Here's a look at the 4 teams making up the group B division in this years Euro Cup tournament.
Germany
Overview:
The German side played extremely well in qualifying, going 10-0-0 in qualifying group A. In their last 9 international matches they have gone 5-2-2, with the two loses coming in the last two games. The first was against a strong French side that beat them 2-1 in February, and a short-staffed side lost 5-3 on the 26th of May. The Germans are in one of the toughest groups, but look for their strong play to help carry them through the group stage.
Group Stage:
The German’s begin their tournament against Portugal. The Portuguese have had to win a playoff to make it into this year European Cup. The Germans are 3-2-1 against the Portuguese since 1996, and their last meeting in the quarterfinals of the 2008 European Cup resulted in a 3-2 win for Germany.
Their second game features another international powerhouse, the Dutch. These two sides have faced off 5 times since 2000, with a 1-2-2 record for the German side. That being said, their last meeting, in November of 2011, was won 3-0. They also played to a 1-1 draw in the group stage of the European Championships in 2004. The final group match for Germany comes against the Danes. These two teams have only faced off 3 times since 2000, with the Danish side coming out ahead on two of those occasions. Their most recent match in 2010 resulted in a 2-2 draw, however most pundits would agree a loss for Germany is unlikely.
Players/Personnel:
Most if not all of the big names return for Germany in this year’s European Championships. Marislav Klose has 9 goals in 6 games, Mario Gomez has 6 goals in 6 games and Mesut Ozil has a respectable 5 goals in 9 games. With Lukas Podolski, Thomas Muller, and Bastian Schweinsteiger lending support, the German’s will have a very strong attack.
Denmark
Overview:
The Danish side will have a tough time making it out of the group stage of this year’s European Championships. Drawing the difficult group B will not be welcome news for fans back home, however their side has played well as of late. Going 5-0-3 in their last 8 international matches, and qualifying 6-1-1 will spur on a side that has lost the only two international matches they have played in 2012 (lost to Russia 2-0 in Feb, and 3-1 to Brazil at the end of May).
Group Stage:
Denmark begin their 2012 European Cup campaign against the Netherlands. The sides met two years ago in the group stage of the World Cup, with the Dutch coming out ahead with a 2-0 win. It’s hard to say how this one will turn out, but keep in mind the Dutch have played very well in the last few international tournaments. The next matchup for the Danish side is Portugal, another team that qualified out of group H. In October Denmark came out ahead, 2-1, however when they played in 2010 Portugal won 3-1. That being said Denmark finished with a better qualification record giving them a slight edge, and some confidence, when these two teams square off.
The final group match is against Germany. Since 2000 these teams have only met three times. The match record over that period was 1-1-1. Their most recent encounter was in 2010 when the two sides played to a 2-2 draw. Denmark played well in qualification, but if they are to have hope of winning against the Germans their form will have to be top notch.
Players/Personnel:
Nicklas Bendtner has the responsibilities up front, and he is expected to receive strong support from Christien Eriksen in the midfield. Defensive responsibility will fall on Daniel Agger, if the Danes are going to make it out of the group he’ll have a lot to do with it.
Netherlands
Overview:
The Netherlands enter this years European Championships with eyes fixed squarely on the final match and a 2012 European Cup. Having lost a heartbreaker to Spain in the finals of the World Cup in South Africa, and qualifying with a 9-0-1 record, a rejuvenated side enters this competition looking to be champions of Europe. With the quality of play being exhibited by some of their better-known attackers (Robin van Persie in particular), they are sure to make their presence felt in the difficult group B.
Group Stage:
The Dutch begin the tournament with a game against the Danes. These two teams have faced off 4 times since 2000. In that time Denmark has never won a game. At the last World Cup the two sides faced off in the group stage as well, with the Netherlands taking the game 2-0.
The second match the Dutch play is against Germany, a titanic match that features two of Europe’s strongest sides. They faced off last November with the match resulting in a 3-0 win for Germany. On that day the Netherlands were missing key parts of their attack including Van Persie, and Arjen Robben, and the German’s played well, with goals from key players. This game will probably come down to who takes advantage of their opportunities on goal.
The final in the group stage for the Dutch is against Portugal. The Portuguese finished second in their group and had to qualify through a playoff, but if you examine past matches, the Dutch side seemingly doesn’t match up very well against the Portuguese. Since 1990 the teams have played 10 times, with the Dutch coming out ahead only once. That being said, the two sides have not faced off since the round of 16 in the 2006 World Cup. This one is hard to call history could repeat itself, or the recent form of the Dutch side could overwhelm an embattled Portuguese side.
Players/Personnel:
All of the key role players that helped the Netherlands to the finals of the 2010 World Cup return in this year’s European Championships. Wesley Sneijder and Arjen Robben have returned from injury and will give support to a very strong set of strikers. Dirk Kuyt (6 goals in qualifying), Robin van Persie (6 goals in qualifying), and Klass-Jan Hunterlaar (9 goals in qualifying), to name a few.
Portugal
Overview:
Portugal has never won a European Championship and after being placed in a grouping with Germany and Netherlands, it is hard to see this being their year. They emerged from the qualifiers with a record of 5 wins, 1 draw and 2 losses. Portugal narrowly made it out of the qualifiers finishing with the same record as Norway, only advancing because they beat Norway in their head to head.
Group Stage:
Portugal has a tough start ahead of them, playing Germany in their first game. In their previous meetings, Portugal has only managed to win 3 of them, losing 8 and drawing 5. It’s hard to picture a scenario where Portugal comes out on top in this face-off.
Portugal moves on to take the field against Denmark, of all of their first round matchups this is the one they have the best chance of winning. While Denmark finished the qualifiers with a better record, Portugal has won 8 of the teams 13 meetings and only lost to the Dane’s 2 times.
Their last game of the round will be against Netherlands, while the Netherlands is coming off of an impressive performance in the World Cup finals, don’t expect to see Portugal roll over for them. In their previous matchups, Portugal has won 6 of 9 meetings and only lost to the Netherlands once. While most would pick Netherlands to come out on top, expect this one to be interesting.
Players/Personnel:
Portugal’s campaign will rise and fall with Cristiano Ronaldo and with 7 goals in 8 qualifying games, he looks to be in good form. Manchester United’s Nani is another big name that will lend his expertise to the Portuguese squad and he is off to a respectable start with 5 goals in 10 qualifying games. Forward Helder Postiga has also started off strong with 5 goals in 8 games.
