Pre-match Preview: EURO 2012 Quarterfinal, Germany vs Greece

The history is on Germany's side as they have never lost to Greece in the past. And frankly speaking, Loew's squad is now on a different level compared to Santos'. Germany cruised through the Group Stage with 9 points, while Greece was the at bottom of group A before their last match against Russia. 

Fun fact number 1, prior to the encounter at Gdansk stadium, Germany and Greece have never lost in EURO's quarterfinal. In the last 4 times that Germany got to quarterfinal, they won all. Although they have been to only one quarterfinal, Greece later emerged as champion of EURO 2004. 

Fun fact number 2, the man behind Greece's glorious 2004 was Otto Rehhagel, a famous German coach with his trade-mark defensive style. 

However, a miracle is not likely to take place tonight, as Greece is now only the shadow of themselves in EURO 2004, and sitting on the host seat is Fernando Santos, the Portuguese who is more towards offensive football. 

Germany is clearly the favorite to win

Head to Head Track Record

The two team met each other first time in 1960 and half a century has passed but Greece has never beaten Germany. In the last 8 encounters, they had 5 losses and 3 draws. 

Greece lost 0-3 in home ground, and 1-2 in Germany's territory in World Cup 1962's qualification. Similar pattern happened in World Cup 2002's qualification when Germany won 2-0 in Hamburg and 4-2 in Athens. 

Performance

Needless to say, Loew's team is the best performing team in the group stage. They grabbed all 9 points in 3 matches, cruising through the "Group of Death" over Portugal, Netherlands and Denmark. They looked strong at the back and sharp in front. Mario Gomez, Germany's striker, is on top of scoring chart at EURO 2012. 

On the other hand, the journey to quarterfinal for Greece was not easy. Draw with Poland, lost to Czech meant they were at the bottom of the table and needed a miracle. They made it happen by winning over Russia, the favorite at group A. Unfortunate for Greece, their hero, captain Karagounis, will be sitting on the bench due to his yellow card in the last mach. 

With or without Karagounis, it's hard to believe that Greece will continue their fairy tale tonight. Germany is famous for their disciplined and ruthless football. 

Their fairy tale is likely to come to an end tonight, as Germany is famous for their disciplined and ruthless football. Schweinstaiger and teammates are clearly the favorite to be in the semi-final. 

Our Prediction 

While Germany looks solid, Greece seems to have played all their cards. It will be dominating match for Loew's men, and 2-0 will be our prediction for tonight quarterfinal. 

Betting Tips 

Let's take a look at 36BOL major market for the match between Germany and Greece

Source: 36BOL.com

Our recommended bet would be Germany Asian Handicap (-) 1.50 at odds 0.990. With both teams' playing style, we would suggest the scoreline below 2.50 so go for Under 2.50 at odds 1.053. Watch out for the bet first goal/last goal as we think that Gomez once again will score. 

For more odds and markets, visit 36BOL Sports Betting

Post-match statistic: Portugal into semi-final

Ronaldo once again scored to put Portugal in the semi-final of EURO 2012. Despite being defeated last night, getting to quarterfinal is already considered a success for Czech Republic. 

CR7 was deadly in front of Cech's goal. Hadn't it been for Chelsea goalkeeper's spectacular performance last night, the scoreline would have been wider for Portugal. Ronaldo alone hit the woodwork twice before header home a winner for Portugal. Let's take a look at last night post-match statistic: 

It was clear that Portugal was dominating the game, with 58% ball possession, 20 goals attempt and 11 on target. Meanwhile, Czech Republic only had 1 single shot on target in their 1 goal attempt. All other stats are on Portugal's side too e.g. Freekick, Cornerkick and etc. 

During the whole match, Czech's attack seemed feeble and non-threatening, while Portugal lived up to the name of a big team proven by their calmness after so many chances have been missed. Ronaldo once again was the highlight of the match, and with this spirit Portugal has a very good chance of winning the tournament. 

Stay tuned for our pre-match preview of Germany vs Greece. Meanwhile, check out the latest odds and market at 36BOL Sportsbook

Some heats on the stand: Portugal vs Czech Republic

There were many famous retired footballer on the stand last night watching Portugal and Czech Republic battling for a spot in the semi final. 

Eusebio and Figo, the living legends of Portugal's football, were surely happy with Portugal's performance last night.

Alan Shearer in the role of commentator for a station.

Christian Karembeu, French midfielder (right)

Pierluigi Collina, president of UEFA Referee Committee. 

Some other heat on the stand?

Portugal's lady fans seemed to be winning too?

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Some Czech's beauties

Ronaldo is the main target both on the field and on the stand

Not too disappointed with Czech's performance this EURO 2012.

Another Portugal's pretty fan

Pre-match Preview: EURO 2012 Czech Republic vs Portugal

Going into quarterfinal is considered a success for Michal Bilek's men, and in front of Czech Republic now stands Portugal with the "canon Ronaldo" ready to fire. 

Czech Republic and Portugal both lost their first game before winning the last two to advance to the last eight. The difference is that Czech Republic was in the group that considered the easiest while Portugal had to go against Germany, Netherlands and Denmark. 

In group stage, Michal Bilek's squad showed their 'iron will". Not many people believe that Czech Republic could stand up like that after the comprehensive lost 1-4 in their first match against Russia. They grabbed 3 points in the next match against Greece with a good strategy.  Under enormous  pressure in Warsaw National Stadium, they defeated the co-host Poland with Jiracek's only goal. 

Portugal, on the other hand, showed their improvement by each match. They started with the disappointed performance, playing with a defensive formation against Germany, which received a lot of criticism. Paulo Bento knew that Portugal needed to take more risk and win the next game, and so they did. In the last match against Netherlands, Ronaldo had one of his performance with two goals to boost and seal the come-back victory for Portugal. 

Victory over Netherlands does not only mean a spot in the last eight, but a push the team's spirit. Portugal's biggest star, Ronaldo, was the target for much criticism and complaints for his poor performance in the first two games, especially in the match against Denmark when he missed so many obvious chances. Hence, the two goals in the last match is a positive sign for Portugal's offense. With Ronaldo shining, other players around him like Nani, Postiga or Meireles will perform better. 

 

Ronaldo and team-mates are improving their game match by match 

It will be very difficult for Czech Republic to stand against attacking power of Portugal. More importantly, when Ronaldo is on form, it's really hard to stop him. Beside Portugal's captain, Czech's defense is weak in situation when the opponent uses speed to attack. Their fans have reason to worry about Czech's right defender Tomas Sivok, who are responsible for 2 in 4 conceded goals in the match against Russia. On the other hand, this will come as advantage for Portugal when they are possessing Ronaldo and Nani, wingers with skill and speed. Portugal is on different level compared to Poland, therefore Michal Bilek's men will not likely to pull another stunt at EURO 2012. 

Bilek is having some headaches with Czech's offense too. All of their goals until now are scored by midfielders, Jiracek and Pilar. Milan Baros seemed harmless in front of the goal, while Portugal's central defender Pepe and Bruno Alves are doing a good job so far. 

Their head to head record is even for both team. In the last 11 encounters, each team won 4, drew 3, and lost 4. In the most recent match, Portugal beat Czech Republic 3-1 in the group stage. 

Our Prediction 

It's likely that Portugal will be the team advancing to next round, and our prediction for this match is 2-1. However, this is quarterfinal and anything can happen. 

Betting Tips 

Take a look at the market and odds offered by 360BOL.com 

The most promising odds is Portugal Asian Handicap (-) 0.75 at odds 1.031. We have a funny feeling that Ronaldo will be the one who started the scoreline, so watch out for that bet too. For more odds and markets, visit 36BOL.com Sportsbook

Beautiful moments England vs Ukraine

Last night match between England and Ukraine ended in different notes for the two teams. Rooney returned to score his first goal in EURO 2012 and England looked stronger than ever with their "diligent and organized" football. The Three Lions now stand a chance to reach their first semi-final since 1996. 

On the other hand, Shevchenko was not able to further Ukraine's EURO dream. The co-host had a grand start with 2-1 comeback victory against Sweden. But last night was the end of their journey, and it was a sad note for "Sheva" as this would be the last international tournament for the 35-year-old striker. We have compiled some memorable moments of this match. 

After two games sitting on the bench, Rooney returned with a goal for himself. In the photo is an England fans kissing "Sherk monster" - a nickname for Rooney

On the other hand, Ukraine fans were disappointed because their hero, Shevchenko, had to sit on the bench due to injury. 

 

England fans have surely put their trust and belief in Roy Hodgson - who have only been in charge since May. 

Ukraine team thought that the ball had gone past the line in this situation. 

So did Oleg Blokhin...

Shevchenko came in however it was too late for Ukraine. 

The match ended in different notes, happiness for England and disappointment for co-host Ukraine. 

Shevchenke saying goodbye to international football

Following Ukraine's elimination from EURO 2012 after 0-1 defeat by England last night, Andriy Shevchenko announced his retirement from international football. 

He told the press that he intends to say goodbye in a friendly match before standing down. The 35 year old is the brightest star of Ukraine football and a record holder of 48 goals in 111 appearances. He sat on the bench most of the time in last night match against England due to a knee injury. 

Sheva has retired from World Stage

Shevchenko began the championship with 2 goals in Ukraine's come-back victory against Sweden. 

Shevchenko's current contract with Dynamo Kiev is going to expire in July and he has expressed interest to move to America's Major League Soccer. 

Post-match Statistic: Group B, Third Round

Last night matches at group B saw Germany grabbed their third wins in group stage over Denmark, while Netherlands was opposite as they lost all three matches having defeated 1-2 by Portugal.

Germany showed that they are the number one seed for the title. Without having much difficulties throughout the group stage, Germany easily grabbed three wins to top group B with 9 points. On the other hand, Ronaldo shined last night with a double for Portugal to condemn Netherlands to one of the worst tournament in their history, having lost all their matches at group stage. Netherlands leaves EURO 2012 with 0 points, scored 2 goals and conceded 5. 

Let's dive in to some post-match statistic: 

1. Denmark vs Germany

Podolski put Germany ahead at 19 minutes and only 5 minutes later, Krohn-Delhi leveled the game for Denmark. Lars Bender put an end to Denmark's hope of going to the next round as he secured the 2-1 win for Germany 10 minutes before the whistle. 

Denmark had a lot of ball posession, 57% compared to Germany's 43%, however their goal attempts were less. Both team had 5 shots on target, but Germany was able to convert better. 

2. Netherlands vs Portugal 

Netherlands was hoping for a miracle after taking the lead by Van Der Vaart's goal at 11 minutes. However Ronald shined at the right time and made a double, at 28 and 74 minutes respectively, to secure a place in the quarter final. 

Portugal was not having a better ball possession, which was only 41%. But number of chances and goal attempts they made were more. Portugal had 20 goal attempts and 9 shots on target, while Netherlands only had 9 goal attempts and 4 shots on target. Netherlands only has themselves to blame, and the big contestant of the title was sent home without a point. 

Stay tuned for our analysis of tonight's matches, betting tips and predictions. Meanwhile, check out the latest odds at 36BOL Sports betting