greater things with the countries support behind them. Which is also lucky for Poland as in their only appearance at the Euros in 2008 they lost two games and drew 1-1 with failing co-hosts Austria. Safe to say, we do not expect anything too special from Poland in this year’s tournament, but stranger things have happened in the European Championships with both Denmark and Greece shocking Europe with victorious campaigns. Franciszek Smuda is the man in charge of the Polish national team. He has spent the majority of his time playing and coaching in Poland with a brief stint as a player in America representing the likes of the Los Angeles Aztecs and San Jose Earthquakes. He has been in charge since 2009 and has seen differing results in the years building up to the Euros. Whilst others have been busy qualifying Poland played a total of 22 friendlies against an array of teams. In 22 matches The White Eagles have won 8, drawn 9 and lost 5. This includes draws to Ukraine, Greece, Germany and Portugal, but losses to France and Italy. They have not beaten another team who has qualified but a 1-0 victory against Argentina shows some promise. Probably the most recognisable Polish player to British fans is Wojciech Szczesny. The Arsenal shot stopper has been in fine form for the London club, keeping 18 clean sheets this season. Still only 22 the Poles will need him to be at his best to give the nation a chance of progressing in the tournament. As well as Szczesny the Borussia Dortmund contingent will also play a vital part. Having helped their domestic club claim the Bundesliga title this season right-back Lukasz Piszczek, midfielder Jakub Blaszczykowshi and striker Lukasz Piszczek clearly provide the backbone to the Polish national side. Blaszczykowski captains the side whilst Lewandowski is the topscoring player from the current squad with 13. If these four players perform strongly then Poland have a chance of finishing in the top two in what appears to be the easiest of this summer’s groups, Group A. Russia, Greece and the Czech Republic will all prove difficult barriers but with every neutral in Europe behind them Poland could scrape through. A quarter final match against Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark or Portugal will be a spectacle but ultimately the end to their campaign. Poland will no doubt enjoy their time in the limelight. However their lack of true quality throughout the squad mean that it is extremely unlikely that they won’t do anything but emulate the last two hosts of the European Championships and exit at the first hurdle.

Russia

The 2018 World Cup hosts qualified at the top of Group B in a bid to go two places better than their attempt in Euro 2008, when they finished 3rd. This will be ex-Rangers manager Dick Advocaat’s last tournament in charge of the Russian international side after deciding not to extend his contract. Advocaat’s side stumbled through qualifying with the 3-2 away win against the Republic of Ireland back in 2010 being the real decider. The rest of the campaign only had one other notable positive score, a 6-0 thrashing of Andorra. The 1-0 loss at home to Slovakia and 0-0 draw away at Armenia do not suggest excitement. In 18 games in the last two years, they have only scored more than once five times. On the other hand, Russia has only conceded nine goals in the same period, and has not let in a goal in a competitive match in just under a year. Safe to say, this is why Group A in this year’s Euros continues to be worryingly boring. Russia drew 1-1 with fellow Group A occupants Greece in a friendly in November after opening up the game with a 2nd minute goal. The ties against the Czech Republic and Poland also fail to inspire a goal fest outlook. However, this is a good opportunity for Russia to advance to the knock-out stage and sometimes when you expect little you get back more. They certainly possess enough talent to win Group A with the likes of Arshavin, Anyukov and Zhirkov all gaining a starting shirt. Anyukov and Zhirkov play pivotal roles in the Russian side. Both are attacking wing-backs, looking to break forward at all opportunities. Anyukov was Russia’s leading player on assists in the qualifying stage with 3. In midfield is 21 year old Alan Dzagoev. Dzagoev plays for CSKA Moscow and has contributed to the national set up since 2010. He scored 4 goals in qualifying, joint top on the Russian list, including the only goal in a 1-0 victory against Slovakia that all but clinched Russia’s place in Euro 2012. The lack of goals Russia has scored is a little surprising given some of the players that Advocaat can select this summer. However, it may be due slightly to the lack of form of Arshavin. He never quite settled at Arsenal, returning on loan to Zenit Saint Petersburg in February. His return of 17 goals from 68 caps is not brilliant for a man that is employed as a forward for Russia and with others knocking on the door, Advocaat’s persistence in playing the little magician may eventually change. Fellow Zenit forward Alexander Kerzhakov may be the prominent striker for Russia. He scored his 100th goal for Zenit in the Russian league at the weekend in 216 appearances for the club. Otherwise, Roman Pavlyuchenko or Pavel Pogrebnyak will be attempting to put the ball in the back of the opponent’s net. At the opposite end of the field, in charge of protecting Russia’s net is Igor Akinfeev. After being out for 6 months with a cruciate ligament injury in his left knee the CSKA Moscow keeper will look to regain his place in time for Russia’s opening game against the Czech Republic on the 8th of June. Akinfeev kept two clean sheets at Euro 2008, one of which was against Greece and his experience and presence will be vital to their efforts. Russia has talent. They also have resistance which will bode well for the group stages. However, whether the two can be combined to threaten stronger nations is another matter. Expect to see them in the quarters but to look no further than that.

Republic of Ireland

The Republic of Ireland qualified for the European Championships for only the second time in their history. Their only previous appearance came in the 1988 Championship held in West Germany. With only 8 participants Ireland were drawn in a group with the Netherlands, the Soviet Union and England. After beating England 1-0 in the opening game and gaining a point against the Soviet Union in the second they needed a draw against the Netherlands to progress. However, an 82 minute strike from Willem Kieft sent the Dutch through instead. The Dutch went on to lift there first, and only, international championship. This was the start of Ireland’s most successful period of football (1988-1994). However, recently under the guidance of Giovanni Trapattoni there has been a resurgence of optimism in a team brimming with talent. They failed to make it to South Africa in 2010 because of a Henry handball but the play-offs this time saw no heartbreak as they demolished Estonia 4-0 in Tallinn. The Irish come into the tournament on a string of positive results with their last lost coming in March 2011 in a friendly against Uruguay. In the last two years of competitive games they suffered defeat only once, a 3-2 defeat by Group B eventually winners Russia. Trapattoni relies on the energy and commitment of his players. Every game is highly competitive, which explains why the Irish topped the charts out of the qualifying teams on fouls committed during the qualifying period. In 12 matches they committed 176 fouls and suffered 160. That is a foul in the match just over every 3 minutes. The Republic of Ireland’s main man is their all-time record goalscorer, the never static, Robbie Keane. Still only 31, Keane has played for 10 clubs, scoring goals for all. In 115 caps for Ireland he has netted 53 goals, none more memorable than his goals against Germany and Spain in the World Cup in 2002. Another of Ireland’s key attributes is goalkeeper Shay Given. The Villa keeper has 121 caps for Ireland, the most of any Irish player. His command of the box is still strong, as is his ability to prevent shots from making the net bulge. In front of Given would have sat John O’Shea and Richard Dunne. The steadfast pair have been rocks in the heart of Premier League defences for many a season now. With their uncompromising and basic style they have been highly consistent performers and often underrated. However, an injury to O’Shea has made him a doubt for the tournament. Trapattoni has a collection of established stars to select in the middle of the park. Glenn Whelan (Stoke) and Keith Andrews (West Brom) appear to be the favoured pair with Darren Gibson (Everton) and Keith Fahey (Birmingham) pushing for a spot. Out on the wings the creative pair of Damien Duff and Aiden McGeady prowl. One other midfielder has recently forced his way into the Irish squad and will be unlucky not to get a starting shirt. James McClean has been one of the standout players of the Premier League this season. His performances for Sunderland have gained plaudits galore for his strength, power, pace and scoring ability. Out on the left wing he is a rougher Gareth Bale. The Irish certainly have a tough task ahead of them. Spain, Italy and Croatia await the “Boys in Green” in Group C. Their opening game in Poland against Croatia needs to be a victory. A draw against Spain would be a good result. The final game against Italy could decide who progresses to the quarter finals along with the World Champions. So, Trapattoni’s men will need to battle hard to go further than the group stages this summer. However, they evidently have that in abundance. Add to their fighting spirit a goalscorer in Robbie Keane and the Republic of Ireland become a tricky opponent. The prospect of an England v Ireland quarter final is somewhat mouth watering.