Euro 2012 Fixtures - Friday 15th June

Friday sees the last set of games with staggered start times & the finely poised Group C, it still looks to be wide open although Ukraine's excellent win over Sweden has put them in a good position. We're taking a look at both games including England's key fixture against Sweden as we try to find more great bets like last night's Andrea Pirlo to be man of the match!


(Samir Nasri will look to have a major influence for France against Ukraine)

5:00 pm - Ukraine vs France

Co-host Ukraine entertain France at the Donbass Arena, Donetsk as they look to seal their place in the knockout rounds. After beating Sweden on Monday night with a headed double from national hero Andriy Shevchenko another victory against France will mean quarter final football & reward for their fanatical fans.

Ukraine manager Oleg Blokhin is refusing to give any indication to what his starting line is going to be for the fixture. With the fact that France dominated possession & midfield against England we would expect Blokhin to sacrifice an attacker & bolster his midfield so they don't get overrun & can close up the available space for the likes of French duo Nasri & Ribery.

France will be disappointed to only come away with a point against England with a defensive lapse at a set play costing them. Nasri scored the goal on the evening & he was a constant menace throughout, finding space between the midfield & back four so Bayern Munich's Anatolii Tymoschuk will have to be at the top of his game to negate his influence.

Striker Karim Benzema looked sharp & had plenty of attempts, mainly from distance, against England & if the French midfield can find a cutting edge & provide him with the ball within the region of the penalty area then you would expect him to do the rest. Benzema will certainly have better support than Sweden provided to Ibrahimovic & that could prove the difference, if he doesn't score himself then we can see him laying the ball off to his supporting attackers to get strikes on goal & Ribery could be the man to benefit, he's available at 7/1 to score first & is a decent bet. Ukraine celebrated as if they'd won the tournament when the whistle blew against Sweden & that indicates the levels of expectation they truly have, it may be difficult for their players to raise their game again here & whilst the weakness in France's defence is certainly there it's probably been slightly overplayed by some of our 'expert' pundits. Get on France at odds of 11/10 to show why the money was flowing in for them & outright glory pre-tournament, they have enough classy operators & should improve with the outstanding young holding midfielder Yann M'Vila likely to come back into the starting lineup.

(Zlatan Ibrahimovic will look to take advantage of any fatigue in the England ranks)

7:45 pm - England vs Sweden

The second match of the evening is between England and Sweden at the Olympic Stadium, Kiev as both sides look to pick up their first victories of the tournament. The teams seem to meet on a regular occurrence & they are usually tight affairs with four of their last six meetings ending level. The draw as an outcome wouldn't suit either side but would especially give Sweden a mountain to climb in their final group fixture.

England seemed please with their performance & point against France but now the emphasis will be on them to pose a greater attacking threat which may be difficult. With Wayne Rooney still suspended we would expect Ashley Young to line-up behind Danny Welbeck again but thoughts could turn to Andy Carroll as Sweden conceded two headed goals against Ukraine.

Sweden were disappointing against Ukraine in their opening game & surprisingly just sat back and opted to counter attack which was different to their attacking approach in qualifying. The defence looked vulnerable, especially against crosses, so a tactical switch is likely to take place with Jonas Olsson coming in at centre back & Andreas Granqvist moving to right-back.

The likelihood is that Johan Elmander will come into side at the expense of the ineffective Markus Rosenberg & will hopefully give them more of an attacking edge & take some of the burden off of Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Ibrahimovic was a class above anyone else on the pitch against Ukraine in a deeper role & managed to slot away the opening goal with a cool finish. England will have to pay extra attention to him as he floats between the two banks of four, it's a real concern with midfield duo Scott Parker & Steven Gerrard suffering with fatigue (we suggested they may struggle for fitness after playing France) but having to start due to the other option in the middle being Jordan Henderson - we're not sure he'd look out of place in Ireland's midfield!

We just can't see goals in the game, Hodgson has England set up a very particular way & they'll need an incisive finisher if they are to take the limited chances they'll create although it was a positive to see such a great delivery from a set piece for the goal in their opener. Sweden will always offer some danger with Ibrahimovic up front but England will know he's by far the biggest danger & look to frustrate & negate him at all times. Take the under 2.5 goals that is on offer at 7/10, either side could nick this but the draw seems a big player in the market.

Selections:

France to beat Ukraine at 11/10 (general)

Franck Ribery to score first at 8/1 (general)

England v Sweden to be under 2.5 goals at 7/10 (various)

Euro 2012 Fixtures - Thursday 14th June

Euro 2012 continues to be a cracking tournament with quality game after quality game & some of the better players are beginning to perform. Mario Gomez & Alan Dzagoev lead the goalscoring charts with three goals each & it will be interesting to see whether anyone can hunt down Gomez in particular as it looks like he could be playing several more games in the tournament. This Thursday we take a look at Group C games as Croatia look to build on their win over Ireland by taking on the impressive Italians & Spain take on Ireland who were so poor in their first game.

(Di Natale made an impressive goalscoring impact for Italy & will hope to have secured a starting berth)

5:00 pm - Italy vs Croatia

Croatia are a proactive team & showed they could take it to a team trying to defend when showing Ireland their attacking prowess & superiority with a convincing win, Ireland were poor though & Italy will offer up a much sterner test.

Italy were content to be reactive against Spain, allowing them to come on to them before breaking away with Andrea Pirlo regularly looking to play killer balls in behind the defence. One of Pirlo's exquisite passes was how they took the lead with the still quick Antonio Di Natale darting onto it & finishing with aplomb, he may have just got himself a starting spot as he offered a real menace when introduced as a substitute. Italy are also extremely comfortable when in possession & at times held onto the ball well against Spain, they'll certainly look to impose their will on the less technically gifted (than Spain) Croatians here. Marchisio & Motta will look to be more effective at getting at Croatia's key playmaker Luka Modric, than Whelan & Andrews were for Ireland & they are far superior players so will stand a better chance.

Croatia did look dangerous going forward & Mario Mandzukic took his goals very well, albeit against some rubbish Irish defending & goalkeeping, he's a dependable scorer for Wolfsburg but his brace the other day were only his 6th & 7th international goals in 30 appearances. Nikica Jelavic bagged Croatia's other goal against Ireland but rather surprisingly that was only his third goal for Croatia in 20 games, so between them Mandzukic & Jelavic do only have 10 goals in 50 appearances so we should maybe not get too carried away against the best defence in qualifying for the tournament. Vedran Corluka played at centre back for Croatia in the first game & they got away with it thanks to Trapattoni's sentimentality in continuing to play a thoroughly out of form & low in confidence Kevin Doyle but Italy will surely exploit a player as suspect as Corluka. The rest of the defence is very ordinary too with captain Darijo Srna starting at right back even though he more often plays at right midfield, the keeper Pletikos only made one appearance when on loan at Spurs in 2010 & Schildenfeld & Strinic are average at best. In midfield the Croats do have some real quality with Rakitic & Perisic being goal providers & scorers too, the Italian wing backs should pick them up though, with the Italian 3-5-2 looking suited to Croatia's setup.

Andrea Pirlo was excellent against Italy & we can barely believe Boylesports are going a huge 16/1 for him to be Man of the Match here, snap their hands off, sign up to them, get free bets on, do whatever, this is a magnificent price for a brilliant player who is regularly Italy's best - it is no coincidence that Juventus won the double as soon as he signed up last year. Italy look adaptable to any situation & the way they played against Spain shows that they are genuine contenders for this championship & they will be raring to go against Croatia, we see a win for Cesare Prandelli's men at odds of 13/10. Croatia's defensive weakness could cost them dear against Pirlo, Cassano & co.

(Iker Cassilas & his defenders shouldn't face too much pressure from the Irish attack)

7:45 pm - Spain vs Republic of Ireland

Everyone in the universe must by now have heard Spain played without a striker against Italy (+ have had their say about it) but they will surely have a point man against Ireland who looked so limited against Croatia.

We highlighted pre-tournament & before their last game how poor the Irish central midfielders are on the ball & unless Trapattoni switches out Whelan & Andrews they will do well to get over 30% possession here. You'd have thought Ireland would switch to one up front with maybe the big lad Darron Gibson coming in to add some more physicality to the midfield. It won't help too much as Spain will have at least 5 in midfield & they should play their tika-taka football to some effect, playing it in  around Ireland. Trapattoni will have been planning this game out for months & the philosophy will be 'bend don't break' for them, they;ll be happy to let Spain have the ball up to & around 25 yards out where they'll then try to get close & if they win possession Duff & McGeady (or McLean) will be the out ball. However Ireland play it does look tough for them to get anything, Robbie Keane has been playing in the MLS & it's difficult to step back up this higher level & odds of 8/11 for Spain to keep a clean sheet look a very good pick indeed.

Spain didn't always look great defensively against Italy but in Andrea Pirlo they came up against their Kryptonite with his sumptuous passes in behind, Ireland definitely don't have anyone with that ability & Pique & Ramos will be happy to deal with crosses into the box. Spain can be frustrating to watch if you have your money down as they so often don't pull the trigger when the chances arise & that limits appeal about them winning by a big margin. It will be interesting to see what lineup they go with, they certainly should win but we can't find any great value in the odds offered about them & will happily stick with the clean sheet bet. They'll be hoping for better from players such as David Silva & Sergio Busquets as they look to play themselves into the tournament before a key game against Croatia up next.

Selections:
Italy to beat Croatia at 13/10 (various)
Andrea Pirlo to be Man of the Match at 16/1 (Boylesports)
Spain to keep a clean sheet at 8/11 (Totesport)

Euro 2012 Fixtures - Wednesday 13th June

Wednesday sees us back in the high quality Group B at Euro 2012 where Denmark look to capitalise on their great start when taking on Portugal & bitter rivals Germany & Holland facing off in the later game. With their first games behind them the bookies may be wising up to which players & teams are to look out for & they'll be shortening the odds accordingly, we're trying to stay one step ahead & are scouring the markets for the best bets available.

(Eeeeeeheeeeeee!! Did I do good Ronaldae!???!! Portugal's dream Bo Selecta! partnership)

5:00 pm - Denmark vs Portugal


Denmark came up with a fantastic result for us against Holland in their opener but did lead rather a charmed life at times with the Dutch failing to make the most of some very presentable chances where the Danish defence parted to let players through at times. Portugal have exactly the type of players in Nani & Ronaldo to expose Denmark's wing backs & we've a feeling this is going to be quite an impressive display from the Iberians.

We were keen on Germany to beat Portugal & they eventually prevailed but the Portuguese central midfield we were so concerned about actually managed to be very disciplined & as good as he is, Christian Eriksen will not be posing the same problems as Mesut Ozil, they'll feel confident in dealing with him. Benfica's emerging youngster Nelson Oliveira came on after 70 minutes for Helder Postiga & offered a step up with some exciting & inventive play but Postiga might just retain his starting spot here.

Denmark did well going forwards against the Dutch defence but Portugal have a pretty good back four, especially Pepe & Bruno Alves at centre back, when Fabio Coentrao bothers sticking at defending rather than flying forwards he isn't bad either! Coentrao should have the pace to deal with Rommedahl & the Dane's crossing wasn't too smart anyway in his first game. If Denmark can get at Portugal it will be with their goalscorer from game one, left winger Michael Krohn-Dehli up against Joao Pereira & Miguel Veloso will need to help out at times.

We've already noted that we like the look of Portugal's wide players who should have the beating of the slower Denmark full backs, Nani is a tempter at 10/1 to score first but Stan James are going a standout 11/2 for the great Ronaldo to score first. His scoring record for Real Madrid is freakily good & although he doesn't bag as many for the national side that looks a little on the big side, again betting on the favourite with Betfred at reduced odds but their double delight/hattrick heaven offer is a potential play as he could easily score more than once. We really do like Portugal & think they can win here without conceding, that offers up odds of 9/4 but maybe a better bet is Portugal on the handicap with -1 goal at odds of 100/30, that looks big for a team with a goalscorer like Ronaldo, who could run riot with a solid defence to back him up.

(It wasn't looking great for Mario Gomez...... then he got his goal. Watch out, Super Mario's powered up!)

7:45 pm - Germany vs Holland

The two sides meeting int the late game, Germany & Holland were two of the outright favourites before the tournament began, although after Denmark's 'shock' win the Dutch have now drifted right out & it's understandable - if they lose here their chances will be looking bleak.

We flagged up a weak defence & undersized defence for Holland before the Denmark match, they look like they'll have first choice centre back Joris Mathijsen back for this one which is a positive but he's only 6 feet tall & Mario Gomez could have a field day against him & Heitinga. Germany looked dangerous when getting the ball out wide right & that will be the key tactic here with the classy Thomas Muller taking on tournament youngster Jetro Willems, who will fill Holland's left back spot, time & time again. Muller's crossing wasn't as good as it should have been but he'll have been hard at work in training & we can see him wreaking havoc with Ozil keeping the defensive midfielders too busy to cover out wide.

Going forwards the Dutch of course look good & they created enough chances against Denmark to have won the game, unfortunately Robin van Persie was all over the place, he might retain his starting spot but it could be in arguably his better role as a number ten to Huntelaar as the point man. If you believe the pundits too much you'd think that the Germans defence is some kind of terribly weak link but in truth Mats Hummels & Holger Badstuber are two of Europe's finest young centre backs, both at the age of 23 & marshaling the defences of their big club teams. If Holland do go attacking they've the quality to cause problems for anyone but they'll have to sacrifice either De Jong or van Bommel & that will risk Mesut Ozil getting way too much of the ball. Germany have their own star holding midfielder in the tireless Sami Khedira & if he plays well that should free up their super attacking threats.

We flagged up in our Euro 2012 group previews our worries about Holland's defence & not much has changed for us. Holland have great attacking flair but when they go forwards they risk being countered against & the defenders aren't the quickest, if they sit back at all balls will get put into their box & they aren't the biggest. A draw wouldn't be the end of the road for the Dutch as they'd still likely have one game against Portugal where they would have to win to progress & that may stop van Marwijk from going too gung ho, if that's the case we reckon the German defence can hold strong. If Holland do go more attacking we feel Germany will exploit their defence & Mario Gomez will be feeling an awful lot more confident after scoring against Portugal, at odds of 6/1 to score first we'll stay with the big man. We've been out to get Holland from the start of the tournament, there are too many good attackers around at the moment for their second rate defence to allow them to progress like they did to the World Cup final & we'll go with Germany to win again here at odds of 6/4. Germany can keep marching on in style & they look like they are the type of side to revel in their favourites status with some really confident types at every position, so they should be - they have some outstanding talent on display.


Selections:
Portugal to beat Denmark with -1 goal a 100/30 (BlueSquare & 888Sport)
Cristiano Ronaldo to score first at 11/2 (Stan James)
Germany to beat Holland at 6/4 (various)
Mario Gomez to score first at 6/1 (various)

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)

Euro 2012 Fixtures - Mon 11th June

The final Group of Euro 2012 gets underway on Monday & there will be plenty of patriotic England fans knocking off of work early to see them take on France in the 5 o'clock kickoff before hosts Ukraine take on Sweden in the late game. We've got both games previewed below in addition to our outright preview of the best bets in Group D too, hopefully we can round off a successful first round of punting with some more winners!

(Benzema is a class act for France & if Jeremy Menez gets on the pitch he'll have a few tricks up his sleeve)

5:00 pm - France vs England

The opening match from Group D comes live from the Donbass Arena, Donetsk as France take on Roy Hodgson's England, the sides also met in the opening game of Euro 2004 when an injury time brace from the great Zinedine Zidane gave France a 2-1 victory. France are the form side in international football currently & come into the tournament unbeaten in their last 21 matches, including 15 wins & they won their three warm up matches scoring nine goals in the process. After the well documented chaos of their two previous major tournaments; there looks to be a completely different atmosphere & spirit created by the French manager & legendary centre back Laurent Blanc.

England now under the guidance of Roy Hodgson have had their build up overshadowed by the ongoing Rio Ferdinand saga & withdrawals through injury of Gary Cahill, Frank Lampard & Gareth Barry plus the notable suspension of Wayne Rooney for the first two group games. Roy's England won both of their friendlies 1-0 against Norway & Belgium & he has focused on a solid defensive unit playing on the counter attack. We wouldn't argue for England to play any other way as they have a distinct lack of quality in midfield, Steven Gerrard has been a fantastic player over his career but it is a damning indictment of English football & its youth development that even now, in his much reduced capacity, that Gerrard is considered an undoubted starter & star player in the side - take a look at how Germany so ruthlessly disposed of the great Michael Ballack.

England should line up in a 4-4-1-1 formation with Ashley Young lining up behind Manchester United teammate Danny Welbeck in attack, by all accounts Welbeck has thoroughly outshone rival Andy Carroll in training. On the midfield flanks there will be a choice of two from three with Stuart Downing, Theo Walcott & James Milner in contention & the more defensively minded Downing & Milner could get the nod. In defence Joleon Lescott will partner John Terry at the heart & they will need to form an instant partnership as they'll have their hands full with the powerful & skilful Karim Benzema.

Benzema has had a great season with Real Madrid & found the net 32 times in 52 appearances in all competitions & he has a quality supporting cast in France's wonderfully creative midfield. Franck Ribery is probably the star name there for the French but Samir Nasri will look to find the intricate passes to unlock the English defence & players like Newcastle's Cabaye & Ben Arfa can light up any game. The midfield should be able to create chances for Benzema & as one of the best strikers around if he gets fed enough he will almost score. The French defence have been taking a fair bit of stick in the buildup, with many saying that it's their big weakness but it really isn't as bad as some like to make out with Lloris a very solid keeper & Mexes a classy centre back. For a big lad Adil Rami is pretty comfortable on the ball too & Patrice Evra's season got a lot better once the FA's Suarez investigation was concluded, if they do suffer any injuries there isn't a great deal of cover though & that could harm their chances of success in the tournament as a whole.

It's difficult to tell whether it s a good thing for England to have to face France in this first game, Scott Parker & Steven Gerrard will both have to put in some shifts to try to combat the French attacking midfield & at least they'll be fresh to do that, unfortunately they could end up toasted for the coming games in the group. England are going to rely on individual moments of brilliance & Ashley Young looks most likely to do that if anyone will, as much as we like Danny Welbeck he just didn't put the ball in the net often enough for a player starting at point for Manchester United. France have to be the bet at odds of 6/4, they are amongst the favourites for the tournament, have a real air of confidence about them & it looks unlikely that England without Rooney can exploit the weakest area of the side. We're big Karim Benzema fans here at Like Buying Money & 6/1 for him as first goalscorer looks a good bet, he plays as a lone striker meaning he'll have all of the service & he could make himself a superstar in this tournament. Betfred only offer 11/2 for Benzema to score first but do have an offer where if you back the first scorer & they go on to score again they'll double the odds or treble them if they bag a hattrick - if you are backing a shorter priced player, who is more likely to double up, they look the firm to bet with.

(Will the Ukraine team have recovered from their cheeky little bout of food poisoning?)

7:45 pm - Ukraine vs Sweden

The co-hosts Ukraine face Sweden in their first match at the Olympic Stadium, Kiev with both sides seeing this as an ideal fixture to get three points. The sides are considered as the outsiders for the group so a loss here could spell disaster for their tournament hopes.

Ukraine have had a bout of food poisoning that affected a large majority of the squad last week but the coach Oleg Blokhin believes this has now cleared up & he's focused on finding an unlikely path out of Group D. They lost their last two games against Austria (3-2) & Turkey (2-0) & this is on top of a recent friendly record of two draws & four defeats against sides involved in Euro 2012. Ukraine have one of the older squads at the championships as evidenced by Chelsea flop (but previously immense at AC Milan) Andriy Shevchenko still being a key player in the side at 35. That older squad could mean they struggle to recover from games in quick succession & we really feel this game is make or break for them, we're unconvinced by their quality but at least they'll have their vociferous (& occasionally racist) fans cheering them on.

Sweden are a well organised unit & are more than capable of qualifying from Group D & getting results against more illustrious teams at any stage of Euro 2012. Coach Erik Hamren has adopted an attacking approach built around the outstanding Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Ibrahimovic scored 28 goals in 32 league matches for AC Milan & will be licking his lips at the prospect of facing an average Ukrainian defensive unit. Midfielder Kim Kallstrom who made seven assists (record highest with Mesut Ozil & Balazs Dzsudzsak) in qualifying will look to pull the strings for Sweden & along with the outstanding delivery of Seb Larsson will look to provide the service that Ibrahimovic thrives on. Defence isn't so great for Sweden but Ukraine may lack the pace through the middle to exploit old Olof Mellberg, Martin Olsson & Andreas Granqvist will need to be on good form to stop the Ukranian's best attacking threat in wingers Yarmolenko & Gusev.

We basically don't see too much to be positive about for the Ukraine other than home advantage, along with the Czech Republic & maybe Ireland we feel they're one of the weakest sides in the competition. Sweden meanwhile qualified as best runners up in a group including Holland, who they beat 3-2 in the final game & they carry a real attacking plus plenty of discipline when they don't have the ball. At odds of 2/1 to win Sweden look overpriced & underrated meaning they must be backed, they can get off to a great start & put themselves in pole position to qualify from the group. Like Benzema in the previous game Ibrahimovic is a general 6/1 to score first, he's one of Europe's best & is worth a punt, again a bet with Betfred at 11/2 can also offer up a potentially big payout if he bags more than one goal.

Selections:
France to beat England at 6/4 (general)
Karim Benzema to score first at 6/1 (general) or 11/2 at Betfred with their double delight/hattrick heaven offer
Sweden to beat Ukraine at 2/1
Zlatan Ibrahimovic to score first at 6/1 (general) or 11/2 at Betfred

Euro 2012 Fixtures - Sun 10th June

Although the first games from the 'Group of Death' have just been seen, arguably the biggest game from the first set of fixtures comes in Group C on Sunday with World Cup winners & defending champions Spain taking on Italy. Later on everybody's favourite underdogs Ireland trying to get off to a good start against the attack minded Croatia, the quality should remain high & we're looking for more winners .

(Gerard Pique & Sergio Ramos are a new centre back pairing for Spain - can the fierce rivals co-exist?)

5:00 pm - Spain v Italy

Pre-tournament favourites Spain are pretty short in the market to win their first game against Italy here at a general price of 4/5, we remember their opener in the World Cup where they lost to Switzerland though. Withought David Villa at point Spain may struggle to get goals from the relatively few chances their games tend to see due to the slow build up possession football played & the opposition regularly defending in numbers.

Italy have traditionally been the masters of defending & conceded just two goals in qualifying, they are going to be missing Andrea Barzagli at the back though & that'll mean Daniele De Rossi dropping into the competition's only back three (rather than four) with Chiellini & Bonucci. De Rossi may actually be pretty suited to defending against the Spanish style of playing as they won't throw balls into the box & he's very clever on his feet, he will be a miss in the centre of midfield though where he plays such a good ball winning role that lets Andrea Pirlo shine, he's their star & at 80/1 very overpriced for Player of the Tournament. It seems that some bookmakers have forgotten he's on penalties & freekicks for the Azzurri & seems overpriced at a massive 22/1 to score first. Set pieces could well be the way that Italy look to attack Spain as they are hugely pragmatic & will be happy to adapt from the attractive attacking style that saw them qualify. The big drawback for Italy has been in the buildup to the tournament with another match-fixing scandal back in Italy & only one warm up game where they lost 3-0 to Russia, that scoreline doesn't quite represent the story of the game but it still doesn't inspire confidence. The manager Cesare Prandelli may use this tumultuous setting to foster an 'Us Against the World' mentality in the team & that could make them dangerous for anyone in the tournament & they undoubtedly have a lot of quality.

Spain are excellent & have been dominant in international football over the last 5 years but their players have so many games on their legs now they must be starting to slow down a little & it is telling that even though Lionel Messi was arguably better than ever this year that Barcelona, who form the national team's backbone, couldn't reach the same heights as in previous years. It looks like Torres will begin at point but we're less convinced than most that he's back to anything like his old self - breakaway goals in the dying seconds against sides on the all out attack do not make you world class! Carlos Puyol will be a huge miss at centre back & even though both players are class it remains to be seen whether a Pique & Ramos pairing is as effective, Jordi Alba will offer them something at left back though which was probably the only area the side have lacked in over the past few years.

As good as the Spanish are we just don't see any value in backing them, we could go with Italy at 4/1 but the better bet lies by taking the insurance of Italy in the draw no bet market at 11/4. This could be a low scoring game & that brings the draw much more into play so knowing that you'll get your money back if it does end in a draw but make a very tidy profit if Italy win makes this an appealing bet.

(Glenn Whelan provides our betting opportunity in the Ireland v Croatia game)

7:45pm - Republic of Ireland v Croatia

The group's two outsiders Ireland & Croatia will both surely feel that a win in this game could be key to their unlikely progression through to the knockout stages but will also be aware that a loss would be disastrous & that could mean some stifled play from both teams. Croatia are at their strongest up front but Ireland are pretty resolute in defence with Shay Given a great last line of defence, Ireland's big weakness is the centre of midfield where they lack quality & Croatia are pretty much 'rubbish' at the back. Ireland do lack midfielders who are good when on the ball but Glenn Whelan & Keith Andrews will always put in a shift when possession is lost & they'll need to with the classy Luka Modric playing for Croatia, he could well be in for some rough treatment here. If they can mark & kick Modric out of the game they'll starve the supply line to Everton's in form striker Nikica Jelavic & his likely partner Mario Mandzukic. Captain & hero Robbie Keane will lead the line for Ireland where he'll be joined by Kevin Doyle, we're perplexed as to how Doyle is keeping out Shane Long at the moment & we don't see him making the most of the chances that come his way.

We think this is a really tough match to call & we don't want to side with the Croatians at shortish odds but Ireland's central midfield really is poor & they could give possession away too often to create many chances, unfortunately the oddsmakers make a low scoring game an overwhelming favourite (under 2.5 goals is at 1/2) so there's no play to be made there. Lets go for something altogether more exotic & we'll pick Glenn Whelan to be the first player booked at a generous 12/1, he won't be doing too much other than tackling & we can just see the quick feet of Modric getting the better of him & some nice swipes coming his way in return.

Selections:
Italy to beat Spain on the draw no bet market at 11/4 (Betfred & BetVictor)
Andrea Pirlo to score first at 22/1 (BlueSquare, Stan James & 888Sport)
Glenn Whelan to be first player booked at 12/1 in Ireland v Croatia game (various)