Euro 2012 Team Profile: France

French football legend Thierry Henry once said, "I eat football, I sleep football, I breathe football. I'm not mad, I'm just passionate." Two years ago, he couldn't prevent his team from going down in the first round of the FIFA world cup. Since then, French football has been patchy and inconsistent. When Raymond Domenech paved way for Laurent Blanc to be the head coach, skeptics predicted a free fall. However, Blanc has performed a decent job and guided his team to their fourth consecutive Euro appearance. Can he take his team all the way to attain glory? Or will they stumble in their path? These questions will be answered in the next couple of weeks.

Route to qualification

France's qualification campaign got off to the worst possible start when they suffered a shock home defeat to minnows Belarus in September 2010. However, they were quickly back on track and overcame Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-0. October 2012 was a rewarding month for Laurent Blanc as his boys beat Romania 2-0 and Luxemborg by the same margin. Luxemborg did not put up a fight in the reverse fixture, in March 2011, and were again beaten 0-2. Belarus proved to be a thorn in the flesh again for Blanc as they held to France to a 1-1 draw. France survived a scare from Albania on September 2, 2011 and eventually managed to win the game 2-1. Their inconsistent form in the qualifiers showed once again as they failed to get past Romania four days later and were held to a goalless draw. France ensured qualification in October 2011, after trouncing Albania 3-0 and holding off Bosnia and Herzegovina 1-1 in their last qualifier. Though France emerged as group winners, they finished only a point ahead of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

European championships history

Les Blues are one of the most successful teams in Euro, having won the title twice and finished fourth twice. They lost to Yugoslavia in the semi-final of the 1960 European Championship. After a 24-year long wait, France tasted their first ever European success, beating Spain 2-0 in the final. France suffered a heart-break in the 1996 edition as they lost their semi-final encounter with Czech Republic on penalties. However they made amends for that loss by winning the next edition of the tournament, beating Italy 2-1 after extra-time. Only Germany, with three titles, leads Les Blues in the number of European titles won.

Opponents

France are in Group D, also known as the Group of Death, alongside hosts Ukraine, giant-killers Sweden and traditional rivals England. France commence their quest for third title at the Donbass Arena in Donetsk against England on June 11, 2012. After a short three-day break, they face hosts Ukraine at the same venue. With a 50000 plus crowd in strong support of the hosts, this game would be no cake-walk for Laurent Blanc and his boys. Sweden, who have a reputation for knocking down football heavy-weights once in a while, would provide a tough challenge to the Blues, when they meet each other on June 19, 2012.

Provisional squad

Laurent Blanc included un-capped defender Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa in his 26-man provisional squad while out-of-form midfielder Yoann Gourcuff also finds a place. However, Blanc will miss the services of the injured Eric Abidal, Bacary Sagna and Younes Kaboul. Loic Remy is expected to recover in time to find a place in the final squad which will be named on May 29.

Goalkeepers: Cedric Carrasso, Hugo Lloris, Steve Mandanda.

Defenders: Gael Clichy, Mathieu Debuchy, Patrice Evra, Laurent Koscielny, Philippe Mexes, Adil Rami, Anthony Reveillere, Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa.

Midfielders: Yohan Cabaye, Alou Diarra, Yoann Gourcuff, Yann M'Vila, Florent Malouda, Marvin Martin, Blaise Matuidi, Samir Nasri.

Forwards: Hatem Ben Arfa, Karim Benzema, Olivier Giroud, Jeremy Menez, Loic Remy, Franck Ribery, Mathieu Valbuena.

Star Players

Karim Benzema is the man to watch out for. He was the team's joint top-scorer in the qualifiers and scored 28 goals for his club Real Madrid last season. Wingers Frank Ribery and Samir Nasri would provide ample ammunition to the attack. Both of them are proven talent and can cause difficulties to even the world's best defenders.

Euro 2012 Team Profile: Spain

Spain are the defending Euro and FIFA world cup champions and definitely bookies' favorites to win the Euro crown again. La Roja are a bunch of highly talented players, who play free-flowing football. Del Bosque, under whom Spain achieved their first ever world cup victory, has brought style and substance into the Spanish team. His recent contract extension would only serve to boost the morale of the team. Other managers are guaranteed to have nightmares the night before their teams face Spain.

Route to qualification

In the qualifiers, Spain were handed relatively easier opponents in Czech Republic, Scotland, Lithuania and Leichtenstein. The Spaniards started their campaign in style by trashing minnows Leichtenstein 4-0 at Vaduz on 3rd September, 2010. A comfortable 3-1 victory against Lithuania at the Estadio El Helmántico in Salamanca and a scrappy 3-2 win against Scotland in Glasgow ensured that Del Bosque's men were on top of the group by October 2010. After a 5-month break, La Roja were up against the Czech Republic, their toughest opponents in the group. A David Villa double secured them full points from the game. Their opponents in the next game, Leichtenstein, proved no match as the Spaniards slotted six goals past them and conceded none. A 2-0 away victory against the Czech Republic followed by a 3-1 home victory against Scotland in October 2011 ensured that Spain finished on top of their group, having won all eight of their qualifiers while scoring 26 goals and conceding just six in that process.

Past History

Spain beat the then defending champions USSR 2-1 to win the 1964 European Nations' Cup. They reached the title-clash in the 1984 Euro but stumbled at the final hurdle, losing 0-2 to France. The 1-0 win against Germany in the Euro 2008 final is one of the glorious chapters of Spanish footballing history.

Opponents

Spain are placed in Group C along with Ireland, Croatia and former world champions Italy. They begin their title defence against the Azzuri on June 10, 2012 at the PGE Arena, Gdansk. The Irish would be no push-overs and are likely to mount a tough challenge against the Spaniards on June 14, 2012. Spain conclude their group encounters against Croatia on the 18th of June at the same venue.

Provisional squad

Centre-back Carlos Puyol is ruled out of the Euro with a knee injury while David Villa is yet to recover from the leg injury he suffered in December. The final squad would be announced on the 27th of May.

Goalkeepers: Iker Casillas, David De Gea, Pepe Reina

Defenders: Alvaro Arbeloa, Sergio Ramos, Jordi Alba, Raul Albiol, Alvaro Dominguez, Ignacio Monreal Juanfran

Midfielders: Isco, Xabi Alonso, Santi Cazorla, Benat, Javier Garcia, Bruno Soriano, Juan Mata

Forwards: Adrian Lopez, David Silva, Roberto Soldado, Jesus Navas, Alvaro Negredo, Fernando Torres

Star Players

The captain, Iker Casillas is the best goal-keeper in the business and holds the national record for the highest number of clean sheets kept. David Silva's pace and guile made him indispensable at Man City and he is a huge threat to rival back-lines.

Euro 2012 Team Profile: England...

No other country has produced so many talented players and sorely under-performed at the international stage as England has. The country that spawned the game has few honours to showcase. It has been ages since the Englishmen have lifted a trophy and I am sure they would be desperate to lay their hands on one. Every English fan would be hoping to put an end to this long wait. Will their new manager Roy Hodgson, who replaced the Italian Fabio Capello, put an end to this wait? Only time will tell.

Route to qualification

England were placed in one of the easiest groups in the qualifiers. Montenegro, Switzerland, Wales and Bulgaria hardly posed a threat to the star-studded English team. Wembley turned out to be a lucky ground for England as they hammered Bulgaria 4-0 in early September, 2010. Their next match against Switzerland was a routine affair with the Three Lions comfortably winning 3-1. However, England were held to a surprise draw at home by Montenegro in October, with neither team scoring any goal. The Englishmen visited their neighbours, the Welsh, six months later and came back with a comfortable 2-0 victory. England's erratic home form continued as the Swiss held them to a 2-2 draw on June 4, 2011. England won both the games they played in September 2011, beating Bulgaria 2-0 and Wales 1-0. Montenegro turned out to be insurmountable again and England came off with a 2-2 draw against them. With five wins and three draws Capello's boys emerged on top of their group in the qualifiers.

European championships history

England have qualified for the European championships on eight different occasions but have never managed to reach the final. They finished third in the 1968 European Championship but only four teams participated in that event. Their best-ever performance was in 1996, in which not only did they play host but went all the way up to the semi-final and lost to eventual champions Germany on penalties. After the heart-break of failing to qualify for the 2008 edition, the Three Lions are back in the competition this time and would surely want to make their presence felt.

Opponents

England begin the pursuit of their first ever European title against traditional rivals France on June 11, 2012 at the Donbass Arena in Donetsk. They travel to Kiev to play Sweden at the Olympic stadium on June 14, 2012. The stadium, with a capacity of more than 70000 would provide an electrifying atmosphere. Five days later, they play their final group match against first-time hosts Ukraine in what could be described as tricky encounter.

England squad

Rio Ferdinand does not find a place in Roy Hodgson's 23-man squad while young Chamberlain is a surprise inclusion. Wayne Rooney is a part of the team despite the fact that he will miss out the first two games through suspension.

Goalkeepers: Joe Hart, John Ruddy, Robert Green.

Defenders: Leighton Baines, Gary Cahill, Glen Johnson, Phil Jones, Joleon Lescott, John Terry, Ashley Cole.

Midfielders: Gareth Barry, Stewart Downing, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, James Milner, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Scott Parker, Theo Walcott, Ashley Young.

Strikers: Andy Carroll, Jermain Defoe, Wayne Rooney, Danny Welbeck.

Star Players

Wayne Rooney is, without doubt, the most important English player. He has been in scintillating form for his club, Manchester United, this season and finished as the second highest goal-scorer in the premier league. His attacking prowess and goal-scoring ability are well established facts.

A Premier League Hangover....

The weeks after the Premier League season finishes are a tough test for football fans. They know that a nine -month long discussion of great goals, footballing tactics and controversial chickens must come to an end, leaving football fans with a terrible hangover.

So, it is a natural reaction for fans to look back and analyse every possible talking point of the season. Who was the best player, the best team, the biggest disappointment? The same questions are asked each year, in the knowledge that by the next week these conversations will cease to exist.

Yet, this has been a season to remember, and on Sunday the Premier League ended with one of the greatest finishes in footballing history. This hangover will last longer than most.

Man City's 44-year wait for glory over their neighbours came down to five excruciating minutes. With the score at 2-1 to QPR and only stoppage time to play, Roberto Mancini looked on the verge of madness. However, once Edin Dzeko headed the equaliser for Man City the stadium erupted again. Then Aguero's winner showed the touch of class that has made Man City worthy champions this season.

The red side of Manchester did all they could with a 2-0 victory over Sunderland. For the majority of the 90 minutes Man Utd's name was on the trophy. So, it was a tough day for last season's champions as a 20th League title was not written in their stars.

Amongst the excitement over Man City, the fate of QPR was just as tense a sub-plot in the game. After being dominated by Mancini's side for most of the match, Joleon Lescott's clumsy header allowed Djibril Cisse to level the scoring. The nerves of Mark Hughes were tested enormously as his captain Joey Barton was sent off for crazily reacting to Carlos Tevez and elbowing him in the face. Then Jamie Mackie looked like he had scored the winner. Even with 10 men, nobody could have guessed that Man City would beat QPR 3-2. Ultimately, the result became irrelevant for QPR as Bolton could only draw 2-2 with Stoke and so were relegated from the Premier League.

It is only right, in an Olympic year, that the bronze medal position in the Premier League had an extra significance. Arsenal and West Brom provided the thrilling tie in this race as there were several calamitous errors from both sides before it ended with Arsenal securing third position with a 3-2 win. While the new England manager Roy Hodgson left West Brom in defeat, the fan's favourite Harry Redknapp secured fourth spot with Tottenham and now has a torrid week of anticipation before Chelsea play Bayern Munich in the Champions League final.

A final day with so much nail-biting tension, last gasps and pure jubilation will give football fans much to discuss during this barren period (forgetting of course, that there is a Champions League final, Championship play-offs and a European Championship to follow) and it will soon be time to look forward to the new season, with fresh faces and new rivalries to entertain us all over again.

Euro 2012 - A Betting Method...

We all want to find a way to win at the Euro's and I've been thinking of a few ideas of how best to try and win big. Let's face it; we all know that staking a reasonable amount on a single is the best way to approach betting but, quite frankly, we sometimes want the chance of a bigger win. That unfortunately brings us to accumulators and the danger they bring. As I've explained in other articles, they are usually the devils work, losing more often than not and paying out far lower than the true odds when they are successful. They are however, the only real way of spending a little to potentially win a lot.

The first accumulator we're going to look at is accumulating the winners of each of the four groups. If we take the favourites in each group, Russia, Germany, Spain and England, a four fold accumulator would supply us with odds of 18-1. That's quite a nice bang for your buck wouldn't you say? The trouble is that we have no contingency if others were to win. So why don't we extend it to the top two in each group? If we change the bet for either Russia or Poland to win Group A, Germany and the Netherlands Group B, Spain or Italy Group C and England and France Group D, we could get a return of up to 112-1 if the second favourites all obliged. I should really just explain how that works.

In that example, you are in reality searching for any run of four wins, with two possibilities in each "game" shall we say. The trouble is that to perform this bet, you need to cover every possible combination and in this example, that's 16 (2*2*2*2). You therefore will win anywhere from 18-1 and 112-1 if either of the top favourites win each group. Of course, if you have to place 16 bets and you only win with the favourites, you'll return £19 to a £16 bet - not so good.

To help this, I would minimise Group C to just Spain as they are the clearest favourites. This reduces the number of bets you're placing to 8 and a return between 18-1 and 37-1.

If you wanted to expand things, you could match the favourite in the group with another, lower placed team that could surprise a few people. Let's say that you stick with only Spain in Group C but you select Russia and the Czechs in Group A, Group B Germany & Portugal and Group D England and Sweden. You would still have the option of collecting if every favourite paid off but also returning 269-1 if the more unlikely result

So there you are, a simple way of backing favourites in the Euro's that has a chance of a substantial win if all things come together. I'll be back shortly with another look at Accumulators that are low risk but hold the chance of larger rewards.

Rob Allen is a football fanatic who has been betting and playing fantasy football for the last 10 years. His book, "Yahoo Fantasy Football - Dominating the Competition" can be found on Amazon.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7079108

Soccer Season Around the Corner..!

Just so you know, I love soccer. I mean....I really love it.

I've been playing since I can remember. When I was younger, there wasn't really much of a minor soccer league, unlike today in my home town of Dryden, Ontario. There were always a certain small group of kids from each age group that would show up and you'd barely be able to play a full sided game. Actually, I can't remember ever playing a full sided game in minor league.

Now a days, there's roughly 6 teams per division. Thanks to the efforts of a lot of people, especially one married couple, our minor soccer league has grown to be the largest participated sport in town (last time I checked anyway).

Seeing the growth in the sport, especially in our small town, has been great. Players coming up through the ranks are now well versed in positions, systems, and fundamentals. Where as, when I was coming up, it was all about hard work and pushing forward. Now, we're beginning to see the game the way it should be played. Smart, full of individual and team skill, and of course, hard work.

What gets me most excited, other than playing myself, is teaching and coaching players and seeing them grow and improve. One player I've coached since he was 10 years old, can juggle the ball 300 times in a row. I've only heard of one other player around here that's been able to do that, and he's way past his prime. This player has put in the time and practice to put himself, skill-wise, above the rest. He wants to be good.

There's other players, who like this one, have unbelievable skill and have put in the time and effort to become exceptional players. It hasn't come naturally to them. They've put in hard work and lots of time perfecting skills.

So if you too want to become an awesome soccer player, here's some tips:

1. Juggle every chance you get.

Not only will this improve your touch on the ball, which is crucial, you'll get in a little conditioning session while you're at it.

2. Use your other foot.

Any chance you get to touch the ball with your "not so good" or "weak" foot, do it. Soon enough that foot won't be so weak. But the only way it gets better is through constant repetition.

3. Run sprints.

Speed is the "X" factory in any sport. If you're fast, a coach will find a spot for you. The best way to get fast, is practicing running fast, or sprinting.

4. Improve your upper body strength.

If you don't want to get pushed off the ball, start getting stronger. Like Zach Even-Esh said, "Eat your pushups and pullups for breakfast". These are the two easiest exercises to do, without expensive equipment, to build upper body strength.

But if you really want to know the secret of becoming awesome at any sport, it's really simple.

Practice.

All the time.

The great players separate themselves from the good ones by doing work on their own. They constantly look for ways to get better and they go out and do them.

So get out there, and get to work.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7072912

Will England Win Euro 2012 Football Tournament?

Major Injuries

One worrying factor is the amount of injuries the England squad has suffered. With Gareth Barry, Frank Lampard and Gary Cahill all out of the competition, England's chances are obviously reduced. The injury to such a key player as Frank Lampard is a major blow. With him out, the likes of Steven Gerrard will have to step up to the plate and produce their club form. England could also struggle with Wayne Rooney's suspension until the later stages of the tournament. I think they may struggle to get out of their group, although you could say the same about France. If England managed to come through the group stage, I believe they would have a good chance of getting to the final, with then Rooney available. If England are to do well in the tournament, they need to keep any more injuries to a minimum.

New Coach

With Roy Hodgson only just in place as England manager, the performance of the team in a major competition is an unknown quantity. The progress of the team will be reliant on Hodgson's well renound man management and coaching skills. Hodgson has experience of international football management, taking Switzerland to the 1994 world cup finals after he got them through the qualifiers. Hodgson also got them to Euro 1996, but left before the finals to go back to club management. At the time that he managed Switzerland they got to No.3 in the Fifa world rankings. He is very highly thought of by the Swiss players that he took charge of. With a record like that, is their anyone better qualified to lead England at Euro 2012?

Strike Force

Some people may say that England's strike force is lightweight, but I think they're quite versatile. They've got the physicality and heading prowess of Andy Carroll, the industry of Danny Welbeck, the clinical finishing of Jermaine Defoe and for the latter stages, the all round skill of Wayne Rooney. They may perhaps have a solution to break down different defences.

New Beginnings

With a fresh start, a new coach and younger players now coming through, the likes of Danny Welbeckand Phil Jones, England does have at least half a chance at Euro 2012. Hodgson has a chance to rebuild the team and make them a force again. His experience at Liverpool, where he struggled with some of the players egos, will stand him in good stead for the England team. He's a man who learns from his mistakes, unlike some footballers that could be mentioned.