Euro 2012 Betting Guide 1

Welcome to our betting guide for the Euros. The Football Watercooler are proud to announce the signing of magical tipster @J_Wattsy who will be bringing you a few punts for each stage of the tournament. See below for the first instalment from our punt mystro. We hope you enjoy. Oh and good luck of of course.

 

Euro 2012 Top Goal-Scorer

Fernando Torres deserved his share of criticism for Chelsea last season. The Spaniard looked like a shadow of his former self for the majority of the campaign, but there were glimpses that the ‘old’ Torres was beginning to come back in to form.

The 28 year old netted the winner against Barcelona which sent Chelsea through to the Champions League Final and despite a modest total of seven goals for the season, he still played his part.

With David Villa injured for the tournament, Spain need someone to spearhead their potent attack. Torres’s confidence would have been boosted when he started (and scored) against South Korea in a warm-up game. Fernando, with his 28 international goals, should be the man to lead the line.

Spain are likely to go a long way in the tournament, Fernando Torres at 18/1 (Bet365) seems a good proposition.

 

The Outsider

The opening game of the 2012 European Championships is likely to be somewhat forgettable, with the co-hosts Poland clashing with the resolute but modest scoring Greece, who as a nation, desperately need something to cheer about.

By virtue of being a host nation, Poland haven’t been through the qualifying process, so it’s not easy to get a handle on the ability of their team.

What you can be sure is that the unbeaten Group F table-toppers, Greece, will be extremely hard to penetrate. In their 10 qualifiers, the 2004 European Champions conceded just five goals. With five clean sheets to their name too, you can expect this team to be robust.

As Greece struck only 14 goals in qualifying, they’re not prolific. However, I fully expect them to be compact, organised and to have enough attacking quality to break down the Polish defences.

There’s a good chance the opening game will be a bore-draw, so it makes sense to take out some insurance and snap up the 11/5 (BlueSquare) on Greece – draw no bet.

 

The Double

Leg One…                                      

The first round of group games is likely to throw up a few draws and the titanic clash between France and England may be no exception.

There’s little doubt that Roy Hodgson will have his Three Lions set up to make them extremely hard to beat. Hodgson’s been in charge for two warm-up games and the performances have been identical to one another: solid and organised – but not spectacular.

Similarly, France don’t possess the same flair they once did when Zinedine Zidane was dissecting opposition defences.

England scored 17 goals in qualifying (in two less games), France just 15. With this being accurately touted as a game ‘neither team can afford to lose’, I think both managers will settle for a low-key start to their respective campaigns.

 

Leg Two…

Sweden can increase the pressure on both England and France in what is a tricky Group D, by getting off to the best possible start against co-hosts Ukraine.

Erik Hamren’s men are free-scoring, having notched an impressive 31 goals in qualifying, including a 3-2 win over hot tournament fancies Netherlands.

On the other hand, Ukraine enter the tournament on the back of two demoralising defeats to Austria and Turkey and on the balance of form, look unworthy favourites, despite having the advantage of the home support.

Sweden win (21/10) + France v England draw (21/10) @ 8.61/1 (PaddyPower)