Euro 2012 Fixtures - Saturday 16th June

We're into the final round of Group games now & only two teams are out of the competition so far meaning that we're going to be seeing some great games as teams fight tooth & nail for their quarter final spots. We're still searching the markets for the best value bets in each game & we bring you Group A today where hosts Poland look to not fall at the first hurdle & dark horses Russia try to top the group.

(Vaclav Pilar has two goals in two games with the Czech Republic)

7:45 pm - Czech Republic vs Poland

Czech Republic battle it out with co-hosts Poland at the Municipal Stadium, Wroclaw with the winner making the knock out rounds. Poland have two points & only victory will do for them whilst the Czechs need a win to quality but a draw might also be enough if results go their way.

After being torn apart by Russia in their first game the Czechs bounced back against Greece to claim all three points with a 2-1 victory. The damage was done in the first six minutes with goals from Petr Jiracek & Vaclac Pilar. Pilar is having an excellent tournament, scoring two goals, and is providing the sides attacking edge with striker Milan Baros struggling. A concern though is captain & playmaker Tomas Rosicky, substituted at half time against Greece, is a doubt with an achilles injury & a decision will be left right until before kick-off.

Poland have drawn their first two game 1-1 & their performances have be decent in the first half vs Greece & a second half against Russia which resulted in an equaliser but as yet they haven't been able to put it together for whole 90 minutes. They have a number of injury concerns to Lucasz Piszczek, Dariusz Dudka & Eugen Polanski & coach Franciszek Smuda has a decision to make in goal with Wojciech Szczesny returning from suspension but understudy Przemyslaw Tyton hasn't put a foot wrong in his game & a half.

Both sides will be focusing on victory & with their strengths lying in the attacking third rather than defensive disciplines this should lead to an entertaining game. Attacking players Jakub Blaszczykowski & Robert Lewandowksi for Poland & Czechs Jiracek & Pilar have all found the net already & will be licking their lips at the prospect of this game & 4/5 on both teams to score which has occurred in all Group A game looks nailed on. The first half is likely to be cagey & full of tension so get on the 6/5 on offer for most goals in the second half with one team likely to be getting desperate as their tournament hopes fade.

(Russia's attacking trio will be looking to seal top spot in Group A)

7:45 pm - Greece vs Russia

The other game in Group A is a battle between the top & bottom sides as Russia entertain Greece at the National Stadium, Warsaw. The requirement for Greece is simple; only a win will do & Russia will be looking for maximum points to guarantee top spot.

Russia will be disappointed with their second half performance against Poland where they let a goal lead slip. It was obviously two points dropped than a point gained but yet again youngster Alan Dzagoev enhanced his growing reputation with his third goal of the tournament. Dick Advocaat has a fully fit side to pick from & we would expect him to resist calls in some quarters to start Roman Pavlyuchenko over Alexander Kerzhakov. Kerzhakov has been misfiring in-front of goal but his link-up & positional play has been excellent so eventually he & the Russian side will reap the rewards & we see Pavlyuchenko as an impact substitute.

Greece again have to shuffle the pack with an injury to keeper Kostas Chalkias & the returning from suspension of Sokratis Papastathopoulos meaning Giannis Maniatis will return to the midfield at the expense of the ineffective Giorgos Fotakis. Despite their strong defensive record in qualifying; Greece have defended poorly in both games & now they have the daunting prospect of facing the excellent trio of Arshavin, Kerzhakov & tournament joint top scorer Alan Dzagoev. At the other end of the pitch they have looked far from free-scoring & only a howler from keeper Petr Cech for the Czech Republic allowed them to find the net in game two & with this is mind Russia -1 on the handicap at 21/10 looks a reasonable bet.

Selections:
Both teams to score between Poland & Czech Republic at 4/5 (Betfred/Stan James)
Most goals in the second half of Poland/Czech Republic at 6/5 (Coral)
Russia -1 on the handicap vs Greece at 21/10 (Betfred)

Euro 2012 Fixtures - Tues 12th June

Another lovely day of Euro 2012 action coming up in the non-glamour group that is Group A, Russia announced themselves in the tournament on Friday whilst Greece showed some real grit, & a bit of nice play too, to come back against Poland. We're looking forward to these games & aren't going to stick with the obvious as we try to seek out the value as ever. Remember if you aren't already you can follow us on Twitter @LikeBuyingMoney by clicking the follow button at the top of the page & get to join in the betting & Euro 2012 specific conversation!

(Dimitrios Salpingidis added an extra dimension to Greece's attacking play as a substitute against Poland)

5:00 pm - Greece vs Czech Republic

The first fixture of the evening sees Greece face Czech Republic at the Municipal Stadium, Wroclaw with both sides looking to gain their first victory in Euro 2012.

Greece certainly had an eventful game against co-hosts Poland on opening night where they looked at sixes & sevens in defence in the first half resulting in 1-0 deficit at half time but then showed determination to equalise & only a missed penalty stopped them completing a second half comeback. Greece will have to make some changes for this match with Avraam Papadopoulos limping off & centre back partner Sokratis Papastathopoulos harshly sent off plus coach Fernando Santos will want to reward an excellent substitute appearance by Dimitrios Salpingidis with a starting berth.

The Czechs need to bounce back from a 4-1 drubbing at the hands of Russia & show the football world they aren't just here to make up the numbers. They really struggled to cope defensively with the guile & skill of the Russians & keeper Petr Cech was exposed time & time again. The Greeks won't pose the same attacking threats as Russia but they will be looking to put in a high number of quality set pieces to test an already brittle/low confidence defence.

Any match involving Greece seems to be a tight low scoring affair but the odds for under 2.5 goals are prohibitive at 4/7, Greece do have both their starting centre backs out plus they need to win this before facing Russia & the Czech's could do with a result to give them a chance going into the final game against the Poles. The Czechs really did look a pretty poor side at the back & even though Greece aren't known for their expansive play we did like Dimitrios Salpingidis when he came on as he had a bit of pace & directness about him, he's on offer at 9/2 to score at anytime with Sportingbet but as short as 9/4 with Coral. We might be going loopy here but the odds of a high scoring game are probably a little bit too big too ignore, have a small bet at 11/1 on Betfair about this going over 4.5 goals, it happened in the Russia v Czech Republic game & we've a feeling this could be an odd match, not great strikeforces but poor or weakened defences for either side could make the difference.

(Alan Dzagoev celebrates his second & the Russian's third against the Czech Republic)

7:45 pm - Poland vs Russia

The second match of the evening should be an entertaining affair between Poland and Russia at the National Stadium, Warsaw. Russia top the group with three points & another victory will be enough to see them qualify for the knock out phase.

Russia looked mightily impressive in their first game & showed what an attacking force they are as a number of players caught the eye. Youngster Alan Dzagoev bagged a brace but Andrei Arshavin was involved in everything Russia produced in the final third & looks to have the bit between his teeth after a difficult 18 months. Striker Alexander Kerzhakov may not have found the net, thanks to some extremely profligate finishing, but his link-up play & positioning was excellent & we would expect him to get one more chance to lead the attack again despite substitute Roman Pavlyuchenko scoring an impressive individual goal.

Poland had a second half to forget against Greece & now have to cope with the suspension to goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny. A positive was the well taken goal by leading talisman Robert Lewandowski but he faded, as did the quality of the Polish side as the game went on. Defensively they are going to have to step it up a level to cope with the Russians & this looks like being a difficult ask for them.

We like the look of the 13/10 on offer for another Russian victory as they look a class above their Polish counterparts. The Russians at times also looked vulnerable at the back against the Czechs & Poland are much better offensively than defensively so a high scoring affair could be on the cards so take advantage of the 23/20 for over 2.5 goals.

Selections:
Over 4.5 goals in the Greece v Czech Republic game at 11/1 (Betfair)
Dimitrios Salpingidis to score at anytime at 9/2 (Sportingbet)

Russia to beat Poland at 13/10 (Bet356/William Hill)
Over 2.5 goals in the Russia/Poland match at 23/20 (BetVictor)

Opening Night Fixtures - Fri 8th June

It's finally upon us, Euro 2012 from Poland & Ukraine gets underway on Friday & there are so many betting opportunities it can be difficult to know where to start! We've already had our previews of each team & group up, plus our outright tournament picks but now we get onto the daily work of finding winners from the individual matches, we kick off in alphabetical order with Group A & Poland v Greece & Russia v Czech Republic. If you like what you see we'd love for you to share with your friends & family, you can follow us on Twitter @LikeBuyingMoney by clicking the follow button above & we'll be talking about Euro 2012 right through the tournament.

(Defender Vassilis Torosidis will look to get on the end of Greek set pieces)

5:00 pm - Poland vs Greece

The opening Euro 2012 fixture takes place between co-hosts Poland & 2004 winners Greece at the National Stadium, Warsaw. The likelihood is that both sides are playing for 2nd place in the group if all goes as expected for Russia so neither side will want to suffer a defeat here.

Poland will be looking for a quick start in-front of their passionate fans whilst Greece will aim to soak up the early Polish pressure & take advantage of any set pieces their earn. The key match-ups will be how the Greek defence cope with the highly talented Dortmund duo of Jakub Blaszczkowski & Robert Lewandowski whilst up the other end how the Polish team defend against the high class delivery from evergreen Giorgios Karagounis.

In the lead up to the tournament both sides have played a number of friendlies each, Poland used an experimental line-up to beat Latvia 1-0 thanks to a late header from Artur Sobiech & then using stronger line-ups beat Slovakia 1-0 & gain a 4-0 thumping of Andorra. Greece conceded a last minute equaliser after defender Vassilis Torosidis scored in 1-1 draw with Slovenia & then fellow defender Kyriakos Papadopoulos netted in a 1-0 victory over Armenia.

It's a difficult match to predict an outcome of with the first 20 minutes being key. If Poland get an early goal then it's hard to see pass them but on the flip side the longer the game stays at 0-0 the stadium will get more nervous which will transmit to the Polish players & those set pieces from Greece will come more & more into play. We have Poland as favourites in our book but aren't too enamoured with odds very close to evens & instead will take a vaule scorer bet with Greek defender Vassilis Torosidis who scored two in qualifying (joint highest) plus in the warm-up against Slovenia & is 28/1 to be first goalscorer & 12/1 to score anytime, getting those odds up can start your Euro 2012 betting with a bang. 

(Russian coach Dick Advocaat will look for a win to set up a successful tournament)

7:45 pm - Russia vs Czech Republic

The second fixture in Group A comes live from the Municipal Stadium, Wroclaw as the group favourites Russia entertain Czech Republic. The Russians have the strongest side of the four teams & will look to put down a marker in the tournament against an average Czech Republic side.

Russia dished out a 3-0 beating to Italy in their final warm up game with second half goals from striker Alexander Kerzhakov & a brace from Zenit midfielder Roman Shirokov which means they come into the tournament full of confidence in a group which is theirs for the taking. There should be goals in this Russian side & plenty of attacking options on the bench (strikers Pavel 'The Pog' Pogrebnyak & Roman 'Pav' Pavlyuchenko to name a few) if the starting eleven fail & at the back they are in safe hands with the outstanding keeper Igor Akinfeev.

The Czech squad are going through a difficult time with a 2-1 warm-up defeat to Hungary & injury concerns over main striker Milan Baros & midfield playmaker Tomas Rosicky. It's a difficult call for under pressure manager Michal Bilek on whether to start both the players with slight doubts as they may further aggravate their injuries which could put them out of the two remaining group fixtures against Greece & Poland where it could be judged they are more likely to pick up points.

As mentioned in our Group A preview we see the 5/4 on offer for a Russian victory as one of the standout betting opportunities of the entire group matches as they are far superior to the Czechs. The front three for Russia are very dangerous with Kerzhakov at point, who has excellent hold up play, with Arshavin & potential tournament star Alan Dzagoev backing him up with trickery & pace.

Selections:
Vassilis Torosidis (Greece) to score first at 28/1 and/or 12/1 anytime vs Poland (Paddy Power/Bet365)
Russia to beat Czech Republic at 5/4 (BetVictor)

Euro 2012 - And the Winners are...........

The European Championships are just hours away now & we've already brought our group by group, team by team previews to you but here we'll round up all of our selections & give our thoughts on where the best outright value lies for the tournament.

(Germany's young guns are our outright picks for Euro 2012)

It takes an awful lot to win a European Championship, the right set of players, complimentary tactics, a decent draw & a little bit of luck can all go some way to setting a side up for a Championship run & the side that look like proving toughest to stop here have to be Germany. The Germans seem to have become plenty of peoples' idea of champions & it has been refreshing to hear so many English fans have somewhat of a soft spot for our Saxon neighbours rather than the usual nonsense. It helps that Germany play such an exciting & attacking brand of football with youngsters such as Toni Kroos, Thomas Muller & especially Mesut Ozil all catching the eye with chance creation. Ozil is as short as 8/1 (Ladbrokes) to be player of the tournament & we can see why he'd be popular as he was brilliant at the last World Cup when coming in as an unkown outside of Germany & has continued that fine form now playing for the world's biggest club side in Real Madrid, you can get 14/1 on him to be awarded best player & that's a more tempting offer.

German & English football has shared many similar qualities over the years but there are plenty of differences now, as if to emphasise that Joachim Low has been able to select 8 Bayern Munich players, a side that reached the Champions League final & were arguably this year's best side in the competition, whereas Roy Hodgson now has 6 Liverpool players in his squad - the more said about their appalling performance this season the better. Plenty of those Bayern players are likely to be starters too & that means they have an advantage over most national teams that are having to find their way into tournaments, building team spirit & cohesion. The incredibly young age of the Germans would prove a worry if it weren't for the wealth of experience these youngsters already have for the national side & top European teams, 17 of the 23 in their squad are 26 years old or younger & only two are 30 or older - backup keeper Tim Wiese & talismanic striker Miroslav 'Tournament' Klose. The defence would be the one area that could be argued to be a weak spot for the Germans but 4 of the 5 are Bayern regulars with the imposing Manuel Neuer between the sticks & Boateng & our absolute favourite Philipp Lahm at the full back spots. 23 year old Mats Hummels is the one non-Bayern player at the back but he started out there before moving on a couple of years ago to achieve a lot of success with Borussia Dortmund & he can be relied upon.

(Andrea Schurrle has 7 goals in 14 appearances for Germany)

If there is to be a breakout star for Germany we think it could come in the form of 21 year old Andrea Schurrle who already has 7 goals in 14 games for the national side & has scored against Switzerland & Israel in the warmup games, if for some reason 'Super' Mario Gomez fails to fire on the big stage it could be Schurrle who benefits. Backing Schurrle to be last scorer in games could be a play as he may come on as a super sub to start with, if he can establish himself in the team he could even make a play for the top German scorer at 16/1.

(Ibrahimovic is too big at 50/1 to be top scorer at Euro 2012)

Our other outright bets are at huge odds yet we think they should be a little shorter in the betting with Samir Nasri (66/1) & Andrea Pirlo (80/1) to pick up the player of the tournament prize both key players for their sides who get plenty of the ball & are in teams with the potential to reach the semi finals - reaching the final 4 should be key to scoring this prize. The other player who is being massively underrated, as usual here in England, is Zlatan Ibrahimovic for tournament top scorer at 50/1, he bangs the goals in for team(s) & country & has a good supporting cast of creators in midfield for Sweden. We fancy the Swedes to get out of their group & Ibrahimovic is worth a little look in the market as 5 goals could potentially bag the prize outright.

(Russia are far superior to their Group A rivals)

The other side we reckon are worth considering for winning the whole tournament is France but their odds have shortened considerably & they no longer look such a solid betting proposition at just 10/1. If Benzema stays fit & in top form France will be dangerous to everyone but if he were to drop out his backups are not near his quality, the defence is a little weaker than the rest of their team too, as the selection of Arsenal's Laurent Koscielny in the squad illustrates. We haven't a lot of love for Spain at the prices but clearly they are a top class outfit, it might just be that time & plenty of matches on the legs of their key Barcelona players start to catch up with them & we think they could find it hard to break down the defences of Italy & Ireland, meaning a lay of them at cramped odds to qualify the group looks a play. Our best bet of the tournament has to be Russia to win Group A at odds of 6/4, that is underestimating just how superior the Russians are to the other 3 sides, Greece are limited & the Czech Republic could be the worst side in the finals. Poland are here as hosts & can play a little but are still some way below the Russians who are coming into the tournament in decent nick & they reached the semis, playing some quality football, 4 years ago.

Whatever you end up going for we wish you the best of luck in giving the bookies a beating! Our outright & group specific bets are all listed below.

Outright Selections:
Germany to win tournament at 3/1
Samir Nasri (France) to be player of the tournament at 66/1
Andrea Pirlo (Italy) to be player of the tournament at 80/1
Zlatan Ibrahimovic to be top tournament goalscorer at 50/1 (each way 1/4 odds 1-2-3-4)

Group A picks:
Russia to win Group A at 6/4 (Like Buying Money's Star Bet)
Russia to beat Czech Republic at 5/4
Robert Lewandowski to be top Group A goalscorer at 11/4
Czech Republic to finish bottom of Group A at 11/5

Group B picks:
Germany to win Group B at 6/5
Cristiano Ronaldo to be top Portuguese scorer at 15/8
Denmark to concede fewest goals in tournament at 22/1

Group C picks:
Lay Spain at 1.16 or lower to qualify from Group C
Group C to be lowest scoring group at 3/1

Group D picks:
France/Sweden straight forecast for Group D at 12/1
Sweden/France straight forecast for Group D at 18/1
Andriy Yarmolenko to be top Ukranian goalscorer at 6/1

Euro 2012 Group A - Russia to retake Ukraine & Poland

Euro 2012 kicks-off in Group A with Poland entertaining Greece at the National Stadium, Warsaw on June 8th. Group A is the only group in the tournament without a top 10 side in FIFA's world rankings with Russia the highest ranked 11th. The group consists of 2008 semi finalists Russia, 2004 winners Greece, tournament co-hosts Poland & 1996 runners-up Czech Republic. It looks a tight group on paper & the sides which make it through face daunting quarter final ties against the top two in Group B (Germany, Holland, Portugal or Denmark).

(Russia's Andrei Arshavin looks to have regained his confidence after his loan spell at Zenit)

Russia: Outright Winners 25/1 & Group A Winners 6/4

Russia, under the leadership of experience coach Dick Advocaat, who returns to club management with PSV Eindhoven this summer, will look to end his reign on a high with a strong showing. They had a impressive qualifying campaign where they topped their group & only conceded four goals in ten matches which included a run of four consecutive clean sheets. They have continued their fine form recently in all matches & are unbeaten in their last 12 games so they come into the tournament full of confidence. They undoubtedly have the strongest squad of the four sides but have suffered a blow with centre half Vasily Berezutsky being ruled out because of injury. They have a settled 4-3-3 formation with the two full backs ex-Chelsea Yuri Zhirkov & Aleksandr Anyukov providing the width and Andrei Arshavin & youngster Alan Dzagoev adding the attacking flair & passes to Zenit St Petersburg hotshot Alexander Kerzhakov. Kerzhakov only scored two goals in qualifying but had an impressive club season with 16 goals in 22 league appearances & if he fails to find the target then Russia can call upon Roman Pavlyuchenko & Pavel Pogrebnyak from the bench.

The 6/4 on offer for Russia to win Group A seems good value & potentially the best bet of all Euro 2012 group fixtures is the 5/4 available on Russia to beat an inferior Czech Republic side on the opening night (a price we would expect to shorten by the time kick off comes around).

(Can Greece emulate the winning Greek side of 2004?)

Greece: Outright Winners 100/1 & Group A Winners 5/1

The entire footballing world looked on in amassment in 2004 when the Greeks made a mockery of all footballing/betting experts by becoming the European Champions in Portugal & they are about as fancied now as they were then. They also topped their qualifying group & were undefeated in the progress & boast a record of only being beaten once (3-1 friendly defeat to Romania) in their last 20 matches. Their side is built around an extremely solid defensive quartet & midfield shield of Kostas Katsouranis, Giorgos Karagounis & Giannis Maniatis. The major problem they have is putting the ball in the oppositions net with only 14 goals scored in the ten qualifying games. None of the likely attacking trio Georgios Samaras, Fanis Gekas & Dimitirios Salpingidis have better than moderate international goalscoring records with Samaras & Salpingidis only contributing 13 goals in 105 caps. Their best chance of scoring come from set plays with high class delivery from Karagounis & the big men up from the back. This is backed up by defenders Vassilis Torosidis & Kyriakos Papadopoulos being joint top scorers in qualifying with two apiece.

It is difficult to find any standout Group A bets for Greece as they look to battle it out for the runners-up spot. Their three group matches will be tight, low scoring affairs so you may find value in the 1-0/0-1 correct score markets & also keep an eye out for any over-priced defender odds in the first/anytime goalscorer markets.

(Can Poland's Dortmund trio continue their great start to 2012 in their own backyard?)

Poland: Outright Winners 50/1 & Group A Winners 11/4

The co-hosts Poland couldn't have asked for a better group to give themselves an opportunity to reach the knockout rounds in-front of their hugely passionate fans. Obviously they didn't need to qualify for their own tournament therefore have had to rely on a number of friendly matches across the globe. Their record has been mixed which is understandable with all the variables attached to friendly matches but of late they have won three of their last four against Slovakia, Latvia & Bosnia-Herzegovina with the other ending in a 0-0 draw with Portugal. Coach Franciszek Smuda will heavily rely on Borussia Dortmund trio Lukasz Piszczek, Jakub Blaszczykowski & Robert Lewandowski to carry his side as the rest of squad minus Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny are average at best. The trio have had a hugely successful club campaign with Dortmund by beating rivals Bayern Munich to the league & cup glory & striker Lewandowski will hope to continue his excellent goalscoring record of 30 goals in 46 matches (including a hat-trick in the German cup final).

We all know you can't ignore a man in form so back Lewandowski to be Group A top goalscorer at 11/4 with Paddy Power. He is Poland's attacking focal point & has no competition from the bench unlike nearest betting rival Kerzhakov & if Poland are going to reach the quarter finals then his goals will be vital.

(Can manager Franciszek Smuda get the best out of an average Czech side?)

Czech Republic: Outright Winners 80/1 & Group A Winners 9/2

Czech Republic make-up the final side in the group & had to overcome a play-off against Montenegero. To be fair their qualifying group contained current European & World Champions Spain so 2nd place was always going to be the realistic target but if it wasn't for a hotly disputed 90 minute penalty equaliser against Scotland then they maybe not be here at all. Their three leading men are keeper Petr Cech, playmaker Tomas Rosicky & striker Milan Baros who won the golden boot in Euro 2004. Both Cech & Rosicky have been excellent for Chelsea & Arsenal respectively since Christmas & will have to be at their best to give the Czech's any hope of reaching the knockout stages but just be aware there seems to be a injury doubt hanging over Rosicky.

On paper they aren't as strong defensively as the other sides in the group & also at the other end they struggle to score which is highlighted by left back Michal Kadlec being their top goalscorer in qualifying with four goals (three being penalty kicks). So keep an eye out for the price of Kadlec in the first goalscorer & anytime goalscorer markets in the three group matches for them. The Czechs seem the weakest side in Group A but this isn't reflected in the betting so take advantage of the 11/5 on offer (general price of 2/1) for them to finish bottom.

Selections:
Russia to win Group A at 6/4 (various)
Russia to beat Czech Republic at 5/4 on opening night (7:45pm Fri 8th June)
Robert Lewandowski (Poland) to be top Group A goalscorer at 11/4 (Paddy Power)
Czech Republic to finish bottom of Group A 11/5 (118Bet)