Euro Cup 2012 – Result Predictions

Only 3 matches left to conclude the 14th edition of European Championship with the European giants like Spain, Portugal, Germany and Italy reaching the Semi Finals. While Germany, Spain, Portugal took a straight win in the quarters, Italy had to fought hard for the victory against England and finally deciding the winner by the penalty shoot out. Semi Finals starts from 27th of June with only two team having the chance of making it to the finals.

Euro Cup 2012 – Semi Final Fixtures/Schedule

Semi Final 1: Portugal vs Spain

The first semi final of Euro 2012 is worth a watch as Portugal and Spain clashes to make way to the finals with one of the two teams ending their triumph in the tournament. Both the teams has been on top their game in the championship with Spain having a slight edge. Spain is yet to loose a match in the tournament while Portugal has lost one in the group stage against Germany.

Strengths & Weaknesses

Spain: Spain was weak when it entered the semi finals with the star players like David Villa and Carles Puyol missing the championship due to injuries. Gerard Piqué and Sergio Ramos has done well in defending but its the only point of weakness the Spanish team. The greatest strength of the team lies with midfielders and they have proved it in each and every game. Andrés Iniesta, Xavi Hernández, Cesc Fàbregas, Xabi Alonso, David Silva and Jesús Navas have helped in controlling the game and has also scored on the crucial times. Team made 672 completed passes against Italy’s 341, 810 against Ireland’s 198, 639 against Croatia’s 231 and 638 against France’s 429 with more than 50% of ball possession.

Portugal: Cristiano Ronaldo, Pepe and Nani has been the greatest strengths of the Portuguese team but the teams dependency on them has one of the weak points in their game. Postiga thigh muscle injury will make him sit out of the Semi Finals which will be a cause of concern for the team.

Prediction: Spain

Result: Spain beat Portugal

The Spanish team has never looked back after winning the Euro Cup 2008. After winning FIFA World Cup 2010 the team has gained the winning momentum and is very difficult to beat. Spain has not lost a single match in the last 18 competitive games which makes them favorite for the win.

Semi Final 2: Germany vs Italy

Germany and Italy will clash in the second semi final of the championship to take the berth in the finals. Germany has been on song right from the starting of the tournament while Italy has been above average.

Strengths & Weaknesses

Germany: The only team to win all their matches in the championship so far has Mario Gomez, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Miroslav Klose and Mesut Özil to add to their strengths. Playing with all the power deployed in the tournament Germany has no real weaknesses but their defending line can be improved to lift the Euro Cup fourth time.

Italy: The fourth semi finalist Italy has been not lost any but has won the least matches among all the semi finalists. Italy’s defense has been their backbone in the tournament with the likes of Christian Maggio, Giorgio Chiellini, Angelo Ogbonna, Federico Balzaretti, Ignazio Abate, Andrea Barzagli and Leonardo Bonucci. Gianluigi Buffon has been keeping the Golf post quite well and helped his team to reach the Semis by defending the penalty shoot out against England. Team’s forwards has not been able to score with the full throttle and that concludes their only weakness.

Prediction: Germany

Result: Italy beat Germany 2-1

Germany has been one of the most in-form team of the tournament and beating them will be tough task for the Italians.

Posted on Jun 26 2012. Filed under Football. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry