All eyes are turning towards France and Euro 2016. The teams are all there, the players are all fit and raring to go (apart from those injured) and the England fans are all dressed as knights singing Vindaloo. We’ll have all of the games covered on NetBet and here I bring you a team-by-team betting guide to hopefully steer you in the right direction. I hope that you enjoy the tournament as much as I will!
Group A
France
The French team has suffered considerable damage to their defence, with Kurt Zouma, Raphael Varane and Aymeric Laporte all out injured, but they’ve got Payet! Dimitri Payet! I just don’t think you understand! The French have an abundance of attacking talent and typical flair. With Karim Benzema absent, a top class striker is a concern (sounds like Arsenal). Olivier Giroud will be charged with the duty of first choice striker. Despite not playing a competitive game in 2 years, France have won 8 of their last 9 games. Favourites to win another tournament at hograme, get them at 16/5 to win Euro 2016.
Switzerland
The Swiss lost both times when they played England in the qualifying stage. They’re the third youngest team in tournament and Arsenal fans will be hoping to see new signing Granit Xhaka in action. Stoke’s Xherdan Shaqiri is another star name with a memorable hat trick in the last World Cup. They’re not short in attacking prowess with 155 shots in qualifying, but they’ve arguably regressed since 2014. Expect them to qualify in second place from the group with odds of 2/9.
Romania
Romania famously beat England in Euro 2000, but that’s about it as far as memorable moments go. They played in Euro 2008 and were tragically dull and don’t expect much else this time around. Vlad Chiriches is the star player in what isn’t a good squad and without the tournament expansion, there are doubts to if they’d qualify. They had the best defensive record in qualifying, conceding just 2 goals, but they didn’t score many either. If you’re a sufferer from insomnia, tune in to the Romanian games. They’re likely to finish third in the group and are priced at 5/9 to make the knockout stage.
Albania
They’ll be a Xhaka derby in this group, with Albania’s Taulant Xhaka lining up against brother Granit. They’ve benefitted from the tournament expansion and this is their first appearance. Lorik Cana will be known to Sunderland fans, but aside from him and Xhaka, the rest of the squad need to be googled. They scored just seven goals in their qualifying campaign and finished second in their group behind Portugal. They also beat France in a friendly last summer. At odds of 37/20 to qualify from the group, don’t expect to see them in the knockout stages.
Group B
England
A qualifying campaign that saw them win 10 games from 10 was a confidence booster, as were victories against France and Germany in friendly matches. 3 wins from 3 in the warm ups were also positive, but the performances got progressively worse. Joe Hart faced the fewest shots in the qualifiers, but the defence is the weakest point of this side. They’re favourites to win the group at 20/27.
Wales
This is Wales’ first tournament since 1958 and they could do quite well. Gareth Bale is the focal point of the team and is the only Welshman to score over 2 goals in the qualifiers. It’s unfair though to say its Bale plus 10 others as Aaron Ramsey is also in the squad, as is Swansea’s Ashley Williams, who’s arguably a better defender than the England equivalents. They beat Belgium in the qualifiers and there’s no reason why they can’t progress from this group with odds of 1/2.
Russia
Euro historians will think back to Euro 2008 when a Russian semi-final run introduced Andriy Arshavin and Roman Pavlyuchenko to the world. Another similar run seems unlikely considering how the first choice Russian midfield from the qualifiers have all suffered tournament ending injuries in the last fortnight. A third place finish is enough to qualify for the knockout stages and at 1/3, Russia could well do it. Interesting fact about manager Leonard Slutsky, he fell out of a tree aged 18 trying to save a cat which ended his playing career
Slovakia
Aside from Napoli’s Marek Hamšík, there’s not a lot to talk about from a Slovakian point of view. Hamšík was their top scorer in a qualifying campaign that saw them finish behind Spain. They beat a weakened German team in the warm ups and played some good football, but don’t expect to see it though in this tournament. Their formation of 4-6-0 is designed for them to sit deep and wait for teams to attack them. They’re in a similar position to Russia, and with a draw enough to see a side into the knockout stages, Slovakia are priced at 20/23 to make it there.
Group C
Germany
Joachim Löw is heading into Euro 2016 with a decade’s worth of experience as Germany manager, having just reached the 1960s with his fashion sense. The Germans haven’t had a good run of it since winning the World Cup, with defeats to Republic of Ireland, England and Slovakia amongst others. However they’ve never lost when Thomas Müller has scored. He is a superb player for someone who has no outstanding attributes and with 9 goals in the qualifiers; Müller is 7/1 to be the top goalscorer come the end of the tournament.
Poland
Underestimate Poland at your peril. They were top scorers in the qualifiers with 33 goals, Robert Lewandowski contributing 13 of these. He was their sole weapon in Euro 2012, however he has support from Ajax’s Arkadiusz Milik and Sevilla’s Gregorz Krychowiak this time around. They’ve lost just once (to Germany) in 2 years and a runner-up finish in the group will see them avoid a group winner in the next stage. They’re 8/1 to make it to the semi-finals and Lewandowski is a good price for top goalscorer.
Ukraine
It could be a European double for Ukraine after their Eurovision success earlier this year. Andriy Shevchenko and Sergei Rebrov have long since retired from international duty, whilst historians will remember Emil Kostadinov, who famously defected from Bulgaria in the 1990s in order to play for Ukraine. The modern day team aren’t as well known, but Andriy Yarmolenko is the star player and contributed 6 goals in the qualifying stage. Expect to see them come third in the group, but still qualify at odds of 1/2.
Northern Ireland
There were some pulled up trees on the streets of Belfast after Michael O’Neill guided Northern Ireland to a qualifying group win and a trip to the Euros. His reward is one of the toughest groups in the draw. Kyle Lafferty was their top scorer in the qualifiers with 7 goals, which is a great cause of concern at any time. He struggled to get a game for Norwich this season, so that tells you really where they are. They’re 5/2 to make it to the next round, but it’ll be a tough ask.
Group D
Spain
Spain won both Euro 2008 and Euro 2012; however a disappointing World Cup has led many to wonder if they’ve still got it. A disappointing friendly defeat to Georgia in the warm ups isn’t ideal. There’s an embarrassment of riches left at home, including Juan Mata, Isco and Diego Costa, but Andrés Iniesta and David Silva will be in France, pulling the strings in midfield. They’re the only side in the history of the competition to win the tournament twice in a row, and they’re priced at 5/1 to make it a hat trick of wins.
Croatia
They’re in a similar position to Poland and they also cannot be underestimated. A midfield partnership of Luka Modrić and Ivan Rakitić is particularly tasty and they’ll be reliant on providing Mario Mandžukić with opportunities to score. Discipline was an issue for the Croatians as they were shown three red cards in the qualifying campaign. They’re the main threat to Spain for the title of Group Winner and at 3/1; they’re at a good price to do so.
Czech Republic
The Czechs have moved on since the days of Pavel Nedvěd and their runners up finish in Euro 1996. Petr Cech is the most experienced player in their squad and the Arsenal keeper will have to be at his best as the Czech defence was the most porous in the qualifying campaign, conceding 14 goals. They’re an unknown quantity at this stage and they could sneak in as a third placed qualifier at 5/6.
Turkey
Turkey lost 2-1 to England in a warm up game, however key player Arda Turan wasn’t playing. It’s their first major tournament since Euro 2008 where they finished third, and Burak Yilmaz was their top scorer in qualifying with 4 goals. They’re priced at 20/27 to qualify from the group and it’ll be a shoot-out between them and Czech Republic to finish third.
Group E
Belgium
They have a golden generation of talent, although as any England fan over the last 20 years will tell you, that doesn’t equate to success. Eden Hazard was their top scorer in qualifying with 5 goals, but had a poor season at Chelsea until the last 5 games. There’s numerous Premier League stars, but no Vincent Kompany who is out injured. On paper, they’re the strongest team in this group and are favourites to win it at 21/20.
Italy
Italy won the competition in 1968, but they might have to wait another 4 years to do it again. This isn’t their strongest squad. A traditional gnarled Italian defence is still present though, marshalled by the Juventus pairing of Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini in front of the evergreen Gianluigi Buffon. There’s no Andrea Pirlo or Mario Balotelli this year, and they won 7 of their qualifying games by a 1 goal margin. They’re backed at 6/4 to win this group.
Sweden
This team is essentially Zlatan Ibrahimovic. They’ll look to get the ball to him and he’ll score the goals. They qualified through the play-offs with a 4-3 win over Denmark and Erik Hamren has included 6 players from their victorious European Under-21 Championship team last year. Zlatan was their top scorer in qualifying with 11 goals, and is a good each way bet at 33/1 to be the tournament top goalscorer.
Republic of Ireland
The Irish will hope for an improved showing this year, after losing all three games in Euro 2012 by a 3 goal margin. They include a stellar bunch of youngsters in Robbie Keane and Shay Given, aged 35 and 40 respectively and won’t be intimidated by the occasion. They’ve shown that they can produce a big result when needed, a victory over Germany in the qualifiers, but it’s still yet to be seen what Roy Keane’s comments have done to the morale in the dressing room. At 5/4, they’re an outside bet to qualify from this group.
Group F
Portugal
The Portuguese have a nice blend of youth and experience, with 38 year old Ricardo Carvalho set to feature in his fifth major tournament, whilst Renato Sanches is set to feature in his first. In between them is Cristiano Ronaldo, who the team is built around. He’s the main man, whilst fellow Real Madrid player and part-time actor Pepe will be in the defence. With Ronaldo coming off the back of another good season, he’s at 15/2 to be top goalscorer once the tournament finishes.
Austria
The Austrians waltzed through their qualifying group and remained unbeaten throughout. Marc Janko scored 7 goals in the qualifiers and is a dark horse for the tournament top goalscorer award. Bayern’s David Alaba is the star man and plays in their midfield, whilst Leicester’s Christian Fuchs is also in the squad. They could go far in the competition if they’re as good as rumoured to be, and they’re priced at 8/1 to reach the semi-finals.
Iceland
The smallest nation in the tournament in terms of population, Iceland have benefitted from the tournament expansion. Swansea’s Gylfi Sigurddson is the main threat, and English fans should all know about his talents when it comes to free kicks. Former Chelsea, Barcelona and Bolton striker Eidur Gudjohnsen is also named in the squad. Now aged 37, he’s their all-time top goalscorer with 25 goals. It’ll be wonderful if they made it to the knockout stages and are backed at 4/7 to make it through the group stage.
Hungary
Good luck naming any Hungarian players. Ferenc Puskas is their most famous player, but he played in the 1950s and 1960s. Former WBA and Fulham midfielder Zoltan Gera is in the squad, whilst goalkeeper Gabor Kiraly (aged 40) is likely to be the oldest player to feature in Euro 2016. Most of their supporters are happy that the team qualified, but they’re unlikely to make the knockout stages. They’re 29/20 to qualify from the group.
